AC/DC will host their own music channel on both Sirius and XM Radio starting on Monday, September 15th, in advance of the band's first studio album in eight years, Black Ice. The channel, entitled AC/DC Radio, will run on Sirius channel 29 and XM channel 53 through January 15th, 2009. Unless there's some lineup shuffling, the channel will replace both Sirius' Punk and XM's Fungus, at least temporarily.
Aside from airing all-AC/DC all-the-time, AC/DC Radio will also feature band members Angus Young, Malcolm Young, Cliff Williams, Brian Johnson and Phil Rudd describing their rock & roll career spanning more than 30 years and sharing their personal insights into their music.
Listeners will gain access to an exclusive preview of every track on Black Ice, which will be sold exclusively at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club beginning Monday, October 20th, 2008 (and, of course, on the band's web site).
AC/DC has sold more than 200 million albums worldwide. Back in Black has sold an estimated 42 million units worldwide and 22 million in the U.S. alone, making it the fifth highest-selling album of all time.
No band can sustain long term dedicated channels. The concept of satellite radio is to provide variety not found elsewhere. If I really want to immerse myself in AC/DC, Metallica or Coldplay, I can download their material and zone-out with an iPod. These channels are misery and a waste of spectrum space. Please, no comments about 'exclusive content.' Do I really care what the drummer of Coldplay thinks or how they worked out a solo? Leave me alone with this stuff, Mel!
Replacing the Punk channel.. WTF. I'm getting really sick of these artist exclusive channels I never listen to. It was bad enough when they got rid of super shuffle. That's two chennels gone that normally would be on my presets.
I love this AC/DC channel idea, but why would they get rid of Fungus? Thats a popular channel. Why wouldn't they put it on XM51 after Metallica ends?
Ouch. I don't listen to Fungus regularly, but there's a lot of music on there you won't find on any other channel. I imagine this is gonna piss off a lot of people.
No Hee-Haw-Hell until January? ARGH!
Dude, this sucks, I love AC/DC, but not at the expense of Fungus. Why don't they get rid of the Loft, or the Christian stations? I can't imagine that there is a higher listenership on the total of the 3 Christian stations combined than Fungus53.
This blows.
WTF??? The Punk Channel is one of my faves! Why can't they replace some shitty useless channel like Hot Jamz or Strobe?
of these damn artist only channels....especially if it is going to come at the expense of other channels. If i am a fan of an artist, and wanted to hear nothing but that artist, i would load up my ipod with that artist and have at it.
Wow, this blows. Fungus 53 is my favorite music channel on XM.
weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere back in the RED again...
I AM FORCED TO CANCEL MY SUBSCRIPTION. WHAT A RIP OFF! FUNGUS 53 IS THE BEST CHANNEL THERE IS. GOOD THING THEY ARE LEAVING THE 10 CHRISTIAN CHANNELS THE OTHER 100 CRAPPY STATIONS! MAN, IF THEY DIDN'T HAVE THAT TRUCKER STATION, I WOULN'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!
Preempt "Fungus"? What, they couldn't pick something out of Top-20, Rap or Dance to drop instead?
Explain to me again why I haven't dropped my XM subscription by now...
I don't listen to fungus but I do know what it is like to lose a channel to this bullshit idea.. someone needs to tell these guys (dipshit programmers) that just because you are bankrupt of ideas you don't have to resort to single artist channels..
http://www.xmradio.com/help/emailus.xmc
There's the link to email XM and complain about this. Metallica re-empted U-Pop. that's annoying for those listeners, but the music can typically be found elsewhere. Fungus is the only channel of its kind. This is unacceptable. Email, complain, hopefully something can be done.
No Fungus = No Sub
You shook my payola all night long!
I love AC/DC but why take over two stations that have no relations to the genre that ac/dc is. Is this the was the new company is going to be ran. Bad programing decisions.
I already complained to Sirius via email. Nothing will be done, of course, but it made me feel better:
"Thank you for contacting SIRIUS! We appreciate the time you have taken to email us regarding AC/DC taking over Punk / Ch. 29. We are here to help!
...we understand your frustration with the removal of Punk / Ch. 29 for a short time. SIRIUS strives on making our programming the best radio has to offer. Song choices on our music channels are made based on feedback from our listeners.
We are happy to forward your comments and suggestions to our programming department for further consideration. In the meantime, we suggest requesting songs and/or emailing your favorite DJs. Please follow the steps below to do so. Please keep in mind not all of our channels have DJ contact information."
You, too, can complain:
http://www.sirius.com/customercare
Why do they take away the punk channel for an AC/DC channel anyway? Shouldn't there be something in the lower 40's that's more their genre? Why punish people who don't listen to their style of rock in the first place? Let's see, this makes three (Move, U-Pop and Fungus) channels I occasionally listen to on 'hiatus' (and we know more will go in November for Christmas and Hanukkah) and at least one of my favorites, the System that's soon to die apparently. Good thing I'm getting an iPod Touch on Friday. That's two albums or 20 songs a month I can download instead of subscribing to this drivel.
Wait... they're dumping all Punk music from the sats for the crappiest group known to man? And how's this benefit the consumer again? I mean, it's bad enough that we hear bands like the Grateful Dead on Sirius and Metallica on XM, but AC/DC on both? And Mel wonders why the stock is in the toilet.
ARGH! Okay, I just stumbled across this post. I can't believe it...NO FUNGUS? Geez. I subscribed to XM because of Fungus (I love the ska), and now they're replacing it UNTIL JANUARY? I agree with the above posters: there are plenty of other, more "appropriate" channels that AC/DC could take over. Hmph. I was pumped earlier in the week about being able to order the NBA, but now this? Looks like I'll be reconsidering my subscription.
I am getting more sick of the "they're dumping all over my XM or Sirius...blah blah..blah" You don't like it, perfect solution is to dump your subscription or not listen at all. Instead of wasting your time on a website that most people don't give a shit about your opinion. Waste of time and energy.
Fuck AC/DC and the dildos they have stuck in their asses. Seriously, WTF? AC/DC sucks balls, and so does XM. Hell, they're probably sucking eachother's ball sacks. There is no way that they could remove Fungus from XM, even for a minute.
First Special X, now Fungus. LOU! WHERE ARE YOU?
Somebody better tell Sirius to read this blog. Many angery poeple.
I'm so tired of these damn dedicated channels. They are really a waste of time. If I want only wanted to listen to AC/DC over and over again I would buy them albums, and listen to them there. Oh, what do you know. I don't own any AD/DC, but I do listen to Fungus for all of the variety that the channels offers, and that is the purpose of Xm and Sirius, to provide variety.
I've been a fan of AC/DC for 30 years and I am totally stoked about this, but I have to agree with all the above posts.
To get rid of a valid music channel, albiet "temporarily", stinks. There has to be a genre channel that has hardly a listener. I also agree that XM could piggyback the AC/DC channel with the end of Metallica. What is the difference between having 5 weeks of pre-Black Ice AC/DC or having them start on Oct 1st...a whole three weeks before the cd release.
Awesome event, sucky decision on how to carry it out.
No Punk channel = no sub.
These single artist channels blow. I'm a fan of AC/DC, so it's not a question of liking the band or not. It's the fact that we're losing entire channels to a single artist. If they really want to do promos with the artists, they should take a channel that the artist is typically on the most (e.g. Buzzsaw?) and just put them in VERY heavy rotation with special scheduled shows. Replacing an entire channel is ridiculous.
Here's the reality of the merger. You asked for it, you got it. Channels you liked going bye-bye for shitty single artist channels because they're cheaper to program. They all suck ass and offer nothing that you can't find elsewhere. In fact they offer nothing that most fans of said band don't already own. Is this what Mel was talking about when he said "exclusive content is king"? There's nothing exclusive about being an iPod playlist.
@ mrbojangles, go suck a cock. If the FCC did their job we could cancel and switch to the other company, that would indeed get the attention of the company you're leaving. Now that we have a monopoly you suggest we not be unhappy about the changes in our service, service that we pay for up front. If you don't give a shit about anyone's opinion, why do you post? I guess we shouldn't give a fuck about what you have to say either by your logic. So your post was, as you stated, a waste of time and energy. Time and energy you could have spent fucking your mother.
This Really Sucks, why the hell would they get rid of the only Punk channel available?
Corporate america needs to be shot in the street. we need a revolution! Oh yea cancel my subscription to xm till they put fungus back on fucking pricks. AC/DC go to hell.
I am canceling my subscription as well as the 4 other subscriptions that are on my account that were given as gifts to fellow punk listeners. I will also pledge to stop recommending any satellite radio until further word that a punk station is back.
FUCK YOU XM!!! AND FUCK AC-DC!!!!
DIE XM! DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lou, what the hell man? you had every band available to you, promoting Fungus. Now, its all over. I'd like to think you fought for this, but we need to hear something is in the works. My subscription ends next month. Anyone buying xm units? big sale...FCC finally found a way to fuck us all.
BRING BACK MY FUNGUS 53!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OR DIE!!!!!
My XM subscriptions now canceled now that Fungus is gone and not planned on coming back.
"A call to XM customer service on 9/15/08 revealed that Fungus is permanantly off the air."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fungus_(XM)
I have been a subscriber since XM was started--for the sole reason of a having a legitimate punk station to listen to. I see no reason to keep my 3 subscriptions and am cancelling immeadiately. Everyone who is upset should call to cancel. They will give you 3 months free. Take the free three months and tell them they have 90 days to bring it back. Remind them that baseball is almost over and they can put ACDC on one of those 100 "valuable" stations.
Total Bullshit. Good way to piss off a lot of very loyal constituents XM. I look forward to watching/hearing you crumble even more now.
I have only subscribed to XM for 10 days now. I wanted XM for Opie and Anthony and Fungus 53 SPECIFICALLY! I spent 400 on radio and home docking stations...........now you cancel Fungus 53?
GIVE ME MY MONEY BACK YOU STUPID MOTHER FUCKERS!
What a bad move. AC/DC belongs on a ROCK channel, NOT THE ONLY PUNK CHANNEL!
I signed up for XM specifically for FUNGUS 53. I have emailed them to tell them WHY I'm cancelling, and I have already ENDED my subscription. I will find my punk elsewhere on the internet. What a load of sh!t.
found out about fungus this morning on the drive in to work. cancelled my subscription this afternoon. i declined the 3 months free...why even keep it if i'm not going to use it. fungus is the only channel i ever listened to.
XM/Sirius blows. The only station on XM worth listening to, is now being replaced by AC/DC? I listened to Fungus 95% of the time. The other 5% was XM Kids when my son is in the truck. I am so pissed off I want to punch some XM/Sirus programmer in the face. Shitheads all. Fucking fascists. Unsubscribe, unsubscribe, unsubscribe.
I turned on my radio this morning at 6am expecting Hee Haw Hell and got some AC/DC station advertisement! Hey, I like AC/DC but I loved Fungus. That was the only station i regulary listened to.
I agree, why not just replace one of the country stations or christian rock stations.
Well... I will not be renewing my subscription.
Who the hell needs a station dedicated to a single band anyway?
CALL XM AND ASK FOR IT BACK!
WTF - Fungus was the reason I subscribed to XM in the first place. I'm in an area where it is (was?) the only option for punk music, and it was (is?) a great channel full of variety.
I called customer service about this and was told it may be a temporary move, but they don't have any details at this time.
I would urge anyone who's in the same position as me to call and complain to let them see the support the channel has. It couldn't hurt, and it might help.
Otherwise, nuts to them and they can kiss my ass and my money goodbye.
This is absolutely ridiculous. Nobody in their right mind could stand four months of even their favorite band... it's overkill.
I'm joining the ranks of those cancelling their subscription. I hope the corporate douchebags read this thread.
By the way, the DOW just plummeted today, shouldn't all the suits at Sirius and XM try to gain subscribers in times like this? It seems they are doing the exact opposite.
Remember the XM/Sirius merger will give you more variety!
I guess by variety they mean entire channels dedicated to elderly, brain-dead corporate booze-rockers whose "music" makes even the most repetitive punk seem virtuosic.
Fungus was often a pain in the ass, (especially the bump announcer with the crap British accent), playing an endless stream of forgettable Anti-Flag, Pennywise and Millencolin, but they also played the Cramps, Pistols, Dickies, Ska and surf music, etc., so they were at least sometimes listenable.
AC/DC, on the other hand, sucked in the '70s, '80s, 90's and they still really suck now. Dull, unimaginative, humourless and vain. Not even remotely listenable.
Cirrhosis, anyone?
But, our corporate overlords have spoken. You WILL listen to one long AC/DC commercial uber alles for the next 4 months, at least.
Punks don't make enough money to afford the kickbacks necessary to stay on the air...
what is wrong with your programmers? Fungus is the only of its kind on your line up! It has a true following....
Whoever suggested,approved this must not know much about business. I am going to cancel my subscription. If I wanted to hear acdc non stop I'd pop in their cd duhhh.....
BAD MOVE
what a joke - AcDc radio for Fungus. That is horrible. I called XM to cancel and was given 3 months for free. Woo-freaking-who-
I plan on cancelling again in 3 months. Way to go XM - take away the one highlight to an otherwise boring workday.
No Fungus = No goood stations on XM
WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME XM? The only reason I subscribe to XM is for Fungus. Don't make me have to listen to the emo shit!
FUNGUS is the best station on XM for original music. It has been replaced with overplayed overmarketed crap AC/DC. Is this the future of XM radio.. I have noticed a shift in the music being played its becoming very corporate and replacing a station which says FUCK THE CORPORATIONS with a fat cow like AC/DC seems in line with the new businees model of being wosseys. BRING BACK THE PUNK MUSIC OR LOSE MY SUBSCRIPTION.. I WILL NOT SUBSCRIBE TO CRAPPY ACDC OVERPLAYED - OUTDATED CRAP MUSIC.. REVOLT PEOPLE CANCEL YOU SUBSCRIPTIONS TODAY!!
ok i was going to get rid of xm and go to sirus but now sirus gets rid eof the punk too. this is a joke. the only good statiobn on xm is now gone. dam it i miss rancid radio already. screw sat radio im going back to my ipod.
dump fungus for ac/dc? this is a terrible idea. where can we find the fungus, it was one of the better stations.
I am so @#$%ing pissed they cancelled Fungus. I have written to complain and encourage others to the same.
It is time we unite and make our voices heard.
programming@xmradio.com
E-mail this guy with your additional comments
ryans@orbitcast.com
I called this afternoon to ask if Fungus has been moved to a different station or snubbed because of the merger. The person I spoke to told me the ACDC thing was just a promo lasting until 6 PM tonight. He also mentioned they had been getting a lot of calls about it today and assured me Fungus would be back on the air tomorrow. IF they lied, you can bet they would be hearing from me and all of my employees. We can't listen to the other mindless crap all day. AND why does Sirius 29 still have punk music on? Thanks for not screwing your customers in the merger XM!
If we all cancel our subscriptions, are they really going to care? Put Fungus on channel 23928347982349823 for all I care. This is absolute bullshit.
Fungus was far from perfect...but the only station I listened to .Goodbye X/M
I knew punk on mainstream was too good to be true. Canceling immediately
Wow, replace the Sirius Punk Channel with AC-fucking-DC, a band that's so old and played out that they obviously need a few thousand corporate marketing tie-ins to sell the fucking album? And my beloved channel is gone until January, if it even comes back? Hey, Sirius ... You just shit on two 3+ year subscriptions, so we'll gladly cancel them now that there's no other reason to listen to pay for your fucking service. Folks, this is what happens when Clear Channel fucking owns every fucking thing ... I should've known that any time my music (OUR MUSIC) gets fucking popular, it's because it's making some cock-rocking wanker a boatload of money. Well, fuck off, Sirius, I'm headed back underground with my anti-cock-rock machine to listen to music the fucking way it was meant to be heard -- the fucking way the artist wanted to write it, not the fucking way some bastard wanted it marketed. Go fuck yourselves, Sirius.
Sirius Punk is gone as of 6PM and so is my subscription. I've been a subsciber since August 9, 2005; I called and cancelled and they didn't even put up a fight. Super way to keep your loyal customers.
Good luck to anyone who spends their hard earned money on this corporate douche-bag service. I think anybody who sticks with their subscription is a masochist.
Luckily, my iPod is in perfect condition and terrestrial radio has regulations on payola/plugola.
Hats off Sirius-XM... you're really thinking stuff through.
Sat radio is just as bad a reg radio now. As far as I know O&A have not got a new contract yet. No Fungus, No O&A no me. XM down two more subs How many addtnl subs did dedicated ac/dc bring in.
I just canceled my subscription an hour ago. I was told that it was only a month to which I said that I would re-subscribe if that was true.
They just lost $142/year from me.
This is total crap. I can hear AC/DC anywhere. Cancelling my subscription.
It's hard to find any discussions about this. Why aren't the bands pissed off too?
XM sucks. Fungus is not coming back (see XM's response to my e-mail below).
Thank you for contacting XM Satellite Radio. We have received your email and we are sorry to inform you that Fungus is no longer apart of our channel lineup. We appreciate your feedback. Your email has been forwarded to our Programming Department. In the future you can contact XM's Programming Department directly at programming@xmradio.com regarding this and any other programming concern. Thank you, Claudia
Everything that's not Fungus sucks, everything that's not Fungus sucks.
I listen to Fungus when I .....
No more Fungus??????????? Turned on my radio today and always on 53....AC/DC???????????WTF I did'nt like those fags back in the day, now there is more reason to hate them now!!!!!!!! Well, cancelled my 3 year subscription since that was the only channel that I had. Hope that I can order my new 2010 Camaro WITHOUT XM because now it is a useless device with an ugly antenna.
I also canceled all FOUR of my subs this afternoon. AND did not take the 3 month free BS. I ONLY listened to fungus, nothing else. I laughed in the xm chicks face when she told me other xm channels that play the same content. These people had the best punk station since my beloved rock avenue (kunv, unlv college punk station) until it died and was replaced by JAZZ. Yeah cant hear JAZZ anyplace else. Fuckers.
I turned a lot of non punk listeners on to XM because of my love of fungus, I figured if they have such a great station for MY obscure music, they must have similar channels for others. I am going to try to get my friends and family to cancel their subs too. Remember times are tight, and maybe it wont be hard to get these other non punkers to cancel also. (shit they can hear their mainstream music on ANY FM station)
Fmmb.net
This sux, one of the few stations that really cares about the underground and says F*&k You! to corperate Lackey's... Lou should do the show on the internet till XM comes to it's senses...
P.s. their hold message said they are busy activating new subscribers. I think they might have been trying to talk other pissed off people like me to NOT CANCEL their subs over the fungus 53 deletion.
i didn't listen too fungus much, but it was nice to have it there when i was in the mood to listen to it.
Listen guys, this is not XM's doing because XM no longer exists as we knew it. This was 100% a sirius decision. give it a couple of years and they will totally dump the far superior XM brand and it will all be sirius, just watch. sirius is just too in love with them selves and are too blind to even see that the XM Radio brand name is much better and more people know it.
just by listening to opie and anthony each morning since the merger, with them talking about how "heads are rolling", shows that sirius is trying to purge it self of everything XM.
i was in favor of the merger, and still believe it was necessary or both brands would have failed, but now with full control sirius is being wreckless without competition. what they need to realize is that if they are not careful terrestrial radio really will become a direct competitor if they purge their line up of the unique content that drove so many to their service in the first place. very few people will be willing to stick around and pay $13 for the same mainstream content just for lack of commercials.
I know if either the virus, xmu, liquid metal, or the verge are taken of the air sirius xm will lose my business and i will just start playing podcasts in my car instead
This is so like jan 16, 1977 add another one to the company giant to fucking scared to do something different, someone should write a song about sirius/xm like the pistols did when emi dropped em. Fuck Off and Die asshole sirius
The fucking moron that made the decision to put AC/DC for the next 4 months on the only punk station should be beaten senseless with a bar of soap wrapped in a sock and them pissed on and his head flushed down a fucking toilet.
I have subscribed to Sirius for 3 years, they had the remarkably shitty Faction channel playing bullshit that was supposed to be PUNK that I had to listen to for a year and a half, then they finally got a small clue and created a listenable Punk/Hardcore station and then they just take it away and give it to fucking Walmart and AC/DC for 4 months?
I want that stupid motherfuckers name and I want him to suffer.
you took the words outta my mouth!
the main reason i subscribed to XM was because of Fungus 53.....
,,i guess this will be the main reason i UNSCUBSCIRE to XM....
i live in a shit hole area where the only thing on the local radio is pop-country,
top40(more like top 5 is they play the same 5 songs over again) and get this ,CLASSIC ROCK....!
we(my wife & i) sure in the fuck do not need two subscipitions to listen to 24 hours of AC/DC,metalicca or kenny chesney...
EVERYTHING THATS NOT FUNGUS SUCKS!!!!!!!!
Agree with all that has already been said already. Where I live punk isn't on public radio and the only radio station I could get it was XM53. Looks like I'll be investing in a MP3 player and putting it on random.
I cant believe this crap. I have xm so that I can listen to stations like fungus if I wanted to hear ac/dc all day I could listen to terristial radio. They wonder why the stock is .86 per share this might be a reason. If this is what I can expect from this new company time to go and find something else
Is this really happening? I wake up this morning to find my punk gone! Bull Shi* !!!!
ac/dc sucks so bad!
I'm really bummed because my band gets regular rotation on Sirius punk 29. Stupid AC/DC.
I've been a steady Fungus listener for over 3 1/2 years - after hearing it on a friends XM radio in her car I spent about $500 on a new Alpine car stereo with an XM receiver & have spent 90% of my time in the car listening to Fungus (only occasionally going to "Fred" when my room mate gets too "punked out") plus frequently tuned in at home from the web, especially to catch their psychobilly show "Hee Haw Hell" weekdays ay 6 AM as I'm getting ready for work & 6 PM after I'm home.
So I was pretty upset when yesterday morning all that I heard was their AC/DC preview - I checked the website & saw that it had been replaced. I don't kno wwhy ACDC couldn't have pre-empted one of the metal stations instead rather than taking over one with a completely different audience.
I called XM radio last night to cancel my service, the folks I spoke to told me that the ACDC thing was a limited time promo and that Fungus would be back on Jan 15th so I told them OK, can I put my service on hiatus, I don't want to pay for it while I'm not listening to it? They told me if I did I'd have to pay a $15 set up fee when I reconnected - I said "well that's better than paying for several months I don't use."
They tried to sell me a full year for $77 so I'd get 6 months free - I told them I didn't trust them enough that my fav station would be back to pay that much up front.
They finally offered to give me 3 months free and not charge me again until January 2009 so I accepted that for now - I figure if Fungus is not back on Jan 15th as promised then I will permanently cancel my service & just go back to CDs or jacking in my iPod.
Maybe if more people voted with their feet they'd listen more.
I can't send it through my work account, but somebody should copy this message thread and send it to programming@xmradio.com.
I called Sirius and told them I wanted to cancel when I found out they put that ac dc crap on instead of the punk CHANNEL.F*%$ ac dc.put them on over the greatful dead channel no one listens to that anyway.
What a bunch of shit, cancelling the only channel I listen to any more for AC fucking DC. Screw you XM, I'm done unless they change it back immediately.
Here is a response I got from the Suits at XM. I find it hard there are so many listeners to the 10 country stations and or the 4 spiritual statons let alone to mention the other stuff out there.
anyways here it is
Thanks so much for taking the time to write with your comments on XM 53 Fungus.
We recognize and appreciate the fact that Fungus and punk, ska and hardcore has loyal fans like you, but because we have limited space on our platform for music channels, we’re often faced with having to make difficult decisions when it comes to what’s available on our channel line-up. Fungus was one of the channels that had a very loyal but also a very limited audience.
Some of the music heard on Fungus can be heard on other XM channels including Fred (XM 44) and Ethel (XM 47).
Again, we appreciate you being a fan of Fungus and hope you listened to enough other XM channels to stick around as a subscriber.
Thanks again for writing and for being part of the XM Nation.
Best regards,
Jon Zellner
SVP Music Programming
XM Satellite Radio
(202) 380-4040
"Some of the music" can be heard on Ethel and Fred? What music is that, exactly? Rancid? Big whoopdie doo.
They did this once with Liquid Metal, and due to the amount of complaints, brought it back. I'm not going to cancel until I know for sure Fungus is NOT coming back. There are other channels I listen to, but the whole point of having a zillion channels is so there is a VARIETY. XM - we know you don't give two hearty shits about what the actual listener cares about or thinks, but maybe for once you should pay attention to what's written on Al Gore's intarwebs. This "limited and loyal" audience you speak of may account for a small percentage of your overall listener base, but word of mouth spreads like wildfire. Keep that in the back of your brain-stems when discounting us.
The Senior VP of Programming at XM is Jon Zellner. His direct e-mail is Jon.Zellner@xmradio.com. You can also leave a voice mail for him or his administrative assistant, Christine Butts, by calling XM corporate at (202) 380-4000 and asking for them.
You can also voice mail the Senior VP of Programming at SIRIUS, Steve Blatter. Call Sirius Corporate headquarters at (212) 584-5100 ask for him.
I know this is going to be hard for a bunch of pissed off punks, but I would suggest being somewhat polite, since we don't want to alienate anyone.
Officially canceled my subscription.
I was just wondering how many times the words "fuck you" have been sent to the programming directors of Sirius/XM in the last 24 hours.
This sucks.
While trying to cancel my subscription the only thing they offered for my "inconvenience" was a free XM radio. Just what I need, to pay for another sub and activation fee for a station I can't listen to. NO wonder their stock is in the dumps.
The biggest insult to this injury is that it was done with the most overrated crappy band in rock and roll
Got the same email, from Lou no less. He forwarded it to me. i thought he was punk, but he was just punked. its 53 and 202, thats it, and since i get 202 on directv, F#CK EM. XM cancels tomorrow, 10am central. Who's putting together a punk podcast? Anyone?
I just cancelled my subscription. She repeatedly tried to get me to stay. First it was 3 months at $5/month. Then free until November. I kept trying to tell her to cancel and she kept trying to get me to stay until then. I said NO THANKS.
I haven't seen anything clear-cut that Fungus will be back in January, where did XM say that.?
I am expressing my concerns over the loss of fungus 53. It was one of the few outlets for atypical progressive and very creative music. In lieu of its replacement with AC/DC radio I am thoroughly contemplating cancelling my subscription. I thought XM was an outlet for all genres of music not just popular music. Although I realize XM/Sirius is a business seeking profit I believe alienating a distinct sect of a very loyal subscribers is demonstrating a blindless and assinine policy geared for revenue. I hope you take what I and countless others believe into consideration and reinstate Fungus 53.
Service cancelled. Girl said the channel was coming back in January, "Guaranteed". yeah, i'll believe it when it happens. till then, i'll have the fungus shakes for awhile. back to the ole ipod and freaking cds. Jon Zellner is a douche. email him and let him know punks not dead. 'Jon.Zellner@xmradio.com'
After a few E-mails with Jon Zellner, who has read every e-mail I've sent, I think we can get through if everybody continues to let SiriusXM know how we feel.
Jon Zellner
Senior Vice President
Music Programming
Sirius XM Radio
1500 Eckington Place NE
Washington, DC 20002
(202) 380-4040 (o)
(202) 380-4444 (f)
(202) 253-3478 (c)
Jon.Zellner@xmradio.com
Vote with your feet! I just cancelled my service, and I'm not coming back. With the Sirius/XM merger now complete there is no competition or reason to offer anything other than mainstream programming. Welcome to Clear Channel crap programming that you have to pay for. Replacing the Punk channel was a bad mistake, and I personally hope Sirius/XM goes out of business. Thinking of all the Sirius/XM employees selling their corporate memorabilia on Ebay when they fail, just like Lehman Brothers's, puts a smile on my face.
The only reason I had Sirius was for the Punk Channel. I was even getting pissed that the Punk channel played the same shit over and over. It was music I liked, but it was still repetitive. That right there had me on the fence with canceling my service. Now that the Punk channel has been removed. Both Sirius and XM can go fuck themselves. A channel dedicated to AC/DC. Fuck them too. There is enough bullshit stations on Sirius and XM that they could have removed. Every AC/DC fan has all the AC/DC albums they want WTF do they need an entire station for.
On that note. My subscription has been canceled and I agree with Robert from GA.
I cancelled 2 subs yesterday over this.
Here's an idea:
Since the stock's currently in the tank, the $20 or so you'll save next month from the cancellation will buy about 22 shares of their stock. Easy enough to do on e-trade or something of the like. Enough disgruntled subscribers voting as a bloc of shareholders could have an effect. Destroy 'em from within!!
People still listen to Punk? Boo Hoo, AC/DC Rocks. It deserved to have its own channel.
Punk is like Disco, it's dead. Only the underground scene(Aka People with bad taste in music) listen to it.
Face it, you PUNK listeners are a minority. Which means that more people HATE your music than like it. But hey it's not all bad, now you can listen to real music.
You're Welcome :)
Bye Bye Satellite radio, it was fun while Punk rock was on the air. the FCC wont allow most lyric on regular airplay. - thats a decision WE made when we subscribed. THe ONLY legitimate punk station in the world is dead. there is nothing exclusive about my iPod playlist. You have just lost a LARGE ARMY of devotees around the world. I hope you and your programmer suits enjoy lopping off an entire GENRE of people... the DIY attitude is one of the reasons I subscribed. The FU to the FCC - NOW youve killed punk rock radio- (also on my wife's SIRIUS account all gone. unsubscribe...)and substituted with corporate booze and sex rock. 24/7 What a bad decision. Bad corporate rock was one of the real reasons I became a punk rocker some 25 years ago. and you slap me in the face with an all you can eat buffet of crappy ac/dc. goodbye satellite. goodbye. I thought I knew you so well....
Chris Mc
Los Angeles
For sale: 1 XM subscription / 1 xm subscription - 2 new from factory car stereos + a home receiver (worth $400) and my portable satellite receiver = CHEAP! no, name your price, no, ill pay you! BAAAAH! Howard stern is a fag anyways.
This is what mailed to them:
I can't believe you guys took the one station that I absolutely loved and listened to all the time and replaced it with this stupid ass AC/DC all day station. It's not bad enough that every one of their songs sounds the same, but now I can't listen to any punk anywhere on Sirius? And don't tell me I can hear Bad Religion or the Pistols on Faction OCCASIONALLY -- I like and WANT the punk channel. I love the Marky Ramone show. I like all the stuff they do on there. I love the lack of DJ's and pure punk music being played all day long and now, instead of just putting AC/DC on an empty channel, you have to take out the one station I regularly listen to on Sirius. I am beyond annoyed and frustrated with this. I have been a subscriber since 2003 and I am seriously considering dumping my subscription because of this if you guys don't fix it soon. This is not an idle threat.
Hey 'punk sucks' you're a hair band metal-fag the faggiest of all fags. What's wrong your spandex on too tight today? Did another fat bloated balding rock-god choke on his own vomit?
Any and all acdc and all that other easy-listening-metal horseshit is made for and made by rock n roll dinosaurs.
We're not here to bash any kind of music, we're bashing xm for taking away our music. We pay them in good faifth to hear what we want to hear, they don't give us what we want we cancel, that simple.
We couldn't care less if there's an acdc channel. We realize there's people out there with shit taste in music and it don't bother us one bit. Go hang with your majority, we're punk we are a minority and we like it that way!
The 'majority' are just a bunch of dumbasses like yourself and we're not gonna come down to that level.
An all-exlusive AC/DC channel to replace the main reason I'm a subscriber in the 1st place - uh...the punk channel. That's the biggest load of bullshit I've heard in a long time. Like the other posters, I am really pissed off about this decision. So many other worthless channels on either carrier (Sirius or XM) that coulda been swapped out, but no....corporate america rides again! Not a smart move at all; in time you'll see the consequences of your actions!!!
Did Jon indicate whether or not FUNGUS might return? I have sent him emails too and have not heard back.
Yet again us Punkers get Fucked over.acdc sucks they can go to hell.they should have replaced buzzsaw or classic rewind or jam.I am cancelling my service as soon as my subscription ends.Im gonna go buy an ipod i WAS going to get the new stilletto but not now , no way.
ac dc are a bunch of suck ass bullshit aussie shitbirds.
Anyone care to sign a petition? maybe with enough signatures they may have a change of heart. If anyone has any ideas of better ways to word this, I am open to suggestions. http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/bringbackfungus53/
This is a complete joke! An entire channel with nothing but AC/DC? What moron thought of that? The only reason I kept XM after the free 3 months I got with my new car was the punk channel. Only there could I hear songs from oi bands, obscure punk bands, and something other than the "pop" music that the other alternative channels play. Why couldn't they have taken one of the many pop channels or heavy metal/thrash channels? This was the ONLY true punk channel and they booted it. If I want to listen to pop, I'll just play the radio--I don't need to pay for something I can get for free.
BYE XM!!
And to think I had contemplated getting XM for my office.
First of all I loathe AC/DC. Why couldn't they put Smooth Jazz and Classic Jazz together to make room for them ?!? Or maybe even get rid of Metropolitan Opera Radio. Anything but take away my Punk Channel!! I will have no other choice but to cancel my subscription if it doesn't come back in January.
I feel like one of my frinds died. I'm miss Fungus and want it back. Damn this sucks.
The solution on the Sirius side is simple:
Listen to 25 (Underground Garage)
It's closer to the (ugh, here we go...) "spirit" of "punk" & does not bombard you with the UNRELENTING SAMENESS of the songs that they toss at you over & over again on 29.
After suffering through endless Mike Ness-esq inspired garbage on 29; along with crappy over rated 80's UK punk ( looking at you Exploited ) this is more of a mercy killing than an outright genocide.
Let Sirius and XM know that this is BS. Send them a complaint.
http://www.sirius.com/customercare
http://www.xmradio.com/help/emailus.xmc
That "Mike Ness-esq" is the punk I grew up with and loved.I have listened to underground garage and I do not care for it. I liked the PUNK channel. I want it back.
After this slap in the face by sirius/xm I have cancelled my subscription.I HATE acdc they suck.Once again the minority gets FUCKED.
LEt Sirius and XM know what you think... ...flood thier mail box with complaints about this BS.
http://www.sirius.com/customercare
http://www.xmradio.com/help/emailus.xmc
dont you fucking touch XMLM
They canceled the punk station, Stern is half commercials like he was on terrestrial, not to mention he has become such a bitch. I will be canceling my subscription. I can listen to punk, indie, blues and jazz on college stations for free or my ipod.
i got to work monday morning,open my tool box and turned my radio on and it was no fungus. checked and made sure that I was on the right channel and it was.I got my script to xm just for fungus not for some stupid ass ac/dc bullshit. if i would of known the assholes were going to cancel fungus for some bullshit ass band i wouldnt have renewed my scrip. now its cancelled,FUCK U XM.
Wow, I'm super-pissed right now. Fungus is the sole reason I pay 150.00 a year for XM. I feel like rioting. XM YOU'RE OFFICIALLY ON MY SHIT LIST!
God I hate ac dc, now more than ever.
FUCK YOU ac dc you no good piece of shit asshole motherfuckers I hope you die
I called to cancel last week soon as they pulled this crap. I dont care for baby boomer rock.
First Metalica, now AC/DC, somebody a XM must really love Beavis and Butthead.
Maybe they should consider how many people they are alienating and face thae fact that nobody is going to subscribe exclusivelt to listen to one band.
I WANT MY EFFIN' FUNGUS BACK!
For what it may (turn out to) be (not) worth....
This is the reply I received via email on the 17th after I signed into my Sirius account and sent an email exclaiming the desire and need for 29 to remain.
"Dear **** (you don't need my name, sorry, you don't),
Thank you for contacting SIRIUS regarding the Punk Channel 29 and AC/DC
Radio. We are happy to hear from you and here to help!
****, every one of our subscribers is important to us and we value your
input. AC/DC Radio is taking over Channel 29 for now, but you can still
hear music from the founding fathers like The Ramones, The Clash and
Iggy Pop on First Wave Ch. 22, Underground Garage Ch. 25 and SIRIUS
Disorder Ch. 33 or listen to newer punk rock bands like MXPX, Green Day,
NOFX, Pennywise and Rancid on Faction Ch. 28. This is a limited
engagement and will end on 1/15/09. The channel will then revert to the
Punk Channel.
Thanks again for your feedback. All suggestions we receive are
forwarded to our programming department for further consideration. If
you have any more suggestions or comments, please feel free to contact
SIRIUS Customer Care. For your convenience, we are available 7 days a
week at:
1-888-539-SIRIUS (7474)
As well as by e-mail at:
www.sirius.com/customercare
And you can always manage your account 24/7 by visiting our website at:
www.sirius.com
Sincerely,
*** (name protected as they are merely pawns)"
I'm hanging out for a looksie...I am paid up through then anyway.
This is nuts. The whole reason I have subscribed to XM was for variety in music and I am sure other people have. You can hear this drivel on public air wave radio for free as opposed to the subscription for satellite radio. Stop with the Artist channels already.
While I appreciate AC/DC the thought of the band 24/7 is nauseating. That's like listening to the same 5 songs over and over. Great band but not exactly the pinnacle of musical diversity.
And I LOVE FUNGUS! I've purchased music from the artists I've heard on Fungus and it's doubtful I would have heard of them otherwise.
I have XM and primarily listen to three stations (Fungus, Fred, Lucy). Now I have two. :(
Now I listen to Pandora quite a bit when I'm online. No alternative option for the car at this time but I'll be looking if they continue the single artists trend (and of course if they don't bring fungus back).
In my eyes, the soul of XM died when Fungus left the air. Commercial free, uncensored, punk and ska for the few of us that feed on music that hasn't been pumped out by a hit assembly line. I hope it comes back. I felt comforted knowing that Fungus was there to fuel my rebellion. And I felt good about fueling Fungus with my $20 a month for the privilege of feeling apart of the punk community. I live the middle of a fucking corn field in the middle of Kansas, so I don't get to punk (or any) shows, fungus was my connection to anything punk, and I'm going to miss it now that it is gone.
How can an entire music genre be replaced by a single band? This is ridiculous. Fungus' ratings may have been low, but there is no way a channel that plays a single band 24/7 can sustain better ratings than Fungus.
OMG! AC/DC replacing the punk channel 29 on Sirius is my worst nightmare. I have nothing to listen to on my commute. I unprogrammed the button so I wouldn't accidentaly here this BS. My subscription to Sirius was free for a year. I was going to renue but not now.
This is bullsh!t. How can an effing company offer all these lame a$$ channels on two satellite platforms (XM and Sirius). Last I checked there were now less than three top ten/pop channels, multiple Christian programing channels, and I could go on and on for various formats. Like those who have already said, satellite radio is about diversity of programming not this homogenization that we can get for free on regular radio. Come on, we're effing paying for this bullsh!t. If I wasn't already paid up on two radios, I'd be seriously considering a switch to Napster, Rhapsody, and/or HD radio. When my contract is up, I will be watching closely to see if they bring back the punk.
Sirius XM get an effing clue.
The metallica channel is off today, so why don't they bring back Fungus, or is there another over the hill 40 or 50 something year balding old bunch of hasbeens SirusXM is giving a 24 hour channel to.
I am becoming increasingly more annoyed about this with each day that passes. I have already blogged about it every chance I get. http://tinyurl.com/69yjrf
I will not be happy until Fungus 53 is back on. In fact, I think there should be more than one punk channel. Even Fungus 53 tended to play the same ol' schtuff over and over again. There is an entire onslaught of good stuff out there and most of us are missing it. Why?
ACDC BLOWS DOG DICKS FOR QUARTERS. AND NOW THEY TOOK OVER THE ONLY CHANNEL I EVER LISTENED TO. FUCK XM AND FUCK YOU IF YOU LIKE ACDC.
Those Fuckers LIED the PUNK Channel isn't coming back. I CANCELLED my subscription. Fuck them , I am switching to Slacker.com.
You have your version and I have mine. If you dont want to listen to what the baby boomers grew up to then turn you tuner elsewere. You only have another 129 flippen channels to choose from.
I also took the 3 extra months to give XM the chance to bring back Fungus. It is Janurary now and it is not brought back. We need to start hounding them again and bring this issue back to the forefront. it is up to us as listeners to remind them how important it is for XM to have Punk, Ska and Psycobilly programming!
Wow, are you that guy currently driving a 73 camaro around high school parking lots at 3:30 with a pack of menthols rolled up in your sleeve begging girls to let you buy them beer? Are you actually at your parents house using their computer? Didn't they make a movie about you "Joe"... You've been THUNDERSTRUCK, bitch....