Alternative Golds and Burnout

[crash46]

Just to show how stale the gold songs that Alternative always plays, here are the top 50 golds according to Mediabase, followed by a rating of 1 to 5, with 5 being highest burnout and 1 being as if I've never heard the song before.

1. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit: 5
2. Green Day - Brain Stew: 5
3. System Of A Down - Aerials: 2 [green](it's gold by definition only)[/green]
4. Alice In Chains - Man In The Box: 4 [green](probably the only AIC single that I'm tired of hearing)[/green]
5. Nirvana - Come As You Are: 5
6. Nirvana - In Bloom: 5
7. Sublime - What I Got: 5
8. Papa Roach - Last Resort: 4 [green](not a 5 because I don't really hear it much, but I was tired of it when I did.)[/green]
9. Nine Inch Nails - Closer: 1 [green](I don't hear this much and I still think it sounds great.)[/green]
10. Sublime - Santeria: 5
11. Sublime - Wrong Way: 3 [green](this seems high. I seemingly hear their other two 3 times as much.)[/green]
12. Stone Temple Pilots - Interstate Love Song: 4
13. Smashing Pumpkins - Bullet With Butterfly Wings: 3
14. Pearl Jam - Evenflow: 4
15. Offspring - Self Esteem: 5
16. Pearl Jam - Alive: 5
17. Green Day - Longview: 4 [green](not a 5 because the lyrics are still fun.)[/green]
18. Radiohead - Creep: 5
19. Green Day - When I Come Around: 5
20. Bush - Longview: 5
21. Blur - Song 2: 5
22. Green Day - Basket Case: 4
23. Smashing Pumpkins - Today: 4
24. Stone Temple Pilots - Plush: 4 [green](I love steering wheel-drumming to this)[/green]
25. Jane's Addiction - Been Caught Stealing: 2 [green](I've only liked the song for about a year now, so it was given new life)[/green]
26. 311 - Down: 2 [green](I never got to hear this until 311 started repeatingly touring my region)[/green]
27. System Of A Down - Chop Suey!: 1 [green](gold by definition only)[/green]
28. Smashing Pumpkins - Disarm: 3 [green]("1979" and "Tonight Tonight" would both be 5's. Amazingly, they aren't on this list.)[/green]
29. Nirvana - Lithium: 5
30. Beck - Loser: 4
31. Stone Temple Pilots - Sex Type Thing: 5
32. Incubus - Pardon Me: 3 [green](gold by definition only)[/green]
33. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Under The Bridge: 3
34. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Give It Away: 4
35. Offspring - Come Out & Play (Keep 'Em Separated): 4
36. Bush - Machinehead: 5
37. Pearl Jam - Jeremy: 5
38. System Of A Down - Toxicity: 2 [green](this seems high)[/green]
39. P.O.D. - Alive: 5 [green](even if it is only by definition)[/green]
40. Stone Temple Pilots - Big Empty: 4
41. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Scar Tissue: 3
42. Stone Temple Pilots - Vasoline: 5
43. Nirvana - Heart-Shaped Box: 4 [green](if all Nirvana songs were this low, I wouldn't be making this topic)[/green]
44. Bush - Glycerine: 5
45. Jane's Addiction - Jane Says: 5 [green](I still don't like this song)[/green]
46. Nirvana - All Apologies: 5
47. Alice In Chains - Rooster: 2 [green](look at that, an early 90's grunge band with just two appearances on this list. Lo and behold, I'm not sick of them yet!)[/green]
48. Foo Fighters - My Hero: 3
49. Puddle Of Mudd - Blurry: 5
50. Weezer - Buddy Holly: 3

34 out of the 50 (68%) were rated 4 or 5. PLAY SOMETHING DIFFERENT!

[ExActLy99]

It's funny how Alternative radio has changed over the last 5 years, I haven't heard an Alternative station play "Iris" which was a #1 hit, in a long time. Alternative radio is so darn picky! I haven't heard a lot of those songs a lot either, but it's ridiculous that it seems like there are only 10-15 artists on that list and stations just play all of their songs!

[halo19]

I agree that most of those are highly overplayed... especially the grunge ones. It wouldn't be quite as bad if there was a limit to 250 plays for gold songs, even nationwide. Because golds aren't that important to play, and several other songs were hits, too. And that would help a few album cuts be played, as well.

Good mention with Radiohead. "Creep" is strong, but other songs deserving of gold airplay are "Karma Police", "Fake Plastic Trees", "High And Dry', and "I Might Be Wrong". The failure to play all of these proves that the alternative format is hardly alternative.

Many suggestions on what to play instead, but I don't have the time for that.

[EvanJ]

Crash46, you think "Pardon Me" from 1999 and two Incubus albums and an EP ago shouldn't be gold yet but don't complain about the much newer "Blurry"?

[crash46]

EvanJ said:

Crash46, you think "Pardon Me" from 1999 and two Incubus albums and an EP ago shouldn't be gold yet but don't complain about the much newer "Blurry"?

I said nothing about "Blurry" because I just didn't feel like it. I guess I subconciously thought the "gold by definition" talk was getting redundant. If it's from the 2000's (and "Pardon Me" peaked in 2000, so it's from 2000 in my book), which is when I started listening to alternative radio, then I don't consider it gold.

I guess there will come a time when my benchmark will have to change, but that time hasn't come.

[Walking Contradiction]

Sorry for responding to such an old thread, but this interested me. Here's my burnout ranking for the current top 50:

1) Smells Like Teen Spirit - 5
2) Brain Stew - 4
3) In Bloom - 4
4) What I Got - 3
5) Come As You Are - 5
6) Santeria - 2
7) Last Resort - 5 (I can't believe this still gets airplay)
8) Closer - 4
9) Wrong Way - 3
10) Man In The Box - 4
11) Self Esteem - 5+ (ugh, I hear this practically every time I turn on K-Rock)
12) Under The Bridge - 4
13) Bullet w/ Butterfly Wings - 4
14) Creep - 5 (play some real R'head songs dammit!)
15) Today - 4
16) Longview - 5
17) When I Come Around - 4
18) Alive - 2
19) Interstate Love Song - 3
20) Give It Away - 5
21) Song 2 - 3
22) Lithium - 5 (never cared for this much in the first place)
23) Basket Case - 4
24) Chop Suey! - 2
25) Disarm - 1
26) Evenflow - 2
27) Aerials - 3
28) Come Out & Play - 4
29) Comedown - 4
30) Loser - 5
31) Sex Type Thing - 5
32) Plush - 4
33) Soul To Squeeze - 3
34) Pardon Me - 3
35) BlacK Hole Sun - 4
36) Been Caught Stealing - 5
37) My Hero - 2
38) Machinehead - 5
39) Everlong - 1
40) All Apologies - 3
41) Fight For Your Right - 5
42) Glycerine - 2
43) Hey Man Nice Shot - 2
44) Jeremy - 2
45) Down With The Sickness - 2
46) Toxicity - 3
47) Big Empty - 2
48) Heart-Shaped Box - 3
49) Alive - 5
50) Jane Says - 5

[halo19]

I'll just put what I think of the current top 50:

1) Smells Like Teen Spirit  - 5
2) Brain Stew - 3.5
3) In Bloom - 4
4) What I Got - 4
5) Come As You Are - 5
6) Santeria - 4
7) Last Resort - 4 (Highly overplayed, but I guess that if you play Trapt, you should play this too.)
8) Closer - 3 (But play "The Perfect Drug" and "We're In This Together" more than you do, please)
9) Wrong Way - 3
10) Man In The Box - 5
11) Self Esteem - 5 (and musically it's just like #1)
12) Under The Bridge - 3
13) Bullet w/ Butterfly Wings - 3
14) Creep - 5 (play some real R'head songs dammit!)
15) Today - 2 (c'mon, cut it some slack. There's a reason that it's "overplayed")
16) Longview - 3 (only 'cos I like it so much)
17) When I Come Around - 5
18) Alive - 2 (see "Today")
19) Interstate Love Song - 4
20) Give It Away - 4
21) Song 2 - 3 (only becuz it's so short)
22) Lithium - 3
23) Basket Case - 4
24) Chop Suey! - 1
25) Disarm - 1
26) Evenflow - 5
27) Aerials - 2
28) Come Out & Play - 3 (still a fun song)
29) Comedown - 5
30) Loser - 4 (and why isn't "Where It's At?" here instead?)
31) Sex Type Thing - 5
32) Plush - 4
33) Soul To Squeeze - 3
34) Pardon Me - 3
35) BlacK Hole Sun - 3 (My fav. band of the grunge era. See "Today")
36) Been Caught Stealing - 3 (you have to admit that if the format continues to play alt. metal, J.A. should be required on the playlists)
37) My Hero - 3
38) Machinehead - 4
39) Everlong - 1 (one of the greatest songs of the '90s, and the best song they've ever made)
40) All Apologies - 3
41) Fight For Your Right - 5
42) Glycerine - 4
43) Hey Man Nice Shot - 2 (I still enjoy this)
44) Jeremy - 4
45) Down With The Sickness - 1 (I didn't know it was this high. I don't hear it that often, though it's not the best song out there)
46) Toxicity - 2
47) Big Empty - 2
48) Heart-Shaped Box - 3
49) Alive - 2
50) Jane Says - 5