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Mmmmm... That's Good Radio

Getting on My Nerve.com

by Hannah Levin

Thankfully, Genevieve Field and Rufus Griscom, founding editors of the cerebrally smutty website Nerve.com, would like to erase that association from your dirty mind and replace it with something significantly more stimulating for both your mind and libido.

Field and Griscom launched Nerve.com five years ago, motivated by their shared belief that "sex is beautiful and absurd, remarkably fun and reliably trauma-inducing, and a subject in need of a fearless, intelligent forum for both genders." They crystallized their mission by showcasing photography from subversive artists like Renee Cox and Wolfgang Tilmans and employing a stellar collection of contributing writers, attracting everyone from Quentin Crisp and Spalding Gray to Karen Finley and Lisa Carver. Two years ago they enlisted the collaboration of Internet radio pioneer Paul Bendat, and added a radio station to the site.

"Basically, we're just interested in giving our visitors and members a really cool, dynamic experience. NerveRadio satisfies the 'ear portion' of our mission," says editor Lorelei Sharkey, who oversees Bendat's programming choices. "Lorelei has a wonderful sense of what is most 'Nerve-like,' either lyrically or beat-wise," says Bendat.

Bendat is referring to the two different channels visitors can select from: "For the Mind: Lyrics and Melodies to Arouse Your Intellect" (PJ Harvey, Pavement, Billie Holiday, Nick Drake); and "For the Body: Voluptuous Beats to Stir Your Senses" (Primal Scream, Air, Underworld, Calexico). In addition to a consistently pleasing playlist, NerveRadio offers listeners exclusive advance listening sessions of new releases by worthwhile mainstream artists such as Radiohead and Lou Reed, spoken-word pieces by underground heroes like amputee-activist Nomy Lamm and indie filmmaker Mark Levy, and interviews with pervy pop stars like Elastica's Justine Frischmann and singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright. Intellectual audio arousal has never sounded this good.