Outcry Brings KSRF Back to Techno

After thousands of listeners protested and wrote angry letters about the decision to stop playing a style of music known as “techno,” KSRF-FM (which calls itself “MARS-FM”) reinstated the synthesizer-heavy musical style this week.

KSRF (103.1) owner Ken Roberts, who had ordered the music off, said that his feelings about its commercial viability hadn’t changed. A month ago he instructed program director Freddie Snakeskin and music director Egil Aalvik to drop the genre--a fast-paced, electronic style of dance music--because it was “too dark” and didn’t attract a big enough audience.

“I think it’s exciting music for a specific, very narrow audience. . . . But there’s not an audience in my mind that’s large enough to cater to the advertisers, especially the ones that I want,” Roberts said in a phone interview.

But Roberts said that he had received about 10,000 letters urging him to bring back the sound, which is the mainstay of underground parties called “raves,” and so decided to give it a second chance. Techno music will now be part of a mix of progressive dance tunes and alternative music.

“It’s back for now,” Roberts said, adding that it is “no secret” to station personnel that he has been conducting research to see what musical format would be most successful for the station, which he bought last year for $17.5 million.

“I like to see new things happen, but the bottom line is I want to see the bottom line,” he said. “I’ll give it time to see it work. Maybe all this will show advertisers that people like it. If (station personnel) are all enthusiastic about doing this, maybe they’ll get the listeners to get people out there to advertise.”