ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

jonbon

Hi there

As great as it is to hear Phantom back on the air it's really not the same Phantom at all is it (and I know there's a similar post down below but I have some different issues to point out)?

1. Some of the DJs (not including Steve Conway, lovely lad but he could do with relaxing a bit more when reading the news, he is great otherwise) are completely wooden, particularly the morning/early afternoon ones. After almost a month on air this situation isn't changing and I know a lot of the Phantom 'old school' have moved on (good for them) but really and truly I could do a better job. What I always liked about the previous DJs is that they were very gung-ho, they made jokes out of making mistakes, weren't afraid to be uncool on air (always a short ticket to truly being cool, that) and were completely relaxed on-air. A lot of the new DJs simply aren't, and some of them go for that XFM-esque "whispering right beside the mike" crap which is not very Phantom, eh?

2. I'm not remotely offended by songs with swear words in them, but playing them during the day especially with the BCI regulations can't be a good idea, can it? I heard a few over the weekend and it wouldn't bother me normally, but it seems unusual when you consider......(brings me to my next issue......)

3. The playlist seems to have been heavily sanitised to comply with the BCI regulations, half the stuff myself and my friends used to request before has now completely gone and I'm spotting a bit of repetition in the playlist - not good, guys!

I'm not being negative but I would love to see Phantom get a much deserved permanent licence, and I do appreciate it's difficult confining the schedules to weekend only, but I do think that a bigger impact could be made and a month in, it's not really working so far. I know several long-time listeners that have really been put off by the sound of a station that used to sound professional and slick (not in that way of course!) but now sounds clumsy and (dare I say it...) amateurish?

And what happened to a lot of the old jingles? Most of them seem to have vanished as well! (apart from that awful 8th of May one!)

anyway best of luck but I just wanted to point a few things out considering I've been a listener since the days of Coast/Spectrum.

SimonMaher

Hi Jonbon,

Thanks for taking the time to make your points known, really is appreciated by all at Phantom towers.

Let me deal with the bits one by one, in no particular order.

Firstly, the jingles. Apart from the fact that a lot of them really were knocking on (over 3 years old!), most of them said 91.6 which sort of made them a bit useless to be honest. We've been working with a smaller set of jingles recently, but are working to get more done up and more voice-overs and stings etc sorted. They have been delayed, but are on the way.

Musically no, we havent sanitised the playlist to suit the BCI at all. You make the point that we play songs with swear words and then that we have sanitised the music? I dont quite get that one. Seriously though, there has been no shift in music policy to appease the broadcasting regulators. Maybe give us some examples of bands who were on our playlist that you think have dissapeared now. Not criticizing you here, just looking for more detail.

It so happens that I dont agree on the wooden DJs thing. Yes, presenters who were in less high profile slots have now moved up to higher profile shows and yes, there are also new broadcasters on board. I dont think any sound wooden though. If they do, its something we have to work on because as you rightly point out, it has always been one of Phantoms strengths. Maybe we're missing the smooth (or Al Graham factor as its become known) factor a bit at the moment.

I would love to hear how you think a greater impact could be made in our restricted schedule. We're doing our best at the moment, in unchartered territory, but absolutely there is always room for improvement (except in Als case obviously).

Thanks again,

Pete Reed
Phantom FM
reed@phantomfm.com

BrianD

This debate about the music changing crops up on a regular basis. Fortunately, music does change and that is reflected in our playlist. Sometimes there is are musical doldrums when there doesn't seem to be awful lot of good stuff around. We rise to the challenge of finding the music that makes the Phantom sound.

Is there such a thing as "rose tinted ears"? We have lsiteners who bemoan the fact that we no longer play wall to wall 90's Indie such as Radiohead, Blur, Stone Roses etc. This may have been a golden era for many but time moves on. We can't be stuck in the past. The station sounds pretty much like it always has but there is no doubt that we have a wider playlist then we have ever had in the past.

Can you be specific about what you are requesting? Bear in mind we don't and can't always play songs that are requested. You would be surprised how frequently certain artists or songs are requested. It would be a cop out just to play them. Personally, I tend to be guided by listeners' requests without necessarily playing the songs that are being requested.

I don't think our presenters could be described as "slick" as in commercial radio slick. All our presenters aim to be as competent as possible on air but are willing to laugh at themselves if they do make a cock up. At the same time, listeners don't like to hear complete amateurs on air either as it is a complete turn off.

We want your feedback but I am a bit baffled by this particular posting as you seem to contradict yourself and it is unclear what you think Phantom FM should sound like.

ferdi

there is already a post on this

jonbon

Howdy

Just in response to the above:

1. I admit that maybe I do have "rose tinted ears" and I admit my taste in music is slightly nostalgic but there has been a difficulty in getting requests played and I have yet to hear any Breeders, Frames, Feeder, Smiths, Violent Femmes (remember that was the Phantom anthem at one stage!!!) which I have requested and told that it's not there. I feel that is being neglected for a lot of the Good Charlotte/Blink 182 stuff which is very repetitive and tiring to listen to, although I'm sure there is probably a hefty demand for this stuff. I just feel that the American punk genre is taking over the playlist at the expense of other types of music and while a little of it is fine, I found that on listening to Phantom lately that's all I'm hearing and that's what I mean about the playlist being commercialised (rather than sanitised as I previously said - sorry but I ain't a journalist!)

2. I probably wasn't making myself too clear on this one - what I was trying to say was that whether the BCI have no influence over the playlist or not (most unlikely) there is still a need to ensure that Phantom will gain a permanent licence and indeed, to stay on the air. That's why I find it surprising that I heard a number of songs with swearwords at 4pm on Sunday - surely the 'man' won't be impressed? (although I am not remotely offended or have the concerns of the 'man' at heart - far from it, I'm just worried about the interests of the station is all)

3. I love it when the DJs make a cock up and laugh about it on air! I think that it's gloriously shambolic, quite funny and completely encourage that - many of the previous DJs I was talking about were slick in doing that and getting away with it completely on air which is what I was referring to as being a unique way of being professional and slick. However some of them don't know when tracks end, you get a lot of long protracted silences and "here - is - the - next - track - by - Tindersticks - *long pause* its - called" type of delivery which really is dodgy. But a huge big up to The Two Petes as I think this show is a shining beacon in Irish radio broadcasting and is fan-feckin'-tastic!

4. I see the point about the jingles actually, completely forgot about the frequency!

Sorry if I didnt make myself clear but its just something I have been feeling now for a while now that the 4th weekend on air has passed and many comments have been made to me about it also. Good luck however and hopefully Phantom will last for ever and ever amen!

Sinister Pete

Hey ho, one of the Petes here (the nasty one),

I've often read comments likes yours and I feel it prudent to point out just a few details.

I admit that maybe I do have "rose tinted ears" and I admit my taste in music is slightly nostalgic but there has been a difficulty in getting requests played and I have yet to hear any Breeders, Frames, Feeder, Smiths, Violent Femmes (remember that was the Phantom anthem at one stage!!!) which I have requested and told that it's not there. I feel that is being neglected for a lot of the Good Charlotte/Blink 182 stuff which is very repetitive and tiring to listen to...

You are probably right, we do play less Violent Femmes, Breeders, Frames etc. That's because we have more CD's to play! I'll let you listen to those great 'old days' of Phantom and you'll say, "I remember it sounding better than that..."

You want to talk about repetition? We played the same stuff all the time back then and while it was all good, more CD's means more variety and a greater opportunity to hear new stuff. I think it would be a crying shame if we became the Phantom nostalgia station, don't you?

By the way I go though the playsheets every week and I haven't seen Good Charlotte played for months. You may get the odd Blink 182 but you also get oodles of Interpol, Goldfrapp, They Might Be Giants, Elliott Smith, Jimmy Eat World, deus and Sade.(Kidding. I'm Kidding.)

Thanks for your comments and I'm glad you like the Two Petes which is the ****-est show everrr! Still I'm happy you like it. And not a lot of things make me happy.