Musical Fault Lines have been on the radio for a century. When the first commercial radio station—KDKA in Pittsburgh—signed on one hundred-five years ago, long-form orchestra movements were the order of the day. KDKA-AM set the base standard for radio-driven Musical Fault Lines, delivering their symphony pieces live and without interruption.
A Musical Fault Line is an event that shakes the cultural fabric, always aided by radio. It is not simply a new artist, song, or album release.
Without much ‘buzz’ on their philharmonic presentations, AM Radio evolved to spoken word Serials that adults and kids enjoyed, like “The Lone Ranger,” “The Shadow,” and “Dragnet.” The development of television busted the radio bubble as the picture box stole most of the radio Serials, leaving radio to adapt.
Hello, First Musical Fault Line.
Mid 1950s – Led by Rock Around The Clock by Bill Haley and His Comets, the charts reverberated with the loud, almost sinful sounds of Elvis and Chuck Berry. Cleveland Disc Jockey Alan Freed named it Rock and roll. By the time The Beatles and their “Mop Tops” stormed into America, The Beach Boys, The Lettermen, and The Four Seasons were aurally painted like choir boys.
Hello, Second Musical Fault Line.
In February 1963, Chicago Disc Jockey Dick Biondi was delivered a fresh copy of “Please, Please Me” by Vee-Jay Records, who initially held American rights to The Beatles’ music. By the end of the year and driven by giant Capital Records, The Beatles shook the psyche of every American teenager.
A British counter-culture movement featuring The Who, The Rolling Stones, and The Kinks blasted a sonic invasion not heard in America, generating long hair and loud fashion.
Our third Musical Fault Line wasn’t a band – or movement. Say HELLO to The Moog Synthesizer.
Invented in the early 1960s and perfected by the decade’s end, Art Rockers The Doors, Yes, and Emerson, Lake, and Palmer rapidly embraced Robert Moog’s contraption. Psychedelic rock was now blasting out of teenagers’ bedrooms. Weekend three-day audio festivals would follow.
That same programmable Moog machine, with synth loops and electric mayonnaise (who said AI was bad?), built our third Musical Fault Line in the mid-1970s.
No genre saturated pop radio and advanced the acceptance of racial confluence and LGBTQ rights like disco. As hot as it burned in the late 1970’s, it died in a historic flurry of flames.
While the 1980s provided our best pop and rock decade, spawning Prince, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, and Bon Jovi (among dozens of others), no measurable music cultural ‘movement’ developed.
That decade did provide us with Bob Geldof’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” Live Aid, and USA for Africa’s “We Are The World” for African Famine Relief.
Our next cultural Musical Fault Line that altered the musical landscape steamrolled out of Seattle – Grunge.
Led by the garage band-like sound of Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden, Grunge rejected anti-consumerism glam excesses. The ripped jeans and flannel combo became a dress code while lyrically addressing mental health issues. The wake of Kurt Cobain’s tragic suicide brought the subject out of the dark.
Arguably, our last socially measurable Musical Fault Line developed in the late 1980s. With artists like NWA and Run–DMC popping into our social consciousness. Tupac and Notorious B.I.G. exploded into the mainstream with the sounds of Beyoncé and Jay-Z.
Mid-1990s Hip-Hop was the voice for marginalized communities, police brutality, and economic struggles. Fashion soon followed with streetwear like baggy jeans, Timberland boots, and loud, oversized jerseys. Slang such as “bling,” “dope,” and “word” worked its way into lyrical storytelling and visual art.
On this parallel history line, THINGS that culturally helped on Musical Fault Lines:
Magnetic Tape – stolen from the Germans after World War II, making recording easier than our – Wire Recorders.
Music Portability – acetate albums, 45 RPM singles, cassette tapes, 8-track tapes, and compact discs created mobile music.
MTV – every great single now required a video to increase record exposure
The Internet – which begat file sharing, downloading of music, and live streaming
Satellite Radio – which at one time approached 10% of all audio listening but far less of a radio threat mainly due to the point above
Autotune – embraced by hundreds of artists to improve their craft, it’s an AI tool that most didn’t bother to complain about.
We took you down this (not so short) history lesson to point out that we’re due for another Earth-shattering Musical Fault Line.
So, what did we miss?
Taylor Swift’s effect on music and concert consumption could fit that category if her road to billionaire status didn’t take 18 years.
Here are a few places to keep an ear on to start the NEXT Musical Fault Line:
AI-Generated Virtual Artists
- It’s not going away. Artists are already creating music with AI tools, and virtual influencers are gaining traction. Artists like FN Meka and Hatsune Miku use AI tools—and often the aforementioned Moog Synthesizer—for production, songwriting, and entire performances.
Indie Alt-Music
- Artists are increasingly finding online success without labels, often blurring format lines. Country’s Zach Bryan blew up BIG before his partnership with Warner Records. Chance The Rapper developed straight-to-consumer music and merch, while Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor produced straight-to-streaming tunes.
Short-Form Music
- Both The Box Tops and The Beach Boys had hits under two minutes long. With the advent of TikTok, is the next social music influencer offering a :45 second – song? How long does a song need to be?
“A Musical Fault Line is an event that shakes the cultural fabric, always aided by radio.”
If music radio fails to focus attention on emerging trends and initiate risk-taking, the NEXT big Musical Fault Line might not need radio – at all.
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.
Kevin Robinson is a passionate award-winning programmer, consultant and coach – with multi-formats success all over the country. He has advised numerous companies including Audacy (formerly Entercom Communications), Beasley Broadcast Group, Westwood One, Midwest Communications, Townsquare Media, Midwest Family Broadcasting Group, EG Media Group, Federated Media, Kensington Media, mediaBrew Communications, Starved Rock Media, and more. He specializes in strategic radio cluster alignment, building lean-forward tactics and talent coaching – legacy and entry-level – personalities.
Known largely as a trusted talent coach, Kevin is the only personality mentor who’s coached three different morning shows on three different brands in the same major market to the #1 position. His efforts have been recognized by The World Wide Radio Summit, Radio & Records, NAB’s Marconi, and he has coached CMA, ACM and Marconi Award-winning talent. He is also in The Zionsville High School Hall of Fame as part of the 2008 inaugural class. Kevin is an Indiana native – living near Zionsville with his wife of 39 years, Monica and can be reached at kevin@robinsonmedia.fm.
