h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I suppose it's because they get so little funding, but I have yet to hear a local radio station worth listening to.

The two main ones in my area - Basingstoke (2 Ten FM and Kestrel) - are AWFUL. They both claim to feature a "better music mix" but there is no mix whatsoever. It's the top five pop releases, or pop releases which have topped the charts in the past, and that is it. Nothing interesting, nothing even slightly out of dead centre mainstream music. They make Radio 1 sound exciting.

Does anyone have a local station they enjoy listening to?

Well, I listen to a local German radio station. RSH, stands for Radio Schleswig Holstein. I live right above that area, in Denmark. They play a lot of oldies, which is why I like them. I don´t share the opinion of others that old songs stop being good.

I spent some time in Dublin recently, and was amazed to find they didn´t have a single radio station to listen to. And also that they had to warn the listeners before using the word orgasm.

When I was a teenager, there was a wonderful new station in Southern California called "Pirate Radio." They started out playing 4 records, then gradually ramped it up as the commercial sponsers flooded in. The music was headbanger fare in an age where Michael Bolton was the edgiest thing on radio, and the humor was outlandish and hilarious. They went away after just a few years.

Radio Free Hawaii was another awesome station, located in, of course, Hawaii. They played absolutely anything and everything, according to the wishes of the listeners. Songs were voted in and out of the rotation, and individual listeners had no difficulty at all in getting their favorite unknown gem on the air for the audience to pass judgement on. They went away after a few years.

Moral of the story: You can have a good radio station, but not for long...

Where I live I can receive 3 local radio stations: GWR, Sevensound and Wyvern. The amusing thing is that whilst each insists that they have "the better music mix", they do infact play exactly the same music and if you flick from one to the other they play the same songs, but slightly staggered. At certain times (in the evenings for instance) they actually broadcast the same thing. They are basically exactly the same, with the only difference being the local adverts and traffic news.

some of our university stations are quite good. each DJ gets to play what they like so you get some good ones but you also get some pretty bad ones

At least you have Radio 4 in Britain. There is nothing like that at all in Germany, all the stations, public and commercial, are the usual mix of music and news (with backing loop). I repeat ALL.

There are one or two stations in each area that play classical music or have just talks. But no radio culture like the Archers, radio comedy programmes or quizzes, Today, etc., etc., etc., You either get boring talking or the same music as you're complaining about.

So think yourself lucky you're in Basingstoke and not in Berlin.

I have a radio station here in Seattle I rather like -- it plays 80s pop music non-stop. Not that such tunes are the pinnacle of musical cuisine by any means, but 95% of the songs are ones I don't mind singing along to in the car.


Mikey

We got a nice local station in S. Wales - RealradioFM - good mix of music - 70's 80's 90's .... and some wicked late night chat... AND it streams live on the web - guess the address ? ( no , I'm not connected to them ! )

RealRadio!!! That's awful!! I can't stand it.
Wyvern's alright, shame about the DJs
GWR's good, too many adverts

The best radio station covering South Wales is RedDragon FM. I can't get up unless I hear Jace&Emma.

Here in Essex I get loads of local radio stations. Invictor, which is Kent, not too bad since Capital Radio bought it - although I don't like Capital - Essex Radio - rubbish, the DJ's talk too much. Loads of other Essex stations, none of which I listen to. I mainly listen to London stations, Capital Gold and Heart. I like the oldies, and Heart also plays new(ish) stuff. I listen to more types of music when I go out clubbing, it's only around the house and in my car I like singing along to disco.