Lost In Music ha, my rant for this week's Chronicle... It’s not really that often that I have a proper rant, but something Boy George recently said has got me thinking along much the same lines. Now the subject of ‘the state of Radio 1’ seems to roll in cycles, but you’d think that by now the BBC team would be a dab hand at sweeping out the dead wood to make way for subsequent generations of new listeners. Unfortunately, the station that is supposed to be supporting the nation’s new music appears to be stuck in much the same trap that it was ten years ago. DJ’s may get to choose a few more of their own records than in the past, but they still have to follow the guideline that the likes of Destiny’s Child be played thirty times a day. I recently had the unenviable pleasure of listening to Radio One for a full day, the only entertaining part involved no music at all, during Mark and Lard’s many afternoon comedy stints. But then, things could have been worse. I could have been listening to Metro or Galaxy which airs much the same trash from day to day, only with a non-stop barrage of unimaginative adverts to further frustrate listeners. New music is getting played, but it’s pushed into the late night schedule’s or bogged down by repeat plays of homogenised radio Trance or formulaic American R&B. Either that or it becomes ghettoised like One Xtra, it’s new black music station which no one with regular technology or outside the sprawling mass of our capital city can listen to anyway. There is, of course that third ‘genre’ that is currently getting trundled out of our wireless on a repetitive loop, but the corporate ‘Punk’ of Limp Bizkit or Avril Lavine is something I want to talk about even less than DJ Sammy. Any band with the type of financial backing to fund glossy music video promo’s or full page magazine adverts is neither Punk nor ‘Underground’. Take that chain off your pants and stop deluding yourselves. It’s one big fake and you’ve fallen for it hook, line and sinker. At least ‘Son of Pop Idol’ wears its commercial heart on it’s sleeve. If Radio One would only help themselves and experiment with it’s schedules, god forbid it might even take matters out of the hands of the number crunching production teams and let the DJ’s choose what they think the nation wants to hear. I never thought I’d say it, but I’m currently finding Radio Two the only stomach settling choice. Let’s hope it isn’t so for much longer.
well said. daytime radio 1 is poor indeed. the only thing i listen to on radio one at all now is Westwood, Tong, and the essential mix. Often the best bits during the day are when the DJs play what they like. They are much more enthusiastic about the music when they do this, and it really comes across. ive stopped listening during the day now. Radio 4 all the way!
Radio one is shite!! the only good shows are the Breezeblock, Gilles Peterson, One World, Tong, Westwood, Goldfinger, Nightingale!!! all on after 9:00 at night!! whats the fucking point!!!m
It's almost as bad as MTV with the play list of about 30 songs. Having said that, I quite like Jo Whiley.
this seems to be the main point, no one really has any hang-up's about the presenters or DJ's, it's the fact that their hands are tied by the station. If only radio 1 would try and be creative and react to what's going on in the UK instead of trying to apply American radio techniques to a very different market. That Radio One on demand thing is fundamentally shite because listeners are limited to playlist choices, so all people are really doing is requesting the same records in a different order - the station regards this as interaction and playing what the public wants - wank. then there's all that crap dance 'anthems' call in with you request bollocks. Yeah call in with your request only for them to 'suggest' an alternative. the only station that is free from advertising, yet seems swamped by commercial pressure - how is this so?!?
this is something thats pissed me off for time, i listen to radio 1 quite a bit during the day but i dont listen to it for the music really more for the DJ's you will get 1 good song in about 3 hours with the rest replaced with really poor pop shite, The people who this stuff is aimed at and who buy it are around 10 - 15 year olds. most of the people the music is targeted at will all be in school from 9 til 3 and will not be even listening to it
Firstly i couldn't agree more. Call me wacky but has it something to do with pots of cash? How do records make it onto a playlist anyhow? Who are the tastemakers? How do they compile these lists? Is it a completely unbiased process? It's got to be worth a lot in terms of sales. Now I could just be being cynical; would anyone care to enlighten me?. Second point is regarding the perils of marginalising certain musical genres (no doubt there will be more to follow one xtra) which will result in reduced mainstream exposure. How will this affect kids who are being exposed to bland, contrieved pop and nothing else because every interseting genre has it's own dedicated digital channel that no-one can pick up?
