Sunday Brunch 1: Oscar Merry

Welcome to the inaugural serving of Sunday Brunch – a new weekly format from Plebchain Radio designed to be your decompression chamber after a long week in the fiat mines. No roadmap grilling, no deep-dive technicals, just coffee, conversation, and a curated playlist of independent Value-for-Value music.

To kick things off, Avi is joined by Oscar Merry, the creator of Fountain, to spin tracks, discuss the state of the Open Music ecosystem, and chat about everything from the rise of Arsenal FC to the surprising resilience of London's food scene.

In this episode:

• The Brunch Format: Why we need "slow content" and spaces to relax, listen, and discover music without the pressure of constant learning.
• Life in London: Oscar debunks the "decline of London" narrative, shares his amateur football career, and discusses the cost-of-living crisis vs. salary stagnation in the UK.
• The State of V4V Music: The growth of independent music on Fountain, the ease of onboarding for artists, and the roadmap for 2026 – including live stream splits and better listener curation tools.
• The Playlist: A deep dive into 6 tracks from independent muscians, ranging from acoustic ballads to high-energy indie rock and symphonic metal. Links
• Oscar's Playlist
• Follow Hartlight on nostr