Hudson Valley is busier than Albany?!?!

[bad_segue]

I've been a long time observer of this board, more like a sideline observer and I've come to wonder if there is more going on in the Hudson Valley than Albany.

It seems that the only posts on here, although far and few, are all focused on the Hudson Valley - is Albany that boring? Granted there isn't much happening in either location and it seems everything is stagnant as a whole.

I miss the days of old when Eric from Albany, Bob From Berne, Garrett, NECRAT Mike, and all the rest used to really be regulars here.*
(*=NOT The Reporter. The mindless ramblings of Bob from Berne about Ric Mitchell were priceless... the mindless ramblings of whoever "The Reporter" is aren't so much missed)

Isn't there any speculation on any format changes? WOFX is abysmal and really not impressing anyone. I can't imagine it's billing what it costs in electricity to keep the transmitter on the air let alone mow the field at The Bunker.

How about WBZZ - that has to have been a major disappointment for Regent and continues to be.

WQBK/J has also been pretty flat - not much growth there. Wouldn't it make more sense to have Team on 103.5 and 104.5? The station sounds much better now and I would have expected the last trend to have reflected that. Maybe the full book will prove that it is working.

As much as I love WZMR I have a feeling things aren't very cheerful on Johnson Road and that their days might be numbered. That would be sad because they have captured the original Edge well. (Pre Chili Walker)

In the same building WROW must also be gasping for air. Amazing that one man leaving could take that station out at the knees without much effort. Scotto is leaving, so where does that leave them? No PD, no morning show, which wasn't impressive anyhow, and no apparent direction.

The mighty WYJB has also seen a spiral of decline in ratings. What the hell is going on over there?

WQAR - listening it sounds like they are advertising for nothing but AE's. I am assuming things over in Malta aren't doing so well either. They are surely happy with the TW money coming in for AM 900 (WUAM still?) but that can't keep things afloat in the long run, can it? Does anyone expect to see 900 show up in the book at all? I personally love it. Say what you will about the CN9 product - which I agree isn't the tops - but they do a good job of covering EVERYTHING local and giving a great deal of attention to their coverage area. I actually am quite happy with their product on the AM. Clear Channel, Regent, and Pamal haven't done a thing for a 24 hour news service on the AM or FM for that matter. Pamal has 930 in Amsterdam which puts a decent daytime over the metro, Clear Channel has 980 which has an excellent signal for most of the metro day/night. Regent sold what they considered their crap AM and it has become very successful.

Anyone have an speculation as to the digestive nightmare known as 97.7 WEXT? That makes WRPI look almost like a professional operation! What about the two former Bone stations that are now Air1 on 93.7 and KLove on 94.5? I can't remember the calls but I'm wondering if they are going to get enough financial support in Albany to keep those two sticks.

Just trying to see if there is an Albany ball to get rolling. I'm kinda fatigued on all the Hudson Valley domination on this board! No offense guys but Albany is the bigger market and nobody has anything to say!

 

[pennandteller]

Right on...Segue.. a few more...

Don't forget 98.3 sounding pretty good with their tweak lately .. poor J & J on both drives now.. who will be next?
The Mighty MAGIC 100.9 - steady as a rock
The River... toast meet milk... milk meet toast
FLY is so damn good again.. funny.. fun
C'mon someone say something about EQX - and GNA too
PYX playing some wacky stuff in the afternoon .. earning them a regular punch out
JAMZ ... love the wet summer stuff.. finally shedding the usual 90 blah blah days of summer for something sexy.

 

[590buddy]

"GNA- somebody please put the morning show out of its misery and get somebody on there who can run a board.......I still say they need some competition but the country listeners are fickle, and tend to stick with the original station regardless of how bad it is..... When you are that bad how can u have an ego?????

slightly OT but then there's WCKM's (Glens falls) morning show which is another that neeeds the plug pulled.....


flameproof suit on.....

590buddy ;D

 

[Channel Surf]

"GNA- somebody please put the morning show out of its misery and get somebody on there who can run a board.......I still say they need some competition but the country listeners are fickle, and tend to stick with the original station regardless of how bad it is..... When you are that bad how can u have an ego?????

slightly OT but then there's WCKM's (Glens falls) morning show which is another that neeeds the plug pulled.....


flameproof suit on.....

590buddy ;D

The problem is that any FM that has ever gone after WGNA has always been a Class A station. 96.3-WCDA/WPTR-FM and 104.9-WZMR. The only station that even gave them any competition was the old WPTR-1540, and that was 20 years ago!All of the Class B FMs seem to be performing fairly well at the present time, in terms of ratings, so I can't see any of them going after WGNA if they haven't already. With regard to WCKM, the plug should be pulled on that whole operation!!!! WCQL too.....

 

[bad_segue]

WGNA will sadly never be dethroned no matter how much advertising dollars, talent, consultants, and contests are put up against it. I would bow down to the PD that could handle that.

This week I was spending some time scanning the dial and made the following observations:

WFLY: Marissa - Great replacement for the yuck brothers Rex and Smithy who were actually worse than Christy Taylor and Mick. Nothing good has been on afternoons since Cody and Foxx, until Marissa came along that is. I actually didn't realize that Shawn was her traffic reporter because their interaction is of high quality. They sound like they are dating at times actually. I thought he as her sidekick at first. Overall, she's the best thing to listen to in the afternoon if you can stand the overdrive repetition Fly has been displaying lately.

WKKF: DJ Thomas / Seacrest - DJ's on middays but would be better for afternoons. I don't think Seacrest will do well against Marissa in afternoons but on the other hand he has one thing she doesn't - star power. With Idol still riding it's high ratings horse that can be a factor to work in KKF's favor. Time will tell.

WQBK/WQBJ: Mrozek - he likes to pot up his beds and listen to them. I feel like I'm back in high school smoking up with my friends in the garage. Pausing between thoughts and continuing the conversation once I exhale. I love this guy though - he still has the personality he's always had and he does a show in the afternoon which is something that his two other rock competitors can't say for their time on the air. Actually neither of them can say they even have personality.

WZMR: Nick Rivers - One of the two against Mrozek and of all the options in the afternoon he is hands down the WORST I've ever heard on afternoon drive. Every break he says the same exact thing, mentions his name every time, same four phrases over and over, and his attempts at humor like saying Bat Country with an emphasis on the conun part of the 2nd word then following that with "two works" is not funny and frankly offensive. "How goes it yo - I would be Nick - welcome to my farce of a radio program." He's slightly better than the midday but not much. They should have never gotten rid of General James and should have moved Pi to afternoon drive. Not saying either are good but they are much better than what is there now.

WHRL: Nobel - I think he's a ghost. He doesn't talk much which I think some listeners appreciate but just saying "Channel 103.1 New Nine Inch Nails" isn't really being a personality. Try this on for size - Nobel actually died four years ago but in lieu of budget cuts they took old airchecks, chopped them up in to extremely short breaks and volia! No need to pay someone for afternoons! The sad reality is that he is a strong air talent who is so tied up with being essentially the only employee of a station that he has to devote all his time to other tasks instead of being able to do a show. Even with his lack of saying much, he still ranks 2nd behind Mrozek - and that 2nd is a very long way from the landslide of third on ZMR.

WPYX: Uncle Vito - I love Vito. The corn factor is 12 out of a possible 10 and that's what makes what he does even better. I'm not much of a classic rock sort of person but I do like what he has to offer in the afternoon. After being pissed off all day and dealing with a loser boss I look forward to his innocent and goofy attitude to help me head home in a much better mood than I would have normally been in. I'm glad that he's steadfast in his stay at PYX and I hope they don't dick around with the formula on that station anytime soon, especially considering he's my favorite pick for afternoon drive.

WTMM: Sinkoff - he still sounds new. He's too nice to the listeners. They ramble sometimes. Not necessarily the best choice for radio but the show is new so I'm not going to form an opinion just yet.

WGNA: Jake Thomas - Let me tell you a story. A long time ago in a faraway studio in the Latham Circle mall there was a man on afternoons named Kevin Richards. Then they moved him around the schedule. Should have kept Kevin Richards in afternoons. Jake sounds like a hick. Oh wait- nevermind. Perfect fit!

Anyone else agree? Disagree?

 

[Voice Track]

This week I was spending some time scanning the dial and made the following observations:

WQBK/WQBJ: Mrozek - he likes to pot up his beds and listen to them. I feel like I'm back in high school smoking up with my friends in the garage. Pausing between thoughts and continuing the conversation once I exhale. I love this guy though - he still has the personality he's always had and he does a show in the afternoon which is something that his two other rock competitors can't say for their time on the air. Actually neither of them can say they even have personality.

I actually find Mrozek to be kind of annoying...

WZMR: Nick Rivers - One of the two against Mrozek and of all the options in the afternoon he is hands down the WORST I've ever heard on afternoon drive. Every break he says the same exact thing, mentions his name every time, same four phrases over and over, and his attempts at humor like saying Bat Country with an emphasis on the conun part of the 2nd word then following that with "two works" is not funny and frankly offensive. "How goes it yo - I would be Nick - welcome to my farce of a radio program." He's slightly better than the midday but not much. They should have never gotten rid of General James and should have moved Pi to afternoon drive. Not saying either are good but they are much better than what is there now.

I disagree...Nik does a nice job in the afternoon. I find him to be very listenable....

WHRL: Nobel - I think he's a ghost. He doesn't talk much which I think some listeners appreciate but just saying "Channel 103.1 New Nine Inch Nails" isn't really being a personality. Try this on for size - Nobel actually died four years ago but in lieu of budget cuts they took old airchecks, chopped them up in to extremely short breaks and volia! No need to pay someone for afternoons! The sad reality is that he is a strong air talent who is so tied up with being essentially the only employee of a station that he has to devote all his time to other tasks instead of being able to do a show. Even with his lack of saying much, he still ranks 2nd behind Mrozek - and that 2nd is a very long way from the landslide of third on ZMR.

Once again...I disagree with you. Nobel does the basics well, doesn't ramble and gets to the point. Along with Nik on ZMR, I find him quite easy to listen to...

WPYX: Uncle Vito - I love Vito. The corn factor is 12 out of a possible 10 and that's what makes what he does even better. I'm not much of a classic rock sort of person but I do like what he has to offer in the afternoon. After being pissed off all day and dealing with a loser boss I look forward to his innocent and goofy attitude to help me head home in a much better mood than I would have normally been in. I'm glad that he's steadfast in his stay at PYX and I hope they don't dick around with the formula on that station anytime soon, especially considering he's my favorite pick for afternoon drive.

I COMPLETELY disagree with you about vito. His show is god awful! I simply can't even put PYX on in the afternoon anymore, the only daypart that I can't listen to that station. The minute he starts to talk, I feel dumber...Plus his music is so all over the place some days! I've noticed that John Cooper has been on lately. He is a strong solid veteran jock, and they should leave him on instead!!!

Anyone else agree? Disagree?

Thanks for bringing some discussion to this board even if I disagree with you about some of the jocks...

 

[Johnny_45]

Let's see if we can turn this puppy around! ???

 

[bc1988]

why all the bashing of WCKM and GNA they do the job and appeal to the audience that reach. Just because GNA tops all the time doesn't mean that it's bad the morning show is top notch and if it wasn't why would it still be going and drawing the numbers that it does....same goes for WCKM...both of these stations do what the people want and what they like and if you don't like it turn it off and listen to something else.