You're kidding, right? 'Radio without rules'? C'mon - that's joke, right? 95.7 launched a new station, and the entire premise is that it's fascinating like a trainwreck. They keep telling me it's 'radio without the rules' and the 'djs are playing their favorite song, like your iPod on shuffle' - well, sorry, but Eric Clapton and Genesis are NOT on my iPod. And neither is the Electric Slide or C&C Music Factory, and while it was interesting to hear Howard Jones and New Order in the middle of this mess, I think that if Michael Stipe were sitting next to me he'd be asking for a machete after he heard Losing My Religion into Still the One.

And how can it really be 'the DJs are playing their favorite songs' when there aren't any DJs (they fired the x-Mix 95.7 Djs yesterday)? If I have to hear them one more time in their production bragging about how cool it is to segue from Back in Black to Play that Funky Music White Boy... I will pour a bath, get in, and see if my radio will reach. 'It's like we brought a bunch of CDs to the radio station, cause we did' this shit is inane. Ooh - there's Madonna, then ELO, then Marcy Playground. As my friend Pat said, how is it that only Radio can manage to make iPods UNCOOL?

'Freeing us from all the shackles of ordinary radio' - well, if that freedom means getting to hear the Rembrandts play the Friends Theme 3x per week - woo hoo - count me in! The Ben FM phenomenon (the format is generally referred to as Jack, as this was the name of the early adopters to this format up in Canada where it started) is based on being shallow and wide - "we're so crazy we'll play anything!" as long as it was a #1 hit, and even if it sucks. No, especially if it sucks.

Corporate radio is so lemming'd out - remember Jammin' Oldies? Or the All-80s format? Both launched, climbed, and crashed and burned within 18 months in the past 5 years. And when I say launched, I mean, after one ambitious company (usually non-corporate but actually creative) tried the format somewhere and it worked, soon every city HAD TO HAVE ONE. And here in Philadelphia we've got Ben FM... like Ben Franklin. Get it?

I have no doubt this will be a big hit in Philly. And that makes me sad.

Jim

Did anyone see this ad? "Now the Only Alternative is 88.5 WXPN. Y100 may have left the air, but there is still a home for alternative rock fans as passionate as you: member supported 88.5 WXPN" The ad goes on to talk about WXPN's eclectic mix, etc, and listing a bunch of alt artists that WXPN plays - like U2, Keane, Beck, wilco, Dave, Counting Crows, Phish, Tori Amos, Norah Jones, etc. (Norah Jones, alternative? Anyway).

Seeing this ad was tough. I love WXPN sooooo much - I truly think it is one of the best things about Philadelphia - a passionate, community focused, detailed and courageous music station that has grown and succeeded from humble college radio beginnings. It's great, and they play a wide mix of diverse music. I am a member and support the station wholeheartedly. The people are quality people - from PD Bruce Warren to Dan Reed, Michaela, David Dye... and very often I hear music I love on WXPN. But to call it alternative? It IS alternative to the rest of the dial - that's for sure, but it's not alternative rock. I have never heard Nirvana, the Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam, Weezer, the Killers, Green Day or System of a Down on WXPN.

WXPN is terrific at what it does and it should continue to do what it does... but I still get in my car (pretty much the only time I'm not listening to y100rocks.com), and I have a hard time finding something to listen to. I go to WMMR and hear STP into Bon-frickin-Jovi, then go to WYSP and it's Metallica into somethig that sounds like Metallica, then I go to WXPN, and I might hear a great set of stuff like Lucinda Williams into Bob Dylan into Bob Marley into Beck, but then the inevitable non-alternativeness of it will strike, and I'll be bummed and want to trade in the bluegrass cover of Procal Harum for just one little taste of Weezer... so maybe it's just me, and it's DEFINITELY no slap at WXPN - I love the people, love the music, love that they asked me to be on the air with them when we got booted off, and who knows, I may end up working there someday - but if WXPN is the ONLY alternative, than the Philadelphia music scene will still have a huge gaping hole in it... so for now, for me, it's Y100Rocks.com whenever I'm near a computer, and WXPN in the car, with occasional trips to the rock stations till they make me cringe, or Oldies 98 for something easy to swallow... and the anger and sadness comes right back over me...

jim mcguinn

Last weekend I went to Austin Texas for the annual South By Southwest music conference... a few observations: people know about the Y100 story. Everywhere I went, not only did people in the music industry stop me to talk about it, but many have been listening from afar and were digging what they heard on Y100Rocks.com. I was a little embarrassed to be airchecked by a friend from Cali (you tend to forget the internet is World Wide!), but it was great to hear that they are all out there rooting for us. The other thing I learned was that yes, Mildred, Rockandroll is still alive! At SXSW something like 1300 bands and 25,000 fans converge on Austin... Austin is a great town - with at least 50 venues within a few blocks and music spilling out all over the streets... there are day shows, night shows, late night hangs, etc. I was exhausted just from walking venue to venue in search of the elusive great set. Here's the bands I saw in 3 days, in order:


Johnny Panic (UK punk/pop - pretty great)

Pedro the Lion (great - vox sounds like Lemonheads a bit)

Tegan and Sarah (twin lesbian sisters from Canada? I'm in!)

the Kills (angry boy/girl duo - like the Fall meets PJ Harvey)

Trashcan Sinatras (before there was Keane/Travis/Coldplay... and the new album is awesome)

Clem Snide (US indie rock in matching country suits)

B.C. Camplight (Philly's own! I'm gonna get the record on at Y100rocks - VERY Ben Folds Five like, in style and humor)

Vic Chestnutt (he may be in a wheelchair, but that doesn't stop the rock)

Kaiser Chiefs (mix Blur, Specials, XTC, Franz, and a pinch of the Clash - I loved it!)

Bitter Bitter Weeks (my favorite Philadelphia artist... singer/songwriter with soul and grace)

the Ark (Swedish Darkness?)

Freebleeder (local Austin punks - chubby dudes with mohawks! I bought the CD)

Mary Lou Lord (she may have slept with Cobain, but she busks outside the Driskill Hotel 5 hours per night evey year - I love her - she covered Straight To Hell)

Dr. Dog (another Philly fave - they have gotten amazing live... another one I need to get the CD on the air from )

Murder By Death (incredible! screamo meets Nick Cave? but no, it really works... and the cellist is C-U-T-E)

Underoath (I don't get the music - but it makes the Used seem like boyband wimps, and the live show smoked with intensity)

Trashcan Sinatras (again, I went to a party with Stuff girls, and they were playing... two great tastes that work together...)

Ben Lee (aw, he's great. the kind of guy you meet a few times and it feels like he is a friend - go get his new album NOW - it's great!)

some random Austin bands that I don't remember...

Koufax (finally coming back! I love love love them. Y-Not faves of Dan and mine... if you like hot hot heat...)

So that was a pretty good sampler. And that was going totally ghetto - I flew down on freq flyer miles and crashed at a friend's couch and only went to shows I could get in to w/out a badge (the badge costs about $300, I ended up spending about $60 on covers, the rest were all free) - missing Queeens, Bravery, Louis XiV, Hot Hot Heat, New York Dolls, etc.
SXSW is a great weekend for music junkies. For three days the universe is perfect, everyone is hip, and if we close our eyes, it feels like Nickelback never existed. I recommend it to any music fans any year...

Jim

Hello friends and family -

You know, over the past 3 or so weeks, I've seen some incredible stuff. This is largely due to the fact that the internet has blown up into this massive community of friends and supporters - and given that many of us are still trying to figure out the best way to proceed with what we're doing, since we've never done anything like this before, it's been a great learning experience - and, a lot of fun - But a lot of work as well. So, as we try and get organized and figure out what's next, keep checking back at the main website for more frequent updates.

This was always intended as a sort of journal or diary for the staff - and not necessarily a news board... So I'm going to use it as the former. And please realize: These viewpoints are solely my own - not just as a child of the radio (at least since I was a teenager back in the stone age), but as a music fan, a Philadelphian, and as someone who's sick and tired of seeing the entertainment industry turned into a vacuous suck-hole of meaningless drivel and cash-in-quick pop-crap, like Ashlee Simpson.

I wish I could snap my fingers and have a radio station tomorrow - I really do. The reality of the situation is not like that. Things of this magnitude take time. The key here is being persistent. I know a LOT of you have gone out and looked at a lot of radio industry websites, and have read about the trend the industry has been taking across the country. I've read them all too, and I don't agree with any of it - unfortunately, my opinion doesn't really matter all that much. YOURS DOES!

Look at it this way - a company, in any industry, is out to make money. Period. That's what they're in business for. What the radio industry thinks is that it can make more money by not keeping the rock you want to hear on the radio, or, diluting it with stuff your parents listened to when they were your age. Hey, I've got nothing against classic rock persay (just the bad classic rock that does, factually, exist) - but you don't need to sit through "Gimmie Three Steps" to hear Pearl Jam or Rancid, do you? (Anyone heard Rancid on the radio lately?)

They'll throw statistics, and pie-charts, and page after page of research and sales charts and tons of other "data" out to support what they think. And they also figure you'll eventually shut up, quit whining, and buy whatever their research indicates will be most profitable, based on your responses to their surveys. (Where's the HEART, man?!)

If that's what you want to have happen, then remain complacent, compliant, get in line, and shut up.

For now, the x-Y100 staff has been doing our best to keep the spirit of alternative music alive in Philadelphia, through the best means we have available, and the resources that have been given to us. But please don't kid yourselves - We're fighting an uphill battle against an industry that's decided that you, the music fans, don't care enough about the music to keep it on the radio ... because they can't quantify it with statistics, and pie-charts, and numbers, and other kinds of meaningless "data" - and that makes them right, to them.

I know better. You do too.

Someone has to draw a line, and say, "Enough of this $#*T," and hold their ground.

No, alternative radio wasn't always perfect - despite our best efforts - But it's gone COMPLETELY now in this city! It can't change or grow if it does not exist - which it doesn't in Philadelphia anymore. That's dumbfounding to me - still. I don't get it, and I'm not okay with it.

I hope YOU'RE not okay with it - that's what really matters.

Hey gang -

If you haven't stopped by the Y100Rocks.com site lately -
You Should!
There's pics and video from the PROTESTival, video links, and, we're broadcasting live more often! (Not that the non-live stuff isn't good - but I just thought I should let you know!)

We're (meaning all of us - the ex-staff and you) making serious noise, and people are hearing it. But the important thing to remember is that time, in the radio world, moves very slowly. BUT - the fact that the news media is still reporting things in the first place is proof that we're being heard! REMEMBER - We need to keep things going, and show them this isn't a knee-jerk reaction by a few people who happen to know how to use the internet.

By The Way: Tell your friends - especially if they're away at college! We're still getting emails from Delaware Valley residents who are just NOW finding out that Y100 no longer exists - and they're not happy about it either!

In the meantime, please keep checking the Y100Rocks.Com website, and make sure you spend some time listening to the webcasting - live or not! There's a lot of good music to hear!

On a side (and final) note - a student writer from Temple asked me what I thought of corporate radio. The article won't run for some time, but, I wanted to share my answer with you here - just as food for thought:

> The truth of the matter is that corporations also own resturants,
> hotels, drug stores, shopping centers, grocery stores, etc., and
> we all frequent them to varying degrees. It's bigger than just
> radio, really.And the fact is, corporations aren't going to go
> away - they're a part of our lives. As is the case with any
> corporate entity, some are run better than others; and
> some you may like, some you don't. But the long and short
> of it is, like in poltics, if you want to change the system, you
> have to work within the system that exists. And of course,
> you, the consumers, will ultimately decide which corporations
> will continue to exist and which ones will go out of business
> by choosing or not choosing their "products," whatever that
> product may be - hamburgers, clothing, cell phones, or radio.

Anyway - thank you all again for the continued and incredible support!

-Zack
x-Overnight Idiot / Imaging Guy

p.s. I don't have administrative options on this blog, so, I can't turn on RSS ... I'll see if someone else can.

Hey everyone!

I just had some personal type thoughts to share - and of course, this is all personal type opinion - but you're welcome to agree with me!

It's been just over a week since our radio station disappeared from the airwaves, and in the past week, I have to tell you that I've never seen such a public outcry like this in my entire career. It's amazing - I think I can safely say that all of us are *really* just blown away by it.

Two Things:

#1 - KEEP IT UP! -The media (TV, newspapers, and others) are seeing what's going, and they're paying attention! They know the public still cares, and you can't let them forget that you do - but please continue to be smart about whatever you do. We don't need anyone getting themselves in trouble, and we certainly don't need anyone doing anything that is hurtful, ignorant, or just plain negative - Keep it positive!

#2 - Be Patient! - All of this is totally new to us - and as we're all working through a situation in which we're discovering new things about every 10 minutes (literally), and working through the snafus that will invariably arise. For example, thanks for supporting the Y100Rocks.Com online station; we're always trying to make it better, and dealing with the technological limitations that exist. Remember, it's the internet, and it's not perfect. It may never be. But we're using the outlets that have been provided to us to the best of our abilities.
As someone once said, "Rome wasn't built in a day." And believe that we're all (you and the x-Y-Staff) flying by the seat of our pants together !

All that being said, please be aware that we're all trying our hardest to make this all work out somehow - and as I said, it's really awesome to see the support from all of you. Where this will go, I don't know - the crystal ball is on the fritz! But just hang in there and keep hoping for the best!

- Zack
x-Overnight Idiot / Imaging Guy

So I'm getting a kick out of this. ..

A listener, named Tom Trignani, wrote to Mrs. Sneed the other day and sent us her response.  Tom seems to be a relative of one of the members of  Interpol, and expressed to Sneed his disappointment.  Some quotes from Tom's letter:

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Just recently my Cousin's band Interpol have climbed the charts with their new record "Interpol Antics". Y100 has been instrumental in popularizing the band in the Philadelphia area by playing the songs "Slow Hands" and "Evil"...

Since Interpol has been playing the Philadelphia area, they have never sold out the Electric Factory venue until Y100 promoted them in this city.

This band work's hard to support it's fanbase and by you Execs ailenating them I won't have anything to do with any Radio One products of any kind (that goes for Satellite Radio too) unless Y100 is restored to it's previous spot on the FM dial...

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So, Tom also sent us Sneed's reply....here it is un-edited....

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So the show is sold out!!  That's great. I am putting together an email list of all the people who now hate us. I will give it to your cousins band. This is so important to have to stay in touch with your fan base. Also send me the cd and I will see if our modern rock station in louisville might want to play. Send to
MC sneed
Radio One
75 piedmont
Atlanta, ga 30005

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What do you you think she is trying to say?