MUSICAL MUSINGS
August 31, 2004
THERE'S SOMETHING COMING ...
You can hear little hints of it on every station you tune in to. Things just aren't the same anymore. We're halfway through the decade, and the formats are restless.
Country radio is edgier than it's been in years, led by Gretchen Wilson's references to a "redneck woman" and a "ball-bustin' band." Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss's "Whiskey Lullaby" is beautiful, heartbreaking, and devoid of redemption. The protagonist in George Strait's new song says, "If it weren't for my two kids, I'd hate my ex-wife," while Toby Keith brags about a "dirty swim" in Mexico. And Big & Rich have invented hip hop country with the risqué "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)." During this week of the Republican National Convention, the party's flag-carrying format seems to have strayed a bit from its "traditional family values" of recent years. But in a way, it's becoming country music again, reflecting real life with all its complications.
Meanwhile, over on the pop chart, Los Lonely Boys wonder "How far is heaven?" Kanye West hopes "Jesus walks" with him. Christian rock band Switchfoot had a huge mainstream hit with "Meant to Live," and the follow-up, "Dare You to Move," is now crossing over. There's a spiritual hunger among teens and twenty-somethings, and somehow, it fits right in with sex-drenched hits like "Goodies" by Ciara and "Slow Motion" by Juvenile. It's a time for posing questions.
Three years ago, Green Day rode to the top of the Modern Rock chart with "Minority," but couldn't crack the Hot 100. Now the band's long-awaited comeback, "American Idiot," has garnered enough audience to reach #70 on that chart, and over on Hot Digital Singles, they're at #11 and climbing. The second round of nouveau-alternative bands is also doing well, among them Modest Mouse, Franz Ferdinand, and the Killers; all these bands have made it to the Hot 100, a chart that has tended to shut out most Rock hits. The audience of Rock stations is growing fast, and that has a lot to do with the format getting out of a seven-year rut.
Green Day is also indicative of another trend: in the three years since September 11, we've moved from a rush of patriotic songs to a rush of protest songs. "American Idiot" accuses the media of numbing American minds. In the hip hop world, Jadakiss is bold enough to ask, "Why did Bush knock down the towers?" (He claims in an interview that this is not meant to be taken literally, but that doesn't make it any less bold.) Prince inserts his protest right into the middle of a tender love ballad: "What's the matter with the world today?/ Land of the free? Somebody lied/ They can bug my phone, and people 'round my home/ They'll only see you and me making love inside." Finally, we're hearing a lot of news about the Rock Against Bush tour, which features punk bands such as Anti-Flag and Midtown. All this makes me wonder what sort of music the Dixie Chicks will treat us to next.
Top 40 has become more Urban as usual ... but it's also expanding outward to include Modern Rock crossover hits, without abandoning the middle ground represented by its current #1 star, Ashlee Simpson. In short, this time around, Top 40 radio has fully embraced its latest "extreme cycle" without losing its soul. It's only a matter of time before a Top 40 station picks up Big & Rich and Gretchen Wilson! (Wouldn't that be kinda cool?)
Believe it or not, Urban has also become more Urban. There's no shortage of R&B hits like "Diary" by Alicia Keys, "U Should've Known Better" by Monica, and "U Saved Me" by R. Kelly, none of which shows any sign of crossing over.
At first glance, Adult Contemporary seems to be changing very little. But the number of hits accepted across the board is slowly shrinking; "This Love" by Maroon5, too edgy for many programmers, has made it to #7 on the strength of a limited number of stations. Back in the early '90s, Billboard's AC chart had 50 positions; now the 30 titles it sports seem to go way too deep. Will AC eventually disintegrate into nothing but oldies?
Yes, it's an active time for most radio formats. Something is fomenting just under the surface, propelled by listeners' growing apprehension about terrestrial radio. The world of radio is just beginning to react to the challenges of the iPod, satellite radio, TV music stars, and online music swapping. Radio is starting to feel irrelevant, so its natural first step is to experiment. But will it succeed? When "the next big thing" finally arrives, will it even exist on the radio?