Chris Ross "Mostly Sober"

When we were advocating to Save mvyradio, you might have been thinking "Will the station be able to survive?" and "Will I still be able to hear them?" and "Will they have to change their format?"

A question that perhaps didn't cross your mind was, "Will they still be getting service from the record labels?"

It's an interesting, sometime strange arrangement we have in the world of Radio and Records.  And if you're not in it, you may not know how it works.

Here's how it works.

Record companies sign artists and release records.  Their promotions departments (or hired freelancers, called independent promoters) promote the record to radio stations.  Meaning, I get phone calls every week from promoters saying, "We sent you the record.  Have you heard the record?  Do you like the record?  Will you be playing the record?"  Ultimately, their goal is to get mvyradio to put the record in regular rotation on the radio station, because regular airplay (generally speaking) leads to sales, which allows the artists to get paid, and the label to make enough money to sign new artists and release new records.

How do they quantify success?

Here's where industry trade magazines come it.

Each week, I am expected to send a list of what songs we played, and how many times we played each song to Billboard/R&R and Triple A Radio/Mediabase and FMQB, all trade magazines.  The list includes all the current songs we play (not all the older tracks).  For instance, last week, mvyradio played Grace Potter's "Stars" 15 times.

That 15 is added to all the the other spins that Grace got, on all the other radio stations that report.  The song with the most spins, is the Number One song of the week.  Right?

Having a high charting song lets the label know that the promoter is doing a good job, lets the band know that the label is doing a good job, and lets radio know that a band is succeeding elsewhere (and might prompt the station to increase airplay).

So having radio airplay be an accountable thing, is vital to the whole Radio and Record ecosystem.

What happens if you don't report to the trades?

Well, all those times you spin "Stars" aren't counted by anyone.  The bands and the labels have no proof that you are supporting them.  And the promoters lack incentive to even send you records, because there is no proof that you play them.

Stop reporting, and the records stop coming to your mailbox.

Way back when, when I hosted an Alternative specialty show, I'd try to get service from the record labels.  I wanted to be on their mailing list and be shipped their regular releases.  But I was often just blown off.  The nice ones would say, "I can't put you on my list, but if there is something you really want, send me a request and if I have an extra I will send it to you."  Imagine not being able to get a copy of "Nevermind" in 1994?

To get on these lists, you have to be a real radio station, with a real reach and impact.

Going off the FM dial was putting mvyradio's status in jeopardy.

Two pieces of good news happened:

First, we were able to work out a deal that keeps us on 96.5FM in Newport.  So for the sticklers, we ARE on a real FM radio station.

Second, attitudes (inside and outside the industry) are changing. 

If we had left the FM dial a few years ago, many Record folks would have treated the fact that we were a stream-only station the same way they treated my Alternative Specialty show:  not significant enough to be on the radar.  It wouldn't have matter to them mvyradio's online listening audience is much bigger than many of the terrestrial FM stations that do report.  We would have been off the reports, off the mailing lists and kicked down to a second-class status.

But today, industry minds are finally coming around to the fact that some of the old measurement systems really don't accurately represent the world today.

Perhaps the most notable shift in all of the business occurred a couple of weeks ago, when Billboard Magazine announced that they would add Youtube data to how they calculated their Hot 100 charts, which historically was based on radio airplay and sales of the record.

It makes sense.  The new math allowed the song "Harlem Shake" to leap to the Number One spot on the singles chart, propelled by the viral nature of videos featuring the song.  More and more people are hearing, discovering and sharing songs in this way.

Keeping mvyradio on the charts, due to its long reach and influence, I know makes sense to a lot of folks in my business.

In fact, Marc Ratner, a former Major Label guy who know runs his own operation, spoke on our behalf to the folks at Billboard.  He talked about how everyone may still call them "records" even though they might be CDs or MP3 or a stream or whatever.  It's still music, the delivery system is just a little different.  mvyradio should stay as a reporter.

mvyradio is still radio, it's just delivered a bit differently.

And that brings me to this Chris Ross song.

Ross is a singer-songwriter from Maine, and a client of Ratner's.  I got a kick out of "Mostly Sober" the very first time I heard it, enjoying the humor, liking his voice and rolling with the lyrical twists and turns that remind me of a Beck song.

After deciding "We like the song," the next question asked, on the path to adding it to rotation is, "Will the audience care?"

Chris Ross is nowhere on any chart.  He's unknown.  There is no data, from traditional sources, to indicate if we played the tune, music fans would be interested.

So it's all the more striking that his Youtube Channel has about 200,000 views of his self-produced videos.

He's not charting, but someone is listening.  And folks are reacting.

I played "Mostly Sober" at 2:50pm on Wednesday.  By 3pm, an mvyradio listener in New Jersey had written on Ross' Facebook page that she'd just discovered him by listening to mvyradio.   And a few minutes later, Ross had emailed Ratner in Maine, and Ratner forward the message to me.

The modern world!

"Mostly Sober" is no "Harlem Shake."  It's not about to rocket to the top spot on the chart due to Youtube play.

But it's good that we are recognizing that "records" are more than just a plastic disc, and "radio,"---what it is, what it does and what it means to people---isn't limited to a small part of the electromagnetic spectrum.



Hear the song on Youtube.


See a "Harlem Shake" compilation on Youtube.

Grace Potter "Stars"

On the air, and on the blog, I've been open about my mixed feeling about Grace Potter.

On the one hand, she has fully won me over on the idea that she is an immensely talented singer, songwriter and performer.  She's harnessed some incredible charisma and the intricacies of a wielding a powerful voice.

On the other hand, since first being won over by her earthy early work, her recordings have moved into the direction of slicker, more-commercial arena-ready rock.  That's not the worst thing---I like arena-ready rock bands like The Foo Fighters---I just got on the Grace-bus thinking she was going in a different direction.  But harder for me to embrace was the make-over.

She went blond and started dressing (in promotional materials anyway) like a "Star."  Wind machines were deployed.  Marketing opportunities snatched up. 

Pairing this with the more commercial nature of her work, I just felt like authenticity was being traded in for commercial viability.

We skipped the 2nd single from her latest record because I just couldn't bring myself to add it to mvy.  But then I was sent the clip below.  It's a VH1 Storytellers performance of their 3rd single, "Stars," with a long intro where Grace explains what the song is about.

I won't spoil it, but I will say, Get a box of tissues handy.

It reminded me of why I was won over by Grace Potter in the first place.

Get More:
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, Stars (VH1 Storytellers), Grace Potter & the Nocturnals Music Videos, Live Performances

See the official video on Youtube.

Grace Potter & The Nocturnals "Paris"

I first heard Grace Potter's "Paris (Ooh La La)" in concert several years ago. Thought it was a killer tune. If I recall correctly, the very first time I heard it, they played it somewhere in the middle of the set, introducing it as a new song. But when I saw them a few months later, "Paris" was the song they used to open the show.

So I was psyched to see that it made the track listing for their 2010 self-titled album.

Then we played it on the air . . .

It just didn't work for mvy (in my opinion). Every time I'd hear it on the air, at first I'd think, What The Hell Is This?! Then I'd remember it was Grace, and just wait for it to be over.

All the things that made it work, live (the power chords, the swagger, the lyrical innuendo, Grace), were making it not work, on mvy.

Testosterone. Balls. Swagger. These words have never been used to describe the sound of mvyradio.

So I just let it go, and pulled it from the playlist sooner than the average song. There are other tunes on that record, that fit our folk-rock heart.

Not long after pulling the tune out of rotation, I was watching TV, and I heard these riffs. And I immediately went to the thought: What The Hell Is This?! Then I'd remember it was Grace, and I didn't want the song to end.

The riffs and Grace's vocal hook were matched up to the slow-motion action sequences of a new Superhero TV series called "The Cape."

Testosterone. Balls. Swagger. These words are likely the exact words the promo folks at NBC were hoping would come to mind, when pairing this song with the trailer.

It's all about context, isn't it? Not quite right for a super-station. Perfect for super-hero.


The NBC Promo


The album version


The acoustic version

Grace Potter & The Nocturnals "2.22"

Songs like "2.22" are what roped me in to Grace Potter and The Nocturals. A little tough, a little gritty.

At the station, we love that Grace is a Vermont-grow phenom, winning over one fan at a time with her powerful voice, infectious charisma and rock solid band.

And we've been long waiting for a new album, due this year.

What to make of the email I found in my Inbox last week, with only the picture in this post (on the left), and the date 04.05.10?

Grace has never looked like that anytime I've seen her.

It's only one picture, right? I doesn't necessarily say anything about the direction the band is headed in, image-wise or musically. Right?

I found the album cover for the new record on Amazon (on the right). Hmm.

What to make of the make over?

Best not to judge. Because whatever she looks like, she's always going to sound like she does in the clips below.

Right?