Demise of Rock formats examined; we examine the solution
A report stated yesterday that "major radio companies are abandoning rock music so quickly lately that sometimes their own employees don't know it." The New York Times article added up just the last four months, that radio executives have switched the formats of four modern-rock, or alternative, stations in big media markets, including WHFS DC, WPLY Philadelphia and the year-old KRQI Seattle. Earlier this month WXRK in New York discarded most newer songs in favor of a playlist laden with rock stars from the 80's and 90's.
Excerpts:
The story added music execs say the lack of true stars today is partly the reason. Since rap-rock acts like Kid Rock and Limp Bizkit retreated from the scene, none of the heralded bands from recent rock movements, be it garage-rock (the Strokes, the Vines) or emo (Dashboard Confessional, Thursday), connected with radio listeners or CD buyers the way their predecessors did.
Moreover, while alternative programmers are searching for a solution, for the moment they have the benefit of new music by a clutch of reliable stars from the genre's heyday: Nine Inch Nails, Weezer and Beck are releasing their first albums in two years or more, and songs by each rocketed to the top of Billboard magazine's modern-rock airplay chart.
But many musicians in the newer bands on the alternative playlists "could be your waiter tomorrow night and you wouldn't know the difference," griped a radio promotion executive at one major label, who requested anonymity for fear of offending bands on his label.
Some radio executives said that they made a fateful choice in the last few years to jettison the pop-rock side of their genre to concentrate on heavier-sounding bands, and now are afraid to turn back. As part of that shift, many stations also decided to eliminate women from their audience research. These stations decided to aim at men almost exclusively because of the heavier sound.
RBR observation:
The "stars" may not be there, but the music sure is-big time. It's called Indie Rock and Indie Pop. Why radio still has to beholden to the "big" labels and their artists escapes us. Like our previous mantras on this topic, pick the music because it's good, not because it indirectly helps the bottom line or because some consultant told you how to. Find talented PDs and MDs and DJs who can pick the good tunes (you likely already have them!). Give them the freedom to pick what they think will please their audience, not from a thin list of the old standbys, or what many "Alternative" stations have added so much in the last few years (noted in the NY Tines story): hard-edged, dark, suicidal, overbearing tunes.
Making the right changes to Alternative formats will bring female demos back as well, without going as "far soft" as AAA. Infinity is taking a step in the right direction with its KRock2 online stream. Just broaden the playlist, soften it up a bit and it's good to go over the airwaves.
And don't be afraid to add a few picks from other music genres. A 20's/30's Blues/Jazz tune from Robert Johnson or a Rock Steady Reggae tune from The Melodians. This is not about cutting and pasting the same pop/rock songs from four decades into a playlist and turning on "Shuffle." This is about skillfully harvesting the huge pool of musical talent out there to bring people back to radio. No, we don't have 100 channels in which to do so like satellite. But we each have one or two, or even eight in each market. Modern technology has given the public the tools to find it, and they are obviously looking. Radio can reinvent itself just as fast if it wishes. The playing field has been tilted and the time to play is now. You have the buyers' support, as well, as we published in our April print issue. And a note to the big groups: this decision, this freedom, must be authorized from the top.
Back to Indie, click here for a few good song examples (picked from Sirius Ch. 26, 3wk.com, Somafm.com's Indiepoprocks channel and Radio @ Netscape Plus' New Indie First channel.
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