RIP Fuel 90.3

[Bobblehead]

OK, 92.9 has a brutal morning crew. I wasn't a fan of Frazier, but holy cow, she is a charismatic superstar next to those bozos. Are they always like that? Zero chemistry, not really having anything to talk about, contriving controversy. They acknowledged that they may have some new listeners because Fuel tanked, so I would have thought they may have tried to make a good impression, or perhaps bored with everything IS their schtick?

[Bigtime]

I've always enjoyed the morning show on X probably for the very reasons you mentioned Bobblehead. They aren't trying to be crazy, zany, or any of that other crap. I honestly believe when I hear them I am hearing the real person talking, and not some made up radio persona.

But different strokes for different folks right?

Edit: Oh man is AMP horrible, that sucker came off my radio memory right away!

[Bobblehead]

They don't need to be zany, but the awkward, strained show I heard this morning wasn't very appealing. I thought the "Did the mayor diss us?" was totally contrived.

It just struck me like listening to people who meet each other a couple times a year at their spouses' company function, and are polite but don't really have much to say.

[Resolute 14]

And it's still better than Forbes and Friends.

All morning shows in Calgary suck, really. I don't mind the X morning crew, but that may mainly be because they play the best music between the inane ramblings.

[Hack&Lube]

Screw morning crews. They all suck. They are all just a bunch of 40/50 year olds with the most annoying voices trying to pretend they are younger than they really are making lame jokes.

I'll tune into the University radio every now and then just to hear some real young people.....and....uhh... hot girl voices.

[Bigtime]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

And it's still better than Forbes and Friends.

Driving your car into oncoming traffic on Deerfoot is better than Forbes!

I rank him right up there with the Spence Diamonds guy in likeability (is that even a word?).

[Cowboy89]

How is it that now we have three stations that play exactly the same music format? Every other station on the dial has it's own unique mix of music. Is there really that much demand for "Top 40" music? I suppose what make the music Top 40 is popularity so I suppose that maybe two stations are warrented, but three, really? I have the same feeling about the fate of these stations that I got when there were two Hip-hop stations. That AMP, Energy, or VIBE are in for a format change within a year/

[Hack&Lube]

I think that AMP will struggle, it's too low on the dial. I haven't listened to VIBE for years. Energy is decent every now and then but I am so sick of the freaking dance crap. Energy was good when it started out (most radio stations are) and then they fall back into terrible patterns of crap. Energy used to play some unique mixes like once I heard a 12" "Run" by Snow Patrol but with the backgroud music replaced with "Every Breath You Take" by the Police. Once I think I even heard Justin Timberlake mixed with Snoop Dog mixed with Foreigner's Cold as Ice.

Maybe that says something about my tastes. I love 80s music and that's where the bulk of my knowledge of music comes from. I love it when I heard bits of it mixed with contemporary music - and that's the only reason I stayed with AMP this morning out of curiosity. They had this totally garbage dance song but part of me recognized that the entire backbeat was from Corey Hart's "I Wear My Sunglasses At Night"

[bradster57]

I was driving at precisely 6:34pm on Saturday, just over a half hour after FUEL switched. I heard the exact same song on FUEL as I heard on VIBE at the same time. Yup, that's exactly what Calgary was asking for! I understand switching format if you're last in the ratings- but going to another hit station in an already crowded top 40 radio market isn't going to work.

For what it's worth, Garner Andrews on the Sonic in Edmonton is one of the only morning shows that is funny and not annoying.

[Bobblehead]

It is weird - there are a few people at work here complaining about the format change. It makes me wonder how accurate those ratings are.

I understand that they had to change - you can't get advertising revenue if the advertisers see you as the lowest rated station (a la WKRP & Ferryman Funeral Homes), but understanding doesn't mean I need to like it.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by bradster57

I was driving at precisely 6:34pm on Saturday, just over a half hour after FUEL switched. I heard the exact same song on FUEL as I heard on VIBE at the same time. Yup, that's exactly what Calgary was asking for! I understand switching format if you're last in the ratings- but going to another hit station in an already crowded top 40 radio market isn't going to work.

For what it's worth, Garner Andrews on the Sonic in Edmonton is one of the only morning shows that is funny and not annoying.

That's funny. That happened to me once, but it was with three stations. Back when that song that goes "where were they going without even knowing the wayyyyyy" was popular, I was driving along, listening to the radio. That song came on the station that I was listening to, and being really sick of that song, I switched to another station, heard the song, swore a bit, switched again and the GD song was playing there too. I had to laugh at that. IIRC, the three stations were CJAY, KISS and whatever 107 was at that time.

That trifecta of crap radio was what turned me into a talk radio listener.

[Peanut]

Originally Posted by Bobblehead

They don't need to be zany, but the awkward, strained show I heard this morning wasn't very appealing. I thought the "Did the mayor diss us?" was totally contrived.

It just struck me like listening to people who meet each other a couple times a year at their spouses' company function, and are polite but don't really have much to say.

I can't stand when the DJ's on X start talking about sports... specifically, when they start talking hockey. They are completely uninformed and come off really ######-y, I find. Half the time one of the DJ's is also an annoying Oilers fan which makes it even worse.

If I want to hear about sports on the radio, I'll switch to FAN 960, not listen to the opinions of the X92.9 morning or drive-home crew (and that's what usually happens whenever they start yapping about sports... I switch the station).

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Peanut

I can't stand when the DJ's on X start talking about sports... specifically, when they start talking hockey. They are completely uninformed and come off really ######-y, I find. Half the time one of the DJ's is also an annoying Oilers fan which makes it even worse.

If I want to hear about sports on the radio, I'll switch to FAN 960, not listen to the opinions of the X92.9 morning or drive-home crew (and that's what usually happens whenever they start yapping about sports... I switch the station).

It's because of people like that that it's so annoying when Dowbiggen or Francis writes something really stupid. Then dummies like these radio hosts read it and perpetuate it.

[FlamesKickAss]

how many fataing top 40's stations do we need in the city?

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by Peanut

I can't stand when the DJ's on X start talking about sports... specifically, when they start talking hockey. They are completely uninformed and come off really ######-y, I find. Half the time one of the DJ's is also an annoying Oilers fan which makes it even worse.

If I want to hear about sports on the radio, I'll switch to FAN 960, not listen to the opinions of the X92.9 morning or drive-home crew (and that's what usually happens whenever they start yapping about sports... I switch the station).

Maybe it's just me, but I find that a lot of the people I meet that are deep into alt-rock culture tend not to be big avid sports fans. Go to the Drum and Monkey before or after Flames games, sure there's a Flames flag hanging up there but compared to other bars in the area it's usually pretty devoid of Flames jerseys.

On another note, if you want to hear people who are completely out of touch with the sporting world listen to the Calgary eyeopener on CBC. Even the sports guy at times sounds like he'd rather take in an enlightning evening of Jazz ahead of attending a hockey game.

[ikaris]

Originally Posted by MelBridgeman

What makes radio better in other cities?

(Sorry I'm so late to reply) But it was mentioned before how there isn't a true variety of stations eg. house or urban/hip-hop, or even just alternative, although I guess this "Fuel" station was. You said it had to do with the demographics, but I'm not so sure.

I standby my comment that radio is crap in Calgary. In Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal, there is much greater variety and focused radio stations.

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by ikaris

(Sorry I'm so late to reply) But it was mentioned before how there isn't a true variety of stations eg. house or urban/hip-hop, or even just alternative, although I guess this "Fuel" station was. You said it had to do with the demographics, but I'm not so sure.

I standby my comment that radio is crap in Calgary. In Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal, there is much greater variety and focused radio stations.

It might not be demographics in the sense that the percentages of fans of particular genres of music are drastically different in Calgary vs the cities you mentioned as having better radio but rather falling for a comparison fallacy that seems to rear it's ugly head whenever people in Calgary compare themselves with other places. Mainly the 'size of market' fallacy.

Due to the massive growth that we have endured throughout our short history Calgarians tend to look ahead to much larger centres and a means of comparison when it comes to public transit, city planning, size of civic events, among other things. The way people talk on such subjects seem to start conversations with "Calgary should have ______, because (Vancouver, San Francisco, Montreal, Seattle, Dallas, New York, Toronto) have ________. Calgary metro liberally measured has about 1.2 million people right now. The smallest city on that list above is Vancouver that has double our population. The reason why we don't have as specialized stations as those areas is simply that we do not actually have the critical mass for such genres to have their own dedicated stations.

Calgary really should be compared to similar sized centres such as:

Ottawa
Edmonton
Austin, Texas
Salt Lake City, Utah
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
New Orleans, Louisiana
Tuscon, Arizona
Rochester, New York
Birmingham, Alabama
Richmond, Virginia
Memphis, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Jacksonville, Florida

[Peanut]

Originally Posted by Cowboy89

Ottawa
Edmonton
Austin, Texas
Salt Lake City, Utah
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
New Orleans, Louisiana
Tuscon, Arizona
Rochester, New York
Birmingham, Alabama
Richmond, Virginia
Memphis, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Jacksonville, Florida

Edmonton is the only city on your "comparables" list that I've been to. I do think they have better radio than Calgary, but admittedly I only think that because they have Sonic and I wish we had Sonic in Calgary.

[Deelow]

Originally Posted by ikaris

(Sorry I'm so late to reply) But it was mentioned before how there isn't a true variety of stations eg. house or urban/hip-hop, or even just alternative, although I guess this "Fuel" station was. You said it had to do with the demographics, but I'm not so sure.

I standby my comment that radio is crap in Calgary. In Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal, there is much greater variety and focused radio stations.

It is simple, commercial radio has only one goal and that is to make money. Selling a "House/Trance" station is impossible in Calgary. NO ONE would buy advertising because NO ONE would be listening. Fuel couldn't sell Nirvana how are they gonna sell DJ insertnamehere?

BTW, I don't believe there is a true dance station in Canada. HipHop is a little more do-able but it seems clear that owners and management are afraid of that format. They don't think it would sell in Calgary, rightly or wrongly.

Another side note, Edmonton is one of the most saturated radio markets in Canada. We are set to see 4 new stations come on the air there. These companies are going to have to get used to smaller pieces of the pie.

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by Deelow

It is simple, commercial radio has only one goal and that is to make money. Selling a "House/Trance" station is impossible in Calgary. NO ONE would buy advertising because NO ONE would be listening. Fuel couldn't sell Nirvana how are they gonna sell DJ insertnamehere?

BTW, I don't believe there is a true dance station in Canada. HipHop is a little more do-able but it seems clear that owners and management are afraid of that format. They don't think it would sell in Calgary, rightly or wrongly.

Another side note, Edmonton is one of the most saturated radio markets in Canada. We are set to see 4 new stations come on the air there. These companies are going to have to get used to smaller pieces of the pie.

Which makes me wonder why some stations don't specialize.

As it is it seems Calgary stations try to copy what is already working, but it takes a heck a lot of effort and publicity to get people to switch for essentially the same product. If you know there are already 2 "Hits" stations, why go after that segment? You'd need to do something pretty compelling to grab a decent market share.

I would think it would be better to find some sort of a niche you believe may have some growth in the future, then service that niche. Yeah, you may not have the huge potential of a CJAY, but then again you aren't competing with the established player. If there is something I have noticed in Calgary, it is that Calgarians seem to stick with what they are comfortable with, whether it is re-electing incumbents at all levels or listening to the same radio stations. A station needs to be unique, promote like crazy, and resist the urge to gallop to the middle of the spectrum when things don't initially work out.

If you think about it, Fuel was all for "new music" when it came out, then it shifted to "classic alternative". This is just another shift, albeit a major one, for a more recent addition to the Calgary market.