With the exception of one station, my local stations suck big time. The only time I listen to local stations is when I am driving in my car. Thank god I have satellite radio at the house.
Seems like radio has really managed to commit corporate suicide, even more than network television and the music industry, but for the same reason: letting the bean counters take over and running a creative enterprise like it was a meat packing plant.
Automated, narrowly "demographic" focused playlists, drawn from the pool of high profile crap the record companies think is marketable--what's to like? Add to that canned on-air "personalities", endless ad blocks and "local flavor" that was produced in studios a thousand miles away, and you get people fleeing to other formats.
I remember the glory years of free form FM out here in the Bay Area. Wildly eclectic play lists hosted by local people who really loved the music and had an encyclopedic knowledge of its history and lore. KSAN back in the day was how I found out about music I hadn't heard before. It was how I found out how the music I did know about connected to older stuff, or brand new stuff.
Pod casts and satellite and the web. See ya, loser corporate radio.
Yeah, same here, but then you always get the two hour reggae block or the obscure thrash punk enthusiast.....
Exactly, stuff you'll never hear on mainstream radio. College stations and the last locally owned & operated mainstream radio station left in my area (WCCC) are the only channels I can listen to anymore. The rest of the channels are pretty much all owned by Clearchannnel.
Heh. The only time I listen to radio is when I'm in someone else's car, or at a business where the radio is on in the background. I stopped listening to it on my own after I got an in-dash CD player for my car (c.1997).
And public radio seems to be making more and more of their shows available as podcasts, so you can build your own programming day (and maybe skip "New Trends in Sri Lankan Horticulture Roundup With Your Host Flan Vandergroot").
The only FM stations I listen to are NPR on WUOM from Ann Arbor, and "The Ticket" Sports Talk on WQTX from Lansing. I usually listen to Rush Limbaugh on AM 760 WJR if I am driving while its on. Otherwise I have online streams of NPR or Rush or some other sports talk station when I'm at work. The remainder of my listening comes from my iPod.
I guess it kind of depends on what kind of music that you like to listen to. Also, the closer you are to a major city, the more choices you are likely to have. My personal favorite:
Does anyone else hate this new Jack/Mike/whatever format? It's suppose to mimic the idea of your ipod shuffle or computer library on shuffle. They just play "random" songs, mixing and matching formats and eras. It's total shit and I don't think I ever keep it on for more than one song. The difference between my ipod on shuffle and the radio on shuffle is that I like everything on my ipod.
Anyway, Yea all I listen to on the radio is WFNX (the only big "independent" station around here) which is basically alternative/pop/rock and some college radio stations, but they are hit or miss too.
And public radio seems to be making more and more of their shows available as podcasts, so you can build your own programming day (and maybe skip "New Trends in Sri Lankan Horticulture Roundup With Your Host Flan Vandergroot").
Comments
Automated, narrowly "demographic" focused playlists, drawn from the pool of high profile crap the record companies think is marketable--what's to like? Add to that canned on-air "personalities", endless ad blocks and "local flavor" that was produced in studios a thousand miles away, and you get people fleeing to other formats.
I remember the glory years of free form FM out here in the Bay Area. Wildly eclectic play lists hosted by local people who really loved the music and had an encyclopedic knowledge of its history and lore. KSAN back in the day was how I found out about music I hadn't heard before. It was how I found out how the music I did know about connected to older stuff, or brand new stuff.
Pod casts and satellite and the web. See ya, loser corporate radio.
Originally posted by ShawnJ
Since Northeastern PA has a lot of colleges, I can always turn to college radio when the local top-40 stations suck.
Yeah, same here, but then you always get the two hour reggae block or the obscure thrash punk enthusiast.....
http://www.ksevradio.com
Originally posted by addabox
Yeah, same here, but then you always get the two hour reggae block or the obscure thrash punk enthusiast.....
Exactly, stuff you'll never hear on mainstream radio. College stations and the last locally owned & operated mainstream radio station left in my area (WCCC) are the only channels I can listen to anymore. The rest of the channels are pretty much all owned by Clearchannnel.
Is that some kind of new P2P program?
Originally posted by dfiler
Radio? Never heard of it...
Is that some kind of new P2P program?
Heh. The only time I listen to radio is when I'm in someone else's car, or at a business where the radio is on in the background. I stopped listening to it on my own after I got an in-dash CD player for my car (c.1997).
At home I listen to a handful of internet radio stations that kick butt.
Clear Channel crapola here.
Classic Rock -
WARW 94.7 (Washington D.C. Metro Area)
Anyway, Yea all I listen to on the radio is WFNX (the only big "independent" station around here) which is basically alternative/pop/rock and some college radio stations, but they are hit or miss too.
Originally posted by addabox
And public radio seems to be making more and more of their shows available as podcasts, so you can build your own programming day (and maybe skip "New Trends in Sri Lankan Horticulture Roundup With Your Host Flan Vandergroot").
That sounds interesting actually.