I recorded a bunch of sounds from different levels of the spiral starcase in the Feldstraße Bunker back in April. What you'll listen to is a non-linear edit of these sounds to try and convey the sense that the building is a living object, which is what I felt when I was in there. 

The bunker was used as a bomb shelter back in WWII, I believe. When I visited there was a load of rumbling and clanging construction going on outside which appropriately made it seem as though I was in the middle of a raid.

The concrete structure seemed to allow not only reverberations of the sounds up the spiral staircase, but also the memories of the historic use for the building.

www.georgepowell.online

An audio walk in Bedford on a Sunday, contrasting the sounds of St. John's Retail Park and St. John's Church.

You can read a more detailed write-up in a blogpost on my website here: https://georgepowell.online/blog/ 

Recorded on 12th March 2023.

Many businesses on the High Road thrive on match-days. Many don't. The businesses that suffer due to the council-enforced road closures, often barbershops, beauty salons and off-licenses and other retail, still have to pay the same business rates, despite many customers staying away when Tottenham play at home. In some instances, the till can be down more than half compared with a non-match day.

Here you can listen to Mem, who works in an off license, talk about how things have changed for him since the new stadium was built. You'll also hear fans talk about what they do once they hit the High Road, and the sound of roads being closed and match-day ambience.

A walk around Westminster on Thursday 19th January. From 12 bells to 1 bell.

Along with the sound of Big Ben, you can hear me get shouted at by police speeding through Parliament Square and the sound of many gates being closed and locked. There were also people protesting outside Downing Street, and I spoke to Geza Tarjanyi, who made headlines a week later for pushing Matt Hancock in a tube station.

Listen to what nurses are saying and singing on the picket line outside UCLH in Camden.

Recorded on 19 January 2023. 

Location: 51.5251963, -0.1367342 

Recorded in April 2021.

A short walk during the heavy snowfall on the 11th December 2022, where children and adults ventured outside to make a mark on their brand new surroundings in the form of footsteps, scooped handfuls, and snow angels.

I forget when I did this, maybe late January 2021.

Location in the title.

www.georgepowell.online

Recorded at 19:56 on 3rd November 2022.

54.57901, -1.23466

Terry is known as the Bard of Flaybrick. A volunteer at the cemetery who recites poems to the visitors on Flaybrick's walking tours. He's written over 2000 poems with subjects ranging from historical figures of Birkenhead, to local people, places and organisations.

I spoke to Terry to find out where his love of poetry came from, why he volunteers, and how important Flaybrick is to him, and by extension, the rest of Birkenhead.

www.georgepowell.online

Location: 53.3984171, -3.0622207

About a mile off the coast of West Kirby, on The Wirral, is a sandstone archipeligo with an on-off relationship with the rest of the peninsular. 

Roughly every twelve hours, the tide arrives and cuts off the outcrops from the mainland. For around 3 to 5 hours, anyone caught on Hilbre or Middle Eye is pretty much alone, save for the curious brown seals, elegant swallows and swifts, and the sea. 

There is plenty of folklore about Hilbre Island and its smaller cousins; a place of monk's pilgrimmage, a stash-spot for smugglers, and a decoy site during World War II.

If you're ever thinking of popping over during high-tide, always make sure you tell a life guard on West Kirby beach. 

Location: 53.3824369, -3.2271192

Recorded on 6th June 2022

While Blackpool hasn’t recovered its popularity as a seaside resort since the rise of package holidays in the 50s, many people still travel down to the piers. From local day trippers with their children, to older visitors who would have first holidayed there in the resort’s hay day. Many attractions still haven’t changed much since the 50s, but for many, this is what makes Blackpool so appealing. 

Location: 53.81104, -3.05622

A solution to cool down London's Tube network is causing all sorts of problems above ground. Mid-Tunnel Ventilation Shafts are placed at intervals along the tunnels to expel hot air, but to do so they use fans, which emit a noise that can ruin the lives of people that live around them.

This episode looks at two different cases, on either end of the Victoria Line, how the structures have affected their lives, and what efforts, if any, Transport for London are going to, to help them out.

More info can be found at www.georgepowell.online/tonesfromunderground

Originally a French design in the 17th Century, the idea of staircase locks was brought over to Bradford in March 1774 to make it easier to control boats going through. However, it takes around 45 minutes to travel in either direction, and the process wastes a whole lot of water coming through the canal network. 

As a result, it wasn’t long after the 5 Rise was built that construction on these types of locks ceased, so it was almost an anachronism even before it was built. Now, though, the locks still cast an impressive mark on the Aire Valley, and you can only imagine what the spectacle was like when it was first opened.

Location: 53.8563619, -1.8382493

In July 2020, I was invited to Sardinia by my friend Sascha. He was keen to show me around his favourite place on earth, and tell me all about the songwriter Fabrizio De André, who himself fell in love with the island. I gladly saved, packed my Zoom H2N, and headed out for my first trip to Italy.

I wanted to record as much as possible of Sascha telling me about Fabrizio de André, showing me around Cagliari, Iglesias and Gonnesa in the south of the island, and whoever we bumped into along the way, including some very hospitable locals.

This was originally aired as part of an online radio show in 2021, and has been repurposed for Sound from a Town.

Recordings from Nyanga and Harare in the north-east of Zimbabwe. Nyanga is known as the highland area, with its own micro climate and unique species of birds. There’s also alot of cattle farming so, you should be able to hear the cow bells in the distance. The final recording is of the Harare suburbs where, like most cities, nature is barely audible.

Submitted by Ste Hughes and Gugu Masuku; recorded on an iPhone 13.

Nyanga Location: -18.18032, 32.81052

Harare Location: -17.7553, 31.0436

It was clear from the start, that after 40 years living in the town, that Anuar had seen it all, and had his own take on the character of the place.

Often seen darting in and out of the many locally owned businesses to check up on people, and known by pretty much anyone who's been in the area for more than a decade, he seemed to be a nexus for many of Tottenham's underdogs.

This episode was recorded in one day, an average Saturday for Anuar, as he gave me a tour of the 'Treasures and Horrors' of N15 and N17.

Shopz got Barz sprung up during lockdown and went viral on social media. The platform invites people of all walks of life to come in to a typical London corner shop and do a freestyle.

Originally based on Broad Lane not far from Seven Sisters, freestyles are now done just up the road on Philip Lane.

I spoke to Richy and Frenzi about their origins, as well as how much Tottenham itself has played a part in their story.

Callum Jack is, in his own words, "a mix of every character in 'People Just do Nothing'".

The photographer has lived in Tottenham, just off the High Road, his whole life, and can often be seen scuttling about N15 and N17 selling his Tottenham-branded t-shirts.

He agreed to let me follow him with a microphone for a day, to find out a bit more about him. He takes me to his local chicken shop, down the High Road and West Green Road, as well as a local photography exhibition.

Callum also shares his views on what Tottenham means to him, and also his thoughts on the people bringing change to the area.

Every year, there's a protest outside Tottenham Police Station, aiming to bring to light the police brutality that has marred the area, and the globe, for decades. This is just a small excerpt from the day.

In this episode you’ll hear from Stafford Scott, a well-known figure in Tottenham and London, who has been tirelessly campaigning for justice, racial equality, and an end to police brutality.

This was recorded in August 2020, the same year that Jermain Scott, aka Wretch 32, released a video of his father falling down the stairs after being tasered by police that April. Jermain also gets up to talk about the state of policing from his point of view.

The Met say they only use force “when absolutely necessary”.

Location: 51.59082, -0.06997