Originally Posted by TUC:
“Do you actually bother to listen? I'm not saying it's a perfect station but many of its presenters have far more personality than those on most Global stations and, even if some tracks are overplayed, it does have a broader playlist of energetic, engaging music than many others.”
Bother to listen? To you or the crappy station? That some of the presenters have more personality than on most Global stations is like saying chlamydia is less worse to catch than gonorrhoea. Most of them are too lightweight or ego trippy - Ricky Wilson being a complete bore. Gordon Smart is OK on a Sunday, but like all the rest, he is operating in the Global straightjacket and stuck with the god-awful music. Which you say is "energetic and engaging"? Don't make me laugh!
Try this for size. Radio X playlist.
Dew on the vine / Bear's Den
Howl / Biffy Clyro
Re-arrange / Biffy Clyro
Blown Rose / Blossoms
Charlemagne / Blossoms (ancient!)
Oh No / Bring Me The Horizon
7 / Catfish and the Bottlemen
Twice / Catfish and the Bottlemen
A head full of dreams / Coldplay
No one will ever replace us / Courteeners
Revolution radio / Green Day
Power over men / Jamie T
Hole in my soul / Kaiser Chiefs
Waste a moment / Kings of Leon
Go Robot / Red Hot Chilli Peppers
They don't own me / Richard Ashcroft
Ride / Twenty One Pilots
Bad Decisions / Two Door Cinema Club
Boys that sing / Viola Beach
Always be with you / Walking on cars
Almost all of those are tired old acts. Nothing remotely "energetic or engaging". Put on heavy rotation, interspersed with endless Gallagher/Blur/Kasabian and with both digital and FM you get a reach of 1.265M
6 Music Playlist
8 (circle) / Bon Iver
Only Heaven / Coldcut
Lazarus Album / Bowie
Way we won't / Granddaddy
Stupid face / Haley Bonar
Sea hearts / Honeyblood
Randy / Justice
Dead Alive / The Shins
Alpha female / Wild Beasts
R.E.D. / A Tribe Called Red
Give it up / Angel Olsen
In your eyes / Badbadnotgood
Stunt queen / Bloc Party
Fancy Man / Devendra Banhart
Loup Garou / Ed Harcourt
Season 2 Episode 3 / Glass Animals
I don't love anyone / Pete Doherty
Blood on me / Sampha
TCR / Sleaford Mods
Silver morning / Slow Club
Lying has to stop / Soft Hair
Certainty / Temples
I'm still believing / Toy
Heavens above / Yak
Much less rotation interspersed with multi genre archive. Digital only. Reach of 2.342M and twice as many hours.
Trying to tight format alternative music will never, ever work. And interesting to note not one solitary shared playlist track between the two stations - both of which claim to be alternative stations.