The emotional and psychological benefits of music have sparked debate for centuries. However, if you are still skeptical of the all-encompassing forces, all you have to do is look at the current pandemic to really see how music has been a driving force for togetherness and the lifting of spirits around the world. Whether that’s the iconic images of Italians playing instruments and singing from their balconies at the start of the pandemic last year, or the many bands and musicians streaming live millions of social media streams, live performances and festivals.
You will have a hard time finding someone whose mental health has not been affected by the pandemic in the past year, but according to recent research by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), the music recording industry organization in the UK, 94% of Britons said that Music helped improve their mood during lockdown, while 91% of respondents said music helped them escape and forget their problems.
Here in Nottingham, a certain subculture has particularly helped lift the spirits of music lovers across the city and provide them with an oasis where they can come together in the name of music from the comfort of their own home.
Nottingham’s underground house scene has roots that go back to the early 1990s. The city is often viewed as one of the global deep house epicentres. But as the pandemic devastated the nation, a series of lockdowns last year forced many venues across the city to close their doors, leaving a void in the city and in the hearts of Nottingham’s underground house community. After having an electric calendar of regular events, the city’s nightlife came to a standstill and many felt lost without the convenience of the community they had been calling home for for so many years.
To combat this and keep the spirit of the house alive, Nottingham DJ Alex Traska has made it his mission to help rebuild this community during the pandemic. Music lovers across the city and beyond were given the opportunity to come together again via its global online streaming radio platform Myhouse Yourhouse, which restarted last year during the first lockdown after a two-year hiatus. In the past twelve months, the platform has welcomed over 80,000 listeners through its doors, 40 times the load of Rock City.
We recently caught up with Alex and East Midlands DJ and promoter Jakki Denton to find out how the online streaming platform and a series of live streaming house nights have helped so many people across town to get through one of the toughest years in the country and to discuss their upcoming event, the Mentally Sound Weekender, which will be held May 29-31.
Tell us a little about Myhouse Yourhouse …
Alex: The easiest way to think of Myhouse Yourhouse is that it is a venue that exists online. When we started it in 2005 we decided that it was important that everyone participate as a collective, and we all understood that we will never invite people to play, we will never invite people to listen, and we are not interested in doing it Sale of advertising space. It’s not a money-making exercise, it was more about being passionate about what we do. That’s why we built this community that has just started attracting like-minded souls who are passionate about great music.
We have a large selection of DJs, mostly from Nottingham, but we also have DJs from London, Liverpool, Birmingham and as far as Seattle and Austin, Texas. They have the likes of The Big Faces (DJs Coxie & Jodie P), Beane (Soul Buggin) ‘s Noodle Hot Pot, which is celebrating fifteen years of shows on the station this month, and The Antics Roadshow Boys, to name a few. As long as they fit into our musical area of responsibility, which is underground house and electric, but also jazz, soul, hip-hop, disco and all the things that inform about where house music came from, that’s what we’re interested in.
What triggered the decision to bring Myhouse Yourhouse back after its hiatus?
Alex: When the first ban was announced, it meant that many people who hung up were suddenly unable to do so. The first night the lockdown was announced, I wrote on our Facebook group that Myhouse Yourhouse might be coming out of retirement. The next morning I woke up to so many messages from old DJs and many messages from people saying, “You have to do this”. So I created a new website and in a matter of hours, me and Rob, who I hang out with as loose joints, were doing our first opening show, which about 100 people were watching.
We built this community that has just started attracting like-minded people who are passionate about great music
How has the platform performed during the lockdown since that first night?
Alex: Like everyone else, we thought COVID was going to pass, but when it found out it wasn’t going anywhere, we decided to come up with a regular roster. Well the idea of pulling the plug once COVID is over is a distant memory and we hope to continue Myhouse Yourhouse after the pandemic because of all the amazing things that have come of it.
Jakki: There were really so many amazing things that came out of it. I set up ultrasound with my partner Sean MoRpH, who sadly passed away not long ago. We’re from Lincoln and have been running for almost two years. We had a lot of events planned. When the lock went in, we had to break it, but when we found out Myhouse Yourhouse was back up and running, we knew we had to get involved. We now have a regular slot at Myhouse Yourhouse, so we’ve helped build a community and made some great online friends.
Alex: The great thing is, Myhouse Yourhouse also made it possible for us to do some really special things, like we did a couple of weeks ago. We hosted an online event where we raised £ 2,000 for Nottinghamshire Hospice through our special Breast Cancer Awareness Day.
Jakki: There was so much buzz during this event and even though there were only three of us in my house, it didn’t feel that way because of the chat box and the excitement of everyone involved.
Can you tell us more about how Myhouse Yourhouse has helped listeners from a mental health perspective?
Alex: In 2008, Erick Anderson, with whom I founded Myhouse Yourhouse, suddenly committed suicide at the age of 25. There were no warning signs so it was a massive shock to the entire community. As a result, mental health and wellbeing has always been an issue we have been aware of and something that has always been close to our hearts.
The pandemic has also affected the mental health of so many people. You have the extreme level of people who are really struggling to feel isolated, and then you have the less extreme level of people like me who had a bad work-life balance before the lockdown. On the mental health spectrum, they are all really important topics that communities like our people help with. Of course, we’re not alone in this, and it’s not like we’re doing anything unique. We’re just another major social focus for people. But there are always people in the Myhouse Yourhouse chat rooms saying, “Thank you for being here,” and it’s just really humble.
Jakki: Through Myhouse Yourhouse we have helped people who struggled through lockdown and keeping things up and providing great music. We helped their sanity without even realizing that we were doing it.
Tell us about the upcoming mental health awareness weekend, the Mentally Sound Weekender?
Jakki: Sean, who I set up Ultrasound with, was really struggling with his mental health, but he had kept it well hidden, as I think a lot of people struggling with mental health problems unfortunately do. But he had decided to schedule an event to raise awareness about mental health and wellbeing. Six weeks ago we all decided to put the Mentally Sound Weekender into action. Then Sean passed away suddenly, and while his death didn’t result in him taking his life like Erick, it made the event even more important and the story just got so much bigger.
We’ve helped people who struggled with locking down and keeping things up and providing great music. We helped their sanity without even knowing we were doing it
Alex: I always wanted to host an event like this based on what happened to Erick, but with Sean’s death it really strengthened our determination to raise awareness for mental health, especially given the current pandemic.
If we hold the event during the bank holiday weekend we will have a nice three day radio on Saturday, Sunday and Monday and it will be a great weekend with at least eighteen DJs performing over the weekend. We’re going to be doing a lot of deep house, but especially on Sundays people have the chance to hear hip hop, disco, soul and funk – all the genres that shape house music. As part of the weekend, we’ll also be playing recordings of Sean and Erick’s old sets to honor them.
Will you also be raising money for charity during the event?
Alex: Yes. Listeners don’t have to pay to listen, but we will encourage people to donate using the donation link and there will be a tote on the website detailing exactly how much money we have raised.
While there are of course so many fantastic national mental health awareness charities, we wanted to do something to support minor causes like soundcheck. They are a pastoral ministry specifically focused on helping people in the music industry who have been affected by the pandemic and have lost their livelihoods. There are many DJs out there who cannot pay their rent and are being evicted from their homes because of the pandemic. This then affects their family life and relationships and, in some cases, can help some people do the unthinkable. But Soundcheck is a line of support for these people so it was a breeze for us to support them. We’re also in talks with a number of other small local mental health charities that we’ll be announcing soon.
The Myhouse Yourhouse Mentally Sound Weekender will take place online from May 29th to 31st. To learn more, visit the website
myhouseyourhouse.net