WFNX

[bird@ATHENA.MIT.EDU]

Joe Turner
> Shelli writes:
>>...the problem
>>of overplay.  I mean, all of us Bostonians like FNX, right?  Well,
>>basically, a lot of the stuff they play, they just play FIRST.  I
>>remember they used to play "Face the Face" by Pete Townshend all the
>>time, and then it became top 40 (more like top 10). And more recently,
>>"Manic Monday" which can be heard in 10 minutes if you put on any top 40
>>station.
>
>I think FNX's p.o.v. is that you shouldn't be listening to any other station
>so you shouldn't be hearing "Manic Monday" all the time :-). Anyway, I like
>the song enough that hearing it over and over again is no problem...
>
>>This is not to say I think "alternative stations" can play
>>anything and still retain their good reputation...
>>...But still,  I think that being "snobby" is really only
>>hurting yourself when it comes to music.  I like Madonna, I also like
>>Tchaikovsky, and I like the Hoodoo Gurus.  
>
>I agree. But 'FNX sells itself as "Rock the Boat Radio", an alternative to
>hearing the same "drivel" over and over again. They're not being snobby,
>they're simply playing one type of music. Does that mean WDLW is snobby
>because it only plays C&W?

But the fact of the matter is that FNX just plays *different* drivel over
and over again.  Example:  About four months ago I had heard Camper Van
Beethoven on WFMU (just outside NYC).  When I got back to Boston, I
called FNX and requested "Take the Skinheads Bowling" by CVB.  Not only
did the DJ not play it, the guy who took my call was snotty and
condescending.  My guess is that since the Boston Phoenix hadn't
reviewed it yet (have they by *now*?) and since nobody in the band had
been in the "new wave" scene c.1980 (e.g., Fine Audio Cannabals, Big
Young Dynamite, General Difford & Tilbrook Public), they weren't worth a
serious listen.  So what *really* has happened is that there is a new
pack of critical and airplay favorites.  No "ALTERNATIVE".
-- 
			     Penn Jacobs
"Nobody ever lends money to a man with a sense of humor"