XPN's top 50 albums of the year

[mwf114]

Leave it to XPN to keep rock music and music in general alive in this city. Without them we would never have heard of the Magic Numbers, the Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, My Morning Jacket, Arcade Fire, Matisyahu, etc. Great albums by up and coming, and in the case of My Morning Jacket, great bands.

Why does MMR attempt to plug "up and coming" bands, but the bands they are plugging are quite frankly unlistenable? Moreover, why does MMR shy away from the singer-song writers? Also, Arcade Fire, My Morning Jacket, and Nada Surf, three very important bands in the world or rock music 2005, yet no airplay on Philadelphia's first rock station???

 

[LiamStatic]

Of course, all those bands and more are still being played on www.y100rocks.com ;-)

> Leave it to XPN to keep rock music and music in general
> alive in this city. Without them we would never have heard
> of the Magic Numbers, the Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, My
> Morning Jacket, Arcade Fire, Matisyahu, etc. Great albums by
> up and coming, and in the case of My Morning Jacket, great
> bands.
>
> Why does MMR attempt to plug "up and coming" bands, but the
> bands they are plugging are quite frankly unlistenable?
> Moreover, why does MMR shy away from the singer-song
> writers? Also, Arcade Fire, My Morning Jacket, and Nada
> Surf, three very important bands in the world or rock music
> 2005, yet no airplay on Philadelphia's first rock station???
>

 

[SoulCrusher]

> Leave it to XPN to keep rock music and music in general
> alive in this city. Without them we would never have heard
> of the Magic Numbers, the Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, My
> Morning Jacket, Arcade Fire, Matisyahu, etc. Great albums by
> up and coming, and in the case of My Morning Jacket, great
> bands.
>
> Why does MMR attempt to plug "up and coming" bands, but the
> bands they are plugging are quite frankly unlistenable?
> Moreover, why does MMR shy away from the singer-song
> writers? Also, Arcade Fire, My Morning Jacket, and Nada
> Surf, three very important bands in the world or rock music
> 2005, yet no airplay on Philadelphia's first rock station???
>


I enjoy those bands, but MMR won't play them because it doesn't fit their format. They are essentially a very safe Gold-based Active Rock station that plays only 20 or so currents - and I guarantee you that none of them are on the CMJ charts like the bands you listed. Despite this, people will still listen, since they are basically the only game in town right now (to an extent). Hopefully someone will step up and provide an outlet for Modern Rock - 96.5 WRDW and 95.7 BEN-FM (forget the calls), I'm looking in your direction.</P>

 

[valkyrie777]

It all comes down to a hyphenated word: "commercial-appeal".

XPN (one of my absolute favorite stations musically) has no need to be commercially-viable. They have no need to attract "advertisers", in the strictest sense of the word. They need not concern themselves with ratings.

XPN does one thing: it plays music that fits within a broad framework. Their music simply has to compliment all the other music played on the station. They can, in effect, take chances on singer/songwriters, new acts and indie-sponsored people.

When you don't have to attract listeners by endlessly repeating the same, lame playlist, thus attracting the numbers of listeners meant to draw ratings, hence advertising clout, you can just program a station that sounds good. It's like the advertising slogan "no rules".

MMR is constrained by the very things that XPN eschews: ratings and the God-almighty dollar. They gotta dance with the Devil...as Jagger might opine.

 

[SCRHack]

Hopefully someone will step
> up and provide an outlet for Modern Rock - 96.5 WRDW and
> 95.7 BEN-FM (forget the calls), I'm looking in your
> direction.
>
I think its still a little ways before there is another Modern Rocker here. But you're DEFINITLY looking in the wrong direction with BEN. They're doing ok in the books and wont start to slide for at least a little while. Wired COULD, but probably won't.

 

[SCRHack]

Also, Arcade Fire, My Morning Jacket, and Nada
> Surf, three very important bands in the world or rock music
> 2005, yet no airplay on Philadelphia's first rock station???
>
Here is my question and don't mean this in any negative way but how and why are they important? I hear everyone rave about the first two I've heard em... nothing that blows me away. Nada Surf I've heard of haven't heard them. But what makes them important?