Post-grunge was the butt of 2000's alternative.
Indie is the new alternative and has been for 2 decades.
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KITS 105.3 Stunting... Return of Live 105?
- Thread starter AceBiscuits
- Start date
Indie is the new alternative and has been for 2 decades.
I think the Smithereens' "Sick of Seattle" should be the theme of this thread. From last.fm, here are the lyrics: Sick of Seattle lyrics - The Smithereens | Last.fm
As a listener, you and I agree musically. But you're looking at this one way, and not with 360° view. As David would say, you and I are outliers. If more people would listen to all Weird Al on Alternative stations, than what you and I define as Alternative, then that's what's going to be played. Machine Gun Kelly was a rapper first, and is now on Alternative radio, much to my dismay. But they are going to play what gets the most listeners. It's up to us to decide if we want to go with the crowd, or break away from the norm.
Take SiriusXM for instance. Octane is on this kick of trying to redefine the narrative of people not liking Nickelback. They also are pushing Avenge Sevenfold. Two bands I don't like. So I change the channel. Octane is having an Avenge Sevenfold takeover, this weekend. So I'm not listening. I'm going to Alt Nation, Bluesville, Turbo, Faction, and even 80s and 90s channels. And if they aren't playing anything I like, I switch over to music saved into my phone. There's always options. But they program for the mass population, and we're just that...outliers.
Okay, I get it more now.
But I don't know, I guess I just can't agree on being an outlier, I feel like most listeners who once listened to alternative feel like outliers, and the only listeners who aren't outliers are a very niche demographic of Gen Xers who weren't into anything new that was playing with the classics they liked, and honestly, that hurts the ratings more than the rest of the audience who liked the new music over the years on stations like 91X than the ones who were only listening to hear the same Pearl Jam song they always play or tune into sunday mornings for Resurrection Sundays and are unaware of what the station actually plays, and honestly, it hurts for the dedicated fans.
I'd hate to see that for every alternative station in America.
Mood I don't think is on any alt stations anymore. They gave up on the alt pop sound.
I always say play new, but my philosophy is that it keeps a station from getting stale. But keep in mind that there is evidence that I'm not always right. Throwback Rap stations are performing strong enough to stick around, on the East Coast. Classic Rock is still performing, and some of those stations have been playing the same Black Sabbath and Led Zepplin songs for decades.
As for the outlier, we are more inclined to stick with a particular stance and not just roll with the population of listeners who are the "greatest common denominator" (as I put it). That makes us outliers. We critique what has been quantitatively and qualitatively tested through surveys and listener interviews/focus groups. About 20 years ago, I used to be phoned surveyed once every two to three months about which songs I prefer to listen to on the radio. They stopped calling me, because I was living with my parents in my early 20s, then bought my own house. So if we don't fall into a large enough population, we become outliers.
With that, there are options for people like us. If you're lucky, there's an FM outlet that matches your taste. I'm about a half hour north of Boston, so no such luck. So, there's free options like Spotify, iHeart or Audacy apps. I personally don't want to hear ads, so I went with satellite radio and stream their app through my phone.
Ed Stolz? said that. And also just keep doing it...…not paying his bills......just sayin!
While going to college in the Bay Area. I was in the live audience during the Bennett Gordon Schwarzmann show AKA Alex Bennett. It was a wild experience just "hanging" on a live morning show. They opened the doors at 6am and allowed people to come on up anytime. LIVE105 was innovative and obviously, that could never happen today. Security, Covid and so many other issues of these times. 18-34 is not a demo "alternative" can win these days vs Spotify and Apple music. Who's knows what they have planned? Hopefully it does something to break thru the noise....David Field has been quoted saying he enjoys the Alternative format. And Remember Kevin Weatherly has returned to KROQ After Two Years at Spotify.....maybe something "World Famous" is coming?
Name me an indie band or singer with near-universal appeal. You can’t.
The one thing that might work in 105.3’s favour is the (longtime) absence of KFOG. There may be listeners who remember the dying days when it segued to Alternative.
Mumford and Sons?
Usually one comes out like a flash of lightning. Everyone notices them for 15 seconds, then they become obscure again. Personally, I like when they remain indie. One of my unknown acts that I like is Chvrches. I heard their song "Forever" on a college station. Then for some Netflix movie, they did a cover of "Cry Little Sister," which was ominous sounding. Everything about them should lead me to not liking them, yet I do. Probably because they aren't cookie cutter like mainstream acts across all musically genres. Another band I love is Alabama Shakes. Unique in sound, and I subjectively think they have great lyrics. But most people don't know who they are.
But yes, I agree that Indie bands don't hold a mass audience for too long. Lorde is a good example. In 2016, you'd think she was going to be a new breakout star, then faded back into obscurity.
Even they faded away over the last few years.
Sure but it doesn't mean that indie bands and singers don't have big fanbases and still do shows around the world, latin america loves a lot of that stuff.
Sure, but Lorde's Melodrama is an instant indie pop classic for many fans and critics online, plus Green Light made it decently on 91x's the top 91 of 2017.
And how often is it played or discussed about in 2023? There’s a reason behind that: the song/album have not tested well with core demos since about a year after its release. (This isn’t a P1 of the format talking, this is from someone who’s actually worked in radio, including CHR.)
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Cool.
Nathan’s comment still stands. Outside of maybe 6 or 7 bands/artists, I can’t think of too many indie bands from the last decade that still have a long, lasting power that form a consensus among P1 alt listeners.
‘Planet 93.9’ in the Quad Cities is a great alt station moving forward in ‘23. Massive library, a focus on older alt while still playing a healthy dose of currents (including currents that Audacy or iHeart’s alts don’t touch), plus some specialty features throughout the week. And it’s independently owned and locally programmed in market 153. I’d advise you and Prez to check it.
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Alex is 83 years old. It might not be the same show.
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