G-Rock Suggested Changes

[K-Tel]

Thank you I_Work_In_Radio! For those of us that do work in radio, I drives us nuts to see these same posts over and over and over....and...over.

 

[SoulCrusher]

Soulcrusher,

First, let me preface my comments by saying that I don't work for G-Rock. Actually, I work for a competitor station. While I appreciate your passion for music and more specifically, your knowledge of alternative music, your posts over the last several months have proven a number of things.

1) You know nothing about music rotation, otherwise you would not complain about a radio station playing the same song 8 hours or more apart.
2) You know nothing about artist rotation, otherwise you would not complain about a radio station occasionally playing the same artist twice within two hours.
3) You know nothing about radio listening habits for the reasons listed above.
4) You know nothing about programming a commercial radio station, otherwise you would not base the majority of your critiques on your personal taste in music, and you would not suggest that a radio station stop playing some it's most popular staple songs and bands even though the vast majority of the station's listeners demand them. While it may make sense logically to play a greater variety, ask any PD what happens when you don't play familiar music with broad appeal, even on an alternative station.
5) You clearly have an unhealthy obsession with G-Rock, otherwise you would not complain about a three-song sequence during the 1 am hour.
6) You know nothing about country listeners, otherwise you would not use 20-30 year old stereotypes to describe them.

Granted, this board is a place to voice opinions. But let's be honest. Your opinions based on extremely limited radio knowledge have been duly noted ad nauseum. You would be better served by privately sending your suggestions to G-Rock, and the readers of this board would be able to discuss other subjects without being bumped by another rant about what was played on G-Rock when we were all sleeping. I'm not asking you to let it go. Just take it somewhere else. Please.

i_work_in_radio,

1) There's nothing wrong with playing Currents 8 hours (heck, even 6 hours) apart - I take no issue with that. What I do have a problem with is when you take a song that's over 10 years old, like Green Day's "Longview", and play it twice a day or more. Fans of the Alternative format are a different breed - they listen more, have more diverse tastes, but tend to burn quicker on songs than listeners of other formats. FM 106.3 was on to something good - they knew what their audience wanted. G Rock, while still a very good Alternative, hangs on to its Gold titles and works them over like a Classic Rock station does with its top titles. I speak for many of G Rock listeners when I say that we can go on living without hearing "Smells Like Teen Spirit" or "Evenflow" every day.

2) Artist rotation is a little different when it comes to Alternative. It's a different animal. We don't need to hear Green Day or Incubus every hour. K-Rock may program like that (and they have for years), but they're not an Alternative in the true sense of the word - with the exception of the mid '90s, they have always been closer to straight-ahead Rock. K-Rock can also afford to program like that given the fact that there is practically no competition for their target audience.

3) Some people listen for a few minutes at a time - that is true. But what about those who listen at work? Do you think they want incessant repetition of the hits? Heck, there are even Hot ACs out there that promise no-repeat workdays - it's not much to expect the same from Alternative.

4) I don't object to any particular thing that G Rock plays. But I question whether or not it's wise to give strong rotation to songs that haven't performed well on Alternative. Snow Patrol's "You're All I Have"? Bombed on Alternative, minor hit on Hot AC. Evanescence's "Sweet Sacrifice"? DOA - would work better on Rock or Hot AC stations. Pearl Jam's "Love Reign O'er Me"? A Who cover - definitely more of a DHA/MMR/RAT song than one that should be on Alternative, and the charts don't lie ... it tanked. Meanwhile, there are a lot of songs that fit in better with the format that are charting better, yet G Rock isn't playing them for some reason or another. That doesn't make sense to me.

5) I don't. That only took a minute to observe, and maybe three minutes to comment on.

6) One thing that is true about Country radio in general is this conservative mindset that they try to impart on their listeners. That means not playing anyone who deviates from that state of thinking, either in song or otherwise. While some stereotypes may be false, others are true - the typical Country fan is a devout Christian Republican. I don't object to those people for their beliefs, but I do object to blatantly trying to preach to the unconverted. Totally blacklisting artists because they express an opinion different from yours is kind of a fascist approach, don't you think?

In closing, I have sent suggestions to G Rock. At the time, I was told that I was proposing that they play "weird, unfamiliar" bands. Note that many of these acts performed very well on the Alternative charts, and many of them have Gold or Platinum albums. Also note that anyone familiar with FM 106.3 was well acquainted with many of the suggested acts as well. I was also told that the station was going for a "fun, happy" sound, hence the reason for not playing acts like Tool and System Of A Down. First of all, Staind's "woe is me" power ballads are not exactly what I would call happy-go-lucky. Second, the term Alternative not only referred to rock music that didn't adhere to the mainstream arena rock sound, but it also applied to different mindsets. While Bad Company and Sammy Hagar were singing about making love, partying and having a good time, acts like Depeche Mode and Joy Division painted a much darker picture, far more true to reality - life isn't always a bowl of cherries. Even before that, you had Elvis Costello and his wry, sardonic songs that were different from the status quo. The foundation of the Alternative format was not based around lots of happy, carefree music. I don't object to acts that fit that categorization being played, but to shut out most of the darker music?

This message was a while ago. Now they are playing acts like Depeche Mode and Joy Division, but they still have Tool and especially SOAD (all they play is "Aerials") in very limited rotation. I don't get that. Wouldn't it make sense to play Platinum selling acts that charted well on Alternative that your main competition isn't playing in the hopes of boosting your ratings?

The point I'm trying to make is this - the Soccer Moms have their favorite station, and for most of them it's not G Rock. The Mullets have their favorite station, and for most of them it's not G Rock. Instead of steering too hard toward either of these groups, it makes better sense to target everyone else. It can't be denied that there are several bands more worthy of airtime on an Alternative than Evanescence and Puddle Of Mudd, and I have the Charts to back up my statement. I would like to see G Rock put greater effort into being more different from the competition. Let's say I'm a casual listener. There's a really good chance that I'm going to hear something that PLJ plays and something that WRAT plays in the brief time that I listen. I'm going to think "What makes G Rock different from the rest?". As someone that listens often, I know that the differences are there, but others may not. Case in point, there are a lot of '90s Gold titles and Currents that G Rock can and should play to stand out more.

I won't ramble too much more in this thread, but there were some things that needed to be cleared up. Cheers.

 

[Beejus]

I speak for many of G Rock listeners when I say that we can go on living without hearing "Smells Like Teen Spirit" or "Evenflow" every day.

Smells Like Teen Spirit has played 3 times in the past 7 days... Evenflow 4 times. Their most played Gold track topped out at 5 spins for the week. I'm glad to see you're still exaggerating to try to make your point seem bigger.

 

[SoulCrusher]

Smells Like Teen Spirit has played 3 times in the past 7 days... Evenflow 4 times. Their most played Gold track topped out at 5 spins for the week. I'm glad to see you're still exaggerating to try to make your point seem bigger.

I stand corrected. These are estimates. The other day I noticed that they played Puddle Of Mudd's "Blurry" twice. Putting aside my personal feelings for the band, if I'm new to G Rock and I hear that, I think "Big deal. I can hear that in a million other places". Ditto for many of the other highly played Gold titles, for the record. Of course they do play lots of good Retro stuff as well, but if you're only listening for 15 minutes, chances are you won't catch it.

 

[i_work_in_radio]

In that one post, you proved every one of my points and your ignorance. Everything you talk about is based on PERSONAL OPINION of music and ignorant stereotypes (soccer moms, mullets, cowboys, etc.), not radio programming knowledge, listener knowledge, research data, ratings, or commercial success.

I suggest that you do some research, get an internship, go to a few seminars and develop some real knowledge before you post again. At first, your ignorant posts were funny. Now, your posts have become annoying and detract from real discussion on this board. Again, take it somewhere else. Please.

 

[I WORK IN RADIO]

I'm just wondering why you have the same name as me?

As a programmer myself, my thought on the twice a day spins for Golds. Maybe the same Gold gets spun again in the overnights b/c they are using the day logs for their overnight logs. Just a thought.

 

[SoulCrusher]

In that one post, you proved every one of my points and your ignorance. Everything you talk about is based on PERSONAL OPINION of music and ignorant stereotypes (soccer moms, mullets, cowboys, etc.), not radio programming knowledge, listener knowledge, research data, ratings, or commercial success.

I suggest that you do some research, get an internship, go to a few seminars and develop some real knowledge before you post again. At first, your ignorant posts were funny. Now, your posts have become annoying and detract from real discussion on this board. Again, take it somewhere else. Please.

You may want to read the post again. While I did reference "soccer moms" and "mullets" at the end, much of the post consisted of factual evidence. The average 15 minute listener will probably not hear anything that makes G Rock stand out from the competition. G Rock is cranking songs by Snow Patrol, Pearl Jam, Evanescence and others that have bombed on the Alternative charts. The Alternative audience tends to burn on songs quicker than other groups, hence the reason why most don't keep their Gold titles in heavy rotation. And G Rock does give a lot of spins to songs that are going to be played to death on Classic Rock stations in the future.

Everything in that post is based on fact. I seriously was told that G Rock was trying to be a "fun, happy" Alternative. Maybe they have changed since that discussion, but I was told that. With a very limited amount of Currents (for an Alternative) and the same Gold tracks getting played, the listener is inevitably going to burn on many of the songs and will change the station. It's just the facts.

 

[K-Tel]

Facts?!?