1.FM - Radio Gaia

1.FM - Radio Gaia takes you around the planet without ever leaving Switzerland. The playlist skips from West African kora to Balkan brass to Japanese folk, and it never feels like a museum exhibit. There's a sense of discovery here that most algorithm-driven stations lack. The programming favors deep cuts over obvious choices, which is refreshing. A weekday afternoon block I caught led from a Malian blues track to a Portuguese fado number, then into some psychedelic cumbia from Peru. It worked. Presenters here clearly have deep record collections, and they're not afraid to play something obscu…