When I'm corresponding over the internet with foreigners (ie. non-Belgians), I often hear about the formatted radio stations. It seems that these days in a lot of places you can't like but one music genre. I always think I'm very happy with our own Studio Brussels, a national mostly alternative ... Read review
Advantages: variety, good music choice Disadvantages: at some moments a bit unadventurous
When I'm corresponding over the internet with foreigners (ie. non-Belgians), I often hear about the formatted radio stations. It seems that these days in a lot of places you can't like but one music genre. I always think I'm very happy with our own Studio Brussels, a national mostly alternative channel. Since it is being streamed on the Net, I have felt an urge to let as many people as possible know about it.
On Studio Brussels, alternative ... ...this kind of music is often played by them. It is more literally an alternative for formatted radio channels.
From Monday to Friday, from 2 am until 11 am, the played music is to be found in more or less the same 'category'. During these hours, music isn't to obscure but not the obvious popular stuff either. Some band names? It can go from Mercury Rev over Daft Punk to Limp Bizkit, but balanced as well as possible.
When I'm corresponding over the internet with foreigners (ie. non-Belgians), I often hear about the formatted radio stations. It seems that these days in a lot of places you can't like but one music genre. I always think I'm very happy with our own Studio Brussels, a national mostly alternative channel. Since it is being streamed on the Net, I have felt an urge to let as many people as possible know about it.
On Studio Brussels, alternative doesn't simply mean 3 Doors Down and Limp Bizkit, although this kind of music is often played by them. It is more literally an alternative for formatted radio channels.
From Monday to Friday, from 2 am until 11 am, the played music is to be found in more or less the same 'category'. During these hours, music isn't to obscure but not the obvious popular stuff either. Some band names? It can go from Mercury Rev over Daft Punk to Limp Bizkit, but balanced as well as possible.
Then at 11, we've got "Republica", a culture programme that is quite interesting, but not of very use for non-Dutch-speaking persons. Here, the music is being used more as a "fill-up" between different items on literature, music, and all other artforms.
From 1 until 2 pm, there's a non stop music programme called "Klas X". Older and newer "classics" are being played without the usual dj talking. My first recommendation for all online listeners!
Then from 2 until 7, it's the "typical Stu Bru music" again, followed by "Radar", a programme with a more edgy sound.
Most interesting are the daily genre-programmes, from 7 'til 9: on Monday this is "De Hop", a hip hop show on Tuesday "Bounce", an (English spoken!) reggae show on Wednesday "Select", one of the most "underground" shows of the channel - from drum and bass via Mogwai to, say, Fugazi, and also one of my recommendations and on Thursday "De Bom", for punk/hardrock/metal fans.
Friday night is dancenight with Switch, from 7 pm until 3 am, with first edgy dance tracks, then techno, then drum&bass and then house!
On other weekdays the space between 11 pm and 1 am is filled by the nice night show "Kinky Coninx", a good mix between music and short conversations with people who did something special that day (eg a soccer player who just won a match, a musician who just played a show, etc.).
Weekend programmation is just slightly different with a "retro" programme in the morning and - here comes my big tip - "Duyster" on Sundays from 10 pm to midnight. This is a show filled with artcore, lofi, atmospheric rock, etc. THE show to fall asleep with after a hard week of work and pleasure.
The presenters have all gone through difficult tests before getting a job - Studio Brussels is a national channel which gets money from taxes - and most of them have studied Media, Radio, Germanic Languages, Press & Communication, etc. Ironically, the only embarrassing exception to this rule of quality is TLP, the one presenter who tries to speak English. His mother tongue is a nasty dialect of Dutch but he wants to speak "Jamaican English" to "complete the reggae vibe of 'Bounce' ". The result is an embarrassingly high amount of "yo man"'s and consorts.
Not that most of you would care, but just for the completeness: quality news is being broadcasted on the hour and lasts from 2 to 10 minutes.
If you're interested in all this, just go to http://stubru.be/luister-live/index.jsp and LISTEN! Don't forget that ALL TIMES MENTIONED ARE GMT+1 in summer and GMT+2 in winter. Programmation and schedules should not be changed until next summer.
