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COVER STORY: Radio, radio

Detroit is a musical city. Since the Motown hey-day of the '60s, Detroit has been recognized for its musical roots and its encouragement of the bands that formed in the Metro-Detroit area. Well, the '90s are no exception. Lately, Detroit has brought bands such as Sponge, Hoarse, Charm Farm and Speedball into the public eye. And there's no sign that the end is at hand.

Perhaps the most influential part of a band's movement from the local scene to the mainstream can be attributed to radio airplay. Once a band has a "hit single," a song that makes it into heavy rotation on the air, the band's future is clear. Thousands of people at a time will hear the song, hundreds of them will like it, and those who do will ask to hear it again. This phenomenon makes radio stations an integral part of the local music scene -- and also a part of the Detroit community.

There are several radio stations in the Detroit area that firmly believe in supporting local music in any shape or form. They are also highly involved within the city itself, offering their resources to help fund concerts and raise money for charities. A few stations that have been actively promoting local music in recent years are "The Planet" WHYT 96.3 FM, CIMX 89X FM, WCBN 88.3, and WDET 101.9, stations that turn local bands into nationwide sensations, make albums with only one hit song into Billboard chart-toppers and set in motion phenomena like "grunge."

As is clear after only one listen, 89X and 96.3 seem to have cornered the "alternative" or "new rock" genre in the Detroit area. "I'd have to say we're really Top 40 right now," said Fogel, a disc jockey at 96.3. "It just so happens that the current Top 40 is alternative music, which sort of makes it not alternative anymore."

Vince Cannova, music director and disc jockey at 89X, tends to stay away from defining terms, though he agreed that "new rock" is also 89X's main focus. "We play a lot of Nine Inch Nails, Alice in Chains, and Nirvana. I guess that could only be classified as `new rock,'" Cannova stated.

In addition to playing "alternative" music day and night, many stations are attempting to make a space for local music. As more and more people are realizing, it's important to support local music, as it reflects directly on the city itself. One need only look to Seattle for an example of a city whose local bands generated much publicity across the country. People feel a strong kinship for bands from their hometown (even the bad ones) and acknowledge the fact that most bands need all the help they can get.

At this point, both 89X and 96.3 play local music on a regular basis, and each have helped to make names for bands in the past. 96.3 broadcasts a special local feature each Monday through Friday at 9 p.m. appropriately called "Local Nine Six Three." This program consists of only one song by a local band, but on Friday nights, The Planet welcomes all five featured bands to the Foundry for a "five bands, five bucks" evening.

In this way, The Planet not only plays local music on the air, but also encourages people to attend the live concerts. 89X has a similar program called the Homeboy Show which is broadcast on Sunday nights at 10 p.m. While the show is only on one night a week, it lasts for a half hour and is sure to quench your local music thirst. In addition, 89X also makes an effort to play bands like Hoarse and Speedball outside of the local show. As Cannova said, "We're always looking for local artists to play on the station. It's just finding one that fits in with what we're doing that's difficult."

While 89X and 96.3 might be have the most nationwide influence, smaller stations such as Ann Arbor's own WCBN 88.3 and WDET (Detroit's public radio station), are also getting in on the local bandwagon. On Fridays, from 7 to 8 p.m., Dan Banda has a local music show on WCBN which, in the past, has included visits by local singers and songwriters. "Dan has even had entire bands in to perform on the air," said a disc jockey at the station.

WDET, with a format that could only be called "eclectic," is another station that devotes much of its airtime to local music. "We play a lot of local bands, but we don't have one particular show that is devoted to local music in particular," said Cari Wells, assistant to the station's general manager. These smaller stations, though not always the ones to push a song into the mainstream, have much more leeway with their programming and can play more local bands, should they choose to do so.

In the case of The Planet, neither the program director nor the disc jockeys have much say in which local bands actually make it on the air. "We're a big company. We're owned by ABC, which is now owned by Disney. They really play by the rules to make sure that music doesn't get on the air unless it really deserves it," Fogel commented. "It's very subjective. But, we really want to play local music. When they don't have record labels it becomes ... political."

Cannova heartily agreed. "We're not gonna just play a band because it's local. It's important to support local music, but just because they're local doesn't mean they get special treatment. They have to be good."

In any case, regardless of amount of airplay, any radio station can be the difference between making or breaking a band, particularly a local one. Both stations interviewed felt as though they have had an integral part in helping out certain bands, most noticeably Charm Farm with 96.3. Due to the exposure given by the station, Charm Farm has sold plenty of albums, going on to win several local music awards. This is not to say that without The Planet's help, Charm Farm would not have done well, but the added exposure certainly did not hurt. "If a record guy hears them on the air or people go to see them in concert because we played the music, then yeah, I'd say we help them," Fogel added.

Dennis White, the lead singer and often publicist for Charm Farm agreed that 96.3's airplay had a major impact on the success of the band. "Radio airplay was singularly responsible for all the band's success," White shared. White was also eager to offer his opinion on the best way to get radio play.

"Don't spend too much time always playing gigs, as it's more important to have two or three really good songs and record them. Then, take them to a radio station and find out who the program director is. Just be a pain in the ass until they give you a shot. Call everyone you know and have them listen while the song is on the air. Then have everyone call and request it all the time. Consequently, the radio station will notice and put it on their most requested list. If you're on three or more of these lists, the record companies will notice. All this can be done without gigs," he said.

Interestingly, Charm Farm's success with their single "Superstar" didn't really follow this route. According to the band's story, 96.3 heard the single and loved it, though the band thought it was a little too early to release it. Despite this, 96.3 played the single, which received much attention. Although Charm Farm has decided to remain with independent PRA Records, they're currently being courted by Mercury.

When they aren't busy introducing a new band to the general public, both radio stations also attempt to actively take part in their community. "The other night I went to the Band Jam at Seaholm High School in Birmingham," Fogel mentioned. "It was five local bands. They sold out the little auditorium at Seaholm. I just got up there and said, `This is a cool thing you guys have been doing.' They have been doing this for eleven years now."

89X also sponsors two concerts during the year; the X-Fest and the Birthday Bash. Both shows contain approximately ten bands, two or three of which are from the surrounding community. In this manner, 89X offers a large-scale concert where people still have a chance to support the bands from their own city.

Finally, when asked where the Detroit music scene is heading in the future, both disc jockeys had high hopes. "Where's it heading?" asked Fogel. "I'd have to say to Toledo. Really, this has always been a pretty musical town. I'm sure we'll just continue that." "I think it's definitely gotten stronger recently," said Cannova. "It's one of the biggest untapped resources that there is in the country for new talent. Now, all of a sudden there are some bands out of Detroit that are starting to get signed. But, who was there before Sponge? Now there are a lot of bands generating a lot of interest in Detroit. We're sparking interest across the country."