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Favorite Alternative radio stations

WBIMDJ said:
Take KSJO Channel 92.3 off my list. Yet another great station Clear Channel has screwed up, they have now recently tweaked their playlist (for the bad, of course). Gone is the good alternative music they were playing before from new and upcoming acts like Hockey, We Are Scientists, Miike Snow, The Gaslight anthem etc. As well as great older classic modern rock from the 80's and 90's, including deeper songs like Love and Rockets "All In My Mind", The Clash's "Police On My Back", that were in rotation, among others. Added instead now are the crappy active rock artists from the corporate cookie cutter playlist including Shinedown, Seether, Evanescence (puke). As well as your hourly dose of the overplayed Red Hot Chili Peppers, Stone Temple Pilots, Linkin Park tracks we've all heard 10,000 times. With that, the station is bland as hell now. In other words, it sounds like every other crappy station CC runs. I remember when 92.3 first launched and I heard how good it was I knew it was only a matter of time before they ruined it.

Clear Channel sucks!!!
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This same thing happened at 103.9 in Phoenix at the beginning of 2010. Prior to the move, hearing Iggy Pop "Passenger" on a Tuesday at 2PM or Siouxie & The Banshees or new music such as Hockey etc. was great. Unlike 94.9/San Diego, they didn't give the true alternative sound enough time to take hold. Enter the cookie cutter stuff you mention which rolls on to this day on that station.
 
Here are some other good ones that I listen to effectively:

1. KRAB, Bakersfield (owned by CC)
2. KROQ-HD 2, Los Angeles (new wave from 80's, good station to listen to)
3. KYLZ, Salt Lake City ("The Point") Brand new station that's been around for a couple of months.
4. KKDO, Sacramento ("Radio 94.7") Format simular to FM/94.9 from San Diego, but also has been around for a couple of months.
5. KFRR, Fresno (I rarely listen to this station, but has an internet stream. They play more current music than the classic stuff, I think.)
6. KURQ, San Luis Obispo (Mostly cookie clutter stuff, but play less classic alternative.)
7. KYLZ, Boise (I've only listened to that station for a couple of days, but I don't know if the musical selection seems good).

Let me know what you think.
 
I've almost given up on radio but heres my list...short as it is....

1 94.7 WIAD HD2/"HFS" Washington DC formerly 99.1 WHFS FM Annapolis/Baltimore/DC
2 88.5/88.7 WXPN HD2/"Y-Rock on XPN" formerly "Y100" 100.3 WPLY Media/Philadelphia
3 105.3 KITS "Live 105" San Francisco
4 107.7 KNDD Seattle "The End"
5 98.5 WBZ HD2 "WBCN" Formerly 104.1 FM WBCN Boston
6 103.1 WRNR FM Grasonville/Annapolis....its a Modern/Alternative leaning AAA or as I like to call it "HFS on thorizine"
 
May I ask a question? What is the criteria for this post? I live in Philly. A lot of people have mentioned 104.5 WRFF. Its playlist is stale...It doesn't touch any active rock, it hardly plays any current music, too too much Pearl Jam ,Offspring..ect, alot of non alternative artists played Fall Out Boy, Nicleback ect....Its imaging is a snoozefest...the air talent even sounds bored( I don't blame them I think they are under srong constrants on what and how they say things..)
Don't get me wrong I LOVE ALTRNATIVE and ROCK....but Philadelphia has the worst rock stations going. Yes I am aware of the fact WRFF is getting ratings here but it is the only rock station of the four that focuses on music that came out before 1985 so they win by default.
 
instigator said:
May I ask a question? What is the criteria for this post? I live in Philly. A lot of people have mentioned 104.5 WRFF. Its playlist is stale...It doesn't touch any active rock, it hardly plays any current music, too too much Pearl Jam ,Offspring..ect, alot of non alternative artists played Fall Out Boy, Nicleback ect....Its imaging is a snoozefest...the air talent even sounds bored( I don't blame them I think they are under srong constrants on what and how they say things..)
Don't get me wrong I LOVE ALTRNATIVE and ROCK....but Philadelphia has the worst rock stations going. Yes I am aware of the fact WRFF is getting ratings here but it is the only rock station of the four that focuses on music that came out before 1985 so they win by default.
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I also don't understand all the excitement over Radio 104.5. I think that people are making a note of the current titles they are playing (Mumford & Sons, Metric, Matt & Kim, etc.) and what they're NOT playing (acts like Shinedown, which have unfortunately become staples of many alternative rock stations even though they sound like a Skynyrd cover band), and judging them on that alone.

What they don't seem to notice is that they play a rather anemic number of currents (around 20 or so), their Adult Top 40/Hot AC leanings (lots of Fall Out Boy, Paramore, The Fray, etc.) and the way they fall back on familiar titles all too often (name 10 of the most stale rock songs of the '90s - chances are WRFF still has all or most of them in frequent rotation). Special features on the station are extremely limited (no all-request shows, no retro lunch ... just a new music show on Sunday and two one-song segments on weekdays), and the overall playlist runs about 400-500 songs, tops. It should come as no surprise that they sound the way they do, given the fact that they are owned by those purveyors of McRadio known as Clear Channel.

While the number of excellent alternative stations around the nation is sadly shrinking, some of my favorites include Boston's WFNX, Oklahoma City's KINB ("The Spy"), San Diego's KBZT, and Orlando's WTKS ("Real Radio 104.1" ... talk during the week, but a really excellent alternative playlist drawing mostly from the '80s and '90s on late nights and weekends). These are all true alternative stations - you won't find any of that bubblegum pop/rock on these stations, nor will you hear the generic post-grunge of acts like Nickelback, 3 Doors Down, Seether, Breaking Benjamin, Shinedown, etc.
 
RFF 104.5 started out with a chance but has become Alternative Lite. Philly Rock stations suck because they mix it all up which tends to piss off fans of one sub-genre or another. When AC/DC follows Smashing Pumpkins you have listeners losing interest fast. A great solution to this would be to bring Y100 or WDRE back with Modern/Alternative and let YSP stick with "The Rock We Think You Grew Up With" and MMR with Active since sister station MGK has the Classic Rock covered. I loved the mighty 93.3 back when Classic WAS Modern and they debuted the Philly locals before the record execs watered down/sissied up thier sound.

The main problem with Alternative now is that term is slapped on anything the number crunchers can't easily categorize with thier limited musical knowledge. Chicken Fried Rock is the best example of whats NOT Alternative but greases its way onto Modern/Alt playlists anyway.
 
The thing to remember about RFF is that unlike most markets Philly does not have a strong Hot AC. So RFF serves as both an alternative and default Hot AC. It's the closest thing to the old Modern ACs that used to be common. If they were more format pure the people on this board would cheer but they would almost certainly have worse ratings.

I was listening online to KXRK/Salt Lake. I wanted to check them out because it's so unusual to see an ALT station rated overall #1. I very much enjoyed their shuffle weekend. Great sounding station.
 
I enjoy WFMU 99.1 from Jersey City NJ. It's free-form & listener-supported. They really support up & coming artists as well. I nice escape from commercial radio, even if only occasionally.

http://www.wfmu.org/
 
Can WKBE (100.3 The Point in Albany/Glens Falls) be considered Modern Rock? It's basically the only station I listen to anymore, now that Channel 103.1 flipped to talk radio, and Q103.9 just isn't cutting it for me. =/
 
danikayser84 said:
Can WKBE (100.3 The Point in Albany/Glens Falls) be considered Modern Rock? It's basically the only station I listen to anymore, now that Channel 103.1 flipped to talk radio, and Q103.9 just isn't cutting it for me. =/
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Looks more AAA to me,? Good mix though.
If you listen to them, you're probably in the north-Albany metro area (Glens Falls/Saratoga Springs/etc.) so you could probably hall in WEQX on 102.7 in Manchester VT. THAT's an excellent alternative station. :)
 
91-X San Diego gets Mega Kudos for the Ressurection Weekend that they did a couple of
months ago. Capone had all the talent in from years gone by. It was a very cool feel and
had me scratching my head as to why radio has not come up with an alternative that is
at least 50% classic alt based if not more. I think there is a place for this somewhere.


Chris
www.radiookc.com
 
WBIMDJ said:
danikayser84 said:
Can WKBE (100.3 The Point in Albany/Glens Falls) be considered Modern Rock? It's basically the only station I listen to anymore, now that Channel 103.1 flipped to talk radio, and Q103.9 just isn't cutting it for me. =/
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Looks more AAA to me,? Good mix though.
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WKBE is a Modern AC I think (like Click/Seattle and KUCD/Honolulu), cause it takes stuff off the Alternative chart and the HAC chart
 
In certain areas of SoCal you can pull in all four SD & LA alt. stations. Back in the day when Indie 103.1 was in this mix it was even better. Of course over various periods of time SD has previously had THREE alt rockers on the air.
 
What about 99x in Atlanta? Good blend of 90's and todays rock. I would say it leans more alternative. 80's and 90's new wave/alt during the lunch hour.
 
Check out this little Canadian station. The Zone @ 91-3 in Victoria British Columbia. Great variety and texture to their music and the announcers don't sound like announcers. They actually sound like real honest to goodness people.

www.thezone.fm
 
Johnnyman said:
Check out this little Canadian station. The Zone @ 91-3 in Victoria British Columbia. Great variety and texture to their music and the announcers don't sound like announcers. They actually sound like real honest to goodness people.

www.thezone.fm
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I would man, I would, but those "Cancon" rules prevent me from listening to any Canadian station except for the Z103s in Toronto & Hally. The Cancon makes it seem like I am "forced" to listen to music that would otherwise not be programmed if not for said rules.
 
Saladressing said:
Fave commercial alt. rock at the moment:

1. CD 101/Columbus
2. FM 94/9/San Diego
3. WEQX

That's about it. I've got all the "top" commercial alt. rockers in my iPhone but they all sound way too corporate and repetitive. Strangely enough, The Spy/OKC is too obscure and non-repetitive. There's a fine line here. There's a balance that is attainable between art and commerce. Viva REV 105.
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Since it's been over a year since that post I'll update my faves for 2011:

1. KSLG/Eureka
2. FM 94/9/San Diego

Regarding KSLG, here we have a radio station that like CD101, WEQX and a few others does not trot out the same 40 "classic" alternahits in continuous rotation 24/7. This is a station you can put on and leave on that sprinkles in some cool surprises here and there. Not even close to the vaunted OLD Spy/OKC and REV105/Minneapolis, but the best of what's around today IMO.

I like a commercial alt. station that consistently plays some commercial punk rock (Social D, Bad Religion, Face to Face, Pennywise, etc.) hence the dropping of CD101 and WEQX. Anyone else who wants to update their list feel free :)
 
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