The Spy FM -- Ferris O'Brien Resumes His Grand Experiment

Just as I was getting ready to buy into alternative rock radio as a dying format -- someone comes along to remind me what got me excited about the genre in the first place.

Five years ago Ferris O'Brien was the morning DJ on Oklahoma City's alternative station The Spy FM when Citadel decided to change it to a Spanish format. The station continued to struggle for ratings and then something happened that almost never happens, but I hope we'll see more of now that the big radio chains are having troubles. O'Brien bought his old station from Citadel.

Now it's back. The format is "deep alternative" -- meaning that during a typical hour you not only hear Muse, but the Buzzcocks, X, Pulp,and Adam and the Ants, along with obscure college rock type acts like Ghostland Observatory, The Cribs, Ladykillers, Big Pink and Okerville River, and of course, this being an Oklahoma City station, the Flaming Lips.

The only annoyance -- common to a start up -- is no DJs. So unless you are listening to their webstream on your compute -- you won't have any idea of what songs they're playing. Small price to pay for the most awesome station in years.

Can an alternative station succeed by avoiding repetition and concentrating on quality music? The usual pattern is 2-3 years of glory, followed by compromise that sometimes suceeds commerically (see CFNY, KROQ)and sometimes leads to the stations demise. The exceptions are where independent owners are committed to playing good music and not concerned about being the no. 1 station in the market, as long as they keep a loyal and enthusiastic audience. Give it a listen.