NOTE: This is a heavily altered version of a music column I wrote for The Manila Times, the online link of which has disappeared
The best six
hours of radio programming in the Philippines happens every Sunday starting at
6 pm. The show is called “A Different Sunday” and it airs on DWJM (or Jam)
88.3. What makes it so special? The concept is actually very simple.
But first, a
bit of a backgrounder.
Jam 88.3 is the
first radio station on the FM band in Metro Manila. While many of the other
stations play the most current Top 40 hits, Jam’s positioning is slightly different:
its playlist consists mostly of tracks in the alternative and indie pop-rock
genre. “Alternative” in this sense is left-of-the-middle songs from artists that
may or may not have made it big in the mainstream. It’s not as high-brow as DZFE
(98.7), which plays classical music, nor is it as uptight and sentimental as
Crossover (105.1, middle-of-the-road pop jazz). If all the FM radio stations were all part of the same
family, Jam would be the hip, tattooed, jeans-and-t-shirt-wearing, slightly off-kilter
brother of Wave 89.1, Magic 89.9, and 99.5 Play FM (which,
incidentally are all owned and controlled by the same entity).
Once called
Citylite 88.3, which played contemporary jazz, Jam is perhaps the closest thing
listeners have to an heir to the late, lamented NU107. It does not rely too
heavily on American pop charts for its programming and instead looks to other
sources. It is sometimes difficult to identify what exactly the station is
looking for before it includes the song on its regular playlist: it could just
as easily be from someone as popular as John Mayer or Linkin Park, as from some
obscure independent artist like Greg Laswell, Chapel Club or A Silent Film. (I
use the term “obscure” quite loosely here. I’m sure these artists have devoted
fans who will hurl mocking retorts at me for practically calling them
unknowns).
I suppose Jam’s
edge is that they appeal to a very specific listener, one whose musical diet isn’t
dictated by Billboard’s Hot 100. Some might posit that the station possesses a
certain “snob” appeal, a sort of hipster-like, nose-up-at-you attitude—no
Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande or One Direction songs here—but I think this is more
because of specialization and niche targeting rather than arrogance or a better-than-everyone-else
mentality. Jam appeals to a specific audience—they are not masa.
And so the
music they play is an “alternative” to traditional Top 40 or those loud
stations that broadcast in the vernacular. They have “mainstream” artists on
rotation, sure, but the vast majority is granted a voice here in this country
only through their speakers. For every Fall Out Boy or Avril Lavigne, they have
Belle and Sebastian, The Raconteurs, Phoenix, Surfer Blood and many others.
Jam’s biggest
contribution to local radio, to me at least, is “A Different Sunday.” First,
there are no DJs. For an FM radio station, that’s a pretty big deal. (They
tried putting a real live human onboard for a few weeks recently, but quickly
scrapped it, ostensibly after receiving negative feedback from fans, including
me). There are occasional gaps filled with plugs or commercials (hey, they still have to
earn) but otherwise, it’s six hours straight of nonstop music.
And what kind
of music do they play exactly? Everything EXCEPT the traditional
studio-recorded version of a song. This means covers or a re-interpretation
from the same artist of his or her own song, a live or acoustic version from
the original artist, or any other incarnation of a song that fits into the Jam
88.3 template.
What’s so
special about an all-covers music program? Plenty, as it turns out. Many of
these tracks are rare; difficult to find even in this age of YouTube and
Spotify. By playing these versions on local radio, fans are given the opportunity to listen to something they would otherwise have never had the chance of
hearing anywhere else. Yes, it may be easy to do a Google search on every song
or performance by a favorite artist, but like I’ve said countless times before,
there is something strangely exciting and comforting about hearing an amazing
song at an arbitrary moment. It takes you back to a very specific memory: of a
time, a place, a person. And it’s like someone out there extended a hand and
grasped yours, making you feel connected, even for just the length of a song.
So, on a quiet
Sunday evening, while you’re driving home, staying in your room, or hanging out
at a friend’s house, you might hear The Smashing Pumpkin’s version of the
Fleetwood Mac classic “Landslide;” Emile Millar’s take on Howard Jones’ “No One
Is To Blame,” Keane covering U2’s “With Or Without You,” the Sugababes’ “Push
The Button” covered live by Starsailor; a quieter version of Mayer’s
“Heartbreak Warfare;” or Jack Johnson tipping a hat off to John Lennon with “Imagine;”
and many, many more.
It’s
programming that calms as much as it excites, like a soothing and stimulating massage
for the ears and heart. I don’t expect everyone to understand my affection for
a radio show, especially these days when it’s so easy to just create our own mood-specific
playlist in our phones or laptops, but A Different Sunday truly lives up to its
name. Yes it’s really just a bunch of songs played during a specific number of
hours, but it’s also a fitting farewell to the weekend, and a comforting easing
back to the salt mines of another work week.
