Fallowfeels: (pod)casting off

Quite organically, Fallowfeels formed out of the conversations we shared on the slow Sundays of our first year. Usually over a hot drink, we would sit down and openly pin-point emotions that linked directly to our student experience. After realising the potential and relatability of these discussions, we brewed some more tea and started recording.

For both of us, podcast was a medium we had not used to express ourselves before. Initially, what drew us to it was the free flowing nature podcasts. In an era of editing and filters, the podcast remains somewhat raw – it therefore seemed the most appropriate form of media to form organic and opinionated discussions.

Additionally, it suits the conversational style we aim for – almost as if we’re inviting the listener into one of our chats. By doing this we hope that our experiences will somehow create a universal student voice. Beyond this, podcasts are easy to produce. Anyone with a phone can make a podcast. Fallowfeels is very basic meaning it places the quality of our conversations at the centre of the podcast.

Our first episode, recorded in one of our tiny student rooms, was shaky. There were quite a few ‘ums’, a few ‘do you know what I means’ and looped repetitions of ‘yeah, for sure, it’s so great, definitely’. News flash: these delightful idioms still remain. Nevertheless, we had an open chat about being a first year. We were wrestling with the potential identity crisis that you may face when going to uni and how to stay true to your originality.

With this, you might think of the emotional impact of Freshers as a head-on collision with insecurity. You find yourself asking is this the right uni? Am I on the right course? Will I make any friends? Well, we want to talk about it. This podcast was created on the premise that every feeling is valid and to provide a space to comfortably discuss those feelings.

We are not agony aunts, and we are definitely not telling you how to ‘do’ uni. We’re quite the opposite. After all, we are all blindly navigating this rather turbulent three year storm – the difference is that we are just recording it. To drown out the thunder with some lo-fi hip hop and nervous laughter is to discover that our fears are natural and shared.

Fallowfeels also features a discussion about our passions: literature, film, music, art and how such mediums affect us. This can often cause some debate – refer to our third episode, ‘Home’, for a feisty analysis of Mamma Mia 2. Other themes include imposter syndrome, our mothers, and what it’s like to move out of our family home. We believe to discuss these topics between us is a fantastic release, just as to listen to others discuss it can be.

Make sure to find us on Soundcloud.