Global have launched their brand new radio station which is set to give Bauer a run for their money in the nostalgia market.
Heart 80s launched on 14 March 2017 with a live breakfast show with Roberto who left the main Heart station after Christmas, followed by non-stop music for the rest of the day.
Musically there is plenty of crossover with Absolute 80s, the long standing Bauer retro station which launched in 2009 without the more obscure guitar skewed tracks that they play.
The opportunity for Heart 80s came along when Bauer moved Absolute 80s to their co-owned Sound Digital Multiplex which doesn't cover the South West of England and East Anglia along with most of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland outside Belfast.
Global have clearly targeted the playlist at former Absolute 80s listeners who either live outside Sound Digital transmission areas or disgruntled current listeners fed up with comedy skewed breakfast output and sweepers which match the Absolute Radio brand.
Don't write off Heart 80s as a bland Heart clone, they've clearly worked hard at programming this station as something different which will benefit both male skewed Absolute 80s listeners who aren't particularly interested in rock music but just want what it says on the tin. Feel Good 80s classics without being anal along with current Heart FM listeners.
I wouldn't write off Absolute 80s though, Christian O'Connell's breakfast show is excellent and has an all 80s playlist thanks to Bauer's investment in split playlists during the simulcast show with Absolute Radio, also Matthew Rudd's 'Unforgotten 80s' really does play those underplayed not so radio friendly gems every Sunday evening which has built up a cult following among the nostalgia music fans.
However Bauer will need to monitor Heart 80s to see if they can improve their product and not be complacent. There's only so many loyal listeners who can tolerate long commercial breaks.
If you love 80s music, the choice nationally has improved.
"If you've read about Radio X being a radio station being for men only,
that is rubbish," he said. "Nobody agrees with this except for the one
person who put it in the press release." proclaimed Chris Moyles, the former 'Saviour of Radio 1' as he launched Global's new brand, Radio X.
Radio X before it launched caused controversy after press releases were sent out announcing the radio station was a radio station for men.
As I mentioned in my previous blog, I felt that Global shouldn't have put that quote out to the media as this is clearly a marketing exercise for advertisers and sponsors, which include O2 for Chris Moyles and other shows by Gillette ProGlide men's razors.
So onto today's output. I didn't listen to Chris Moyles, except for a 30 minute extract on AircheckDownloads.com where Moyles made his quote and talked a lot. He has freedom to produce his own show (as Global believe he'll bring in plenty of disgruntled Radio 1 listeners under Brand Moyles) that after what seemed an eternity of waffling, he then played Girls Aloud.
Mid-morning had Vernon Kay who quite frankly was awful, too much waffling, an inane phone-in comp and a pointless two way with the afternoon presenter where he mentioned that his first gig was on Xfm where he was let go after a week. How he got back into radio beggars belief, but messers Park and Tabor from Global know better as they've successfully relaunched Capital, LBC and Smooth Radio.
Dan O'Connell then took over and basically took the old Xfm format using the art of solid jockery for three hours with new and classic near mainstream guitar music.
Then 'Middle Aged Bloke FM' returned with Johnny Vaughan at drive. A person who may have been relevant to a younger audience in the noughties when he opened BBC Three, yet in 2015, the topics for Radio X's Camdenista's were "Who should be on a bank note?" and "who is your favourite weightlifter?" Topics which would be perfectly fine for his previous show on talkSPORT, but not on a radio station where for the last 18 years where music has been prominent.
Phil Clifton then took over at 7pm where he welcomed us "to a brand new radio station" No it's not Phil, it's the carcus of the old Xfm, with where Global really want to take the direction of the station in, a hybrid of talkSPORT and Absolute.
So did Radio X and Global stop the fears of female listeners who feel the station isn't for them? No, after this little ditty was played during breakfast
"We love women, with your make-up & high heels, you're so cute"
Stereotyping and Everyday Sexism still exists in the British broadcasting industry.
