Fresh Listen: Athens Radio

When I went to Radiodays Europe for the first time two years ago, I found a favorite radio station. Prague’s Evropa 2 was playing a Top 40 mix very different than anything available in North America, including still having some pop/rock component. I’ve gotten an early start on my listening for this year’s Radiodays, to be held in Athens on March 9-11, and I’ve already found at least one station that I think will be a ROR readers’ favorite.

(Update: RDE has passed, and the station in question did become a fave, so I’m resharing it this week. I’ve also added a second monitor of the station.)

Even the terminology in the 55-station Athens market is different. Greek’s traditional-music/Soft AC outlets are also known as “art stations” to differentiate them from the more mainstream/contemporary “laïkó” or “popular” outlets. The “sophisticated” format combines what would be Alternative and Triple-A here with more esoteric music that you’d be more likely to hear on a restaurant tape in North America. That format does well enough that Athens has six such outlets.

A recent article on the Athens radio dial says Pepper 96.6, the leader among the Alternative/Sophisticated outlets, has mainstreamed recently — there is some music that would read as Adult Contemporary here, but which becomes atmospheric in the larger context of the station. But Pepper still synthesizes a lot of different music in a way likely to make it a fast favorite among this audience. Triple-A and mainstream pop radio are coming together here in unlikely ways, but Pepper’s convergence sounds very different.

Here’s Pepper 96.6 around 9:15 p.m., February 10:

• Depeche Mode, “Ghosts Again”
• Teddy Swims, “Lose Control”
• Travis, “Bus”
• Floor Cry, “Happy Together” — 2018 cover of the Turtles hit that recalls Portishead
• Alan Parsons Project, “I Wouldn’t Want to Be Like You”
• Nancy Sinatra, “These Boots Are Made for Walking”
• Rag’n’Bone Man, “Human”
• The National, “Never Tear Us Apart” — cover of the INXS hit
• Stereo Nova, “Ena Klemeno Podhlato” — 1993 downtempo electronica
• Michelle Gurevich, “Every Night Feels Like the Last” — 2024 midtempo with echoes of both Gotye and White Town
• Adele, “Set Fire to the Rain”
• Michael Kiwanuka, “Cold Little Heart”
• Cecilia Krull, “My Life Is Going On” — the theme from a 2017 Spanish Netflix show that became such a big hit here that I would also encounter it on the AC station
• The Weeknd, “In Your Eyes”
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile”
• Kim Carnes, “Bette Davis Eyes”
• Coldplay, “Feels Like I’m Falling in Love”
• Amy Winehouse, “Back to Black”
• Who Made Who, “Ember”
• Still Corners, “The Dream”

(Update: Here’s a second monitor of the station from 8:40 p.m., April 1:

• Mono, “Life in Mono”
• Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell vs. Ben Human, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”–remix that adds breakbeats for a “My Boo” feel
• Kenya Grace, “Strangers”
• Maneskin, “Beggin'”
• Sade, “Smooth Operator”
• Monika, “Over the Hill”–Greek female singer/songwriter
• Alice Merton, “No Roots”
• Jungle, “Back on ’74”
• Depeche Mode, “Enjoy the Silence”
• Waldeck f/Patrizia Ferrara, “Memories 2021”–similar ’30s feel to Sting’s “Englishman in New York”
• Arno Elias, “El Corazon”
• David Bowie, “Starman”

I’ve also listened a few times now to the next-ranked of the market’s “sophisticated” outlets, Best 92.6. That station feels more focused on the ethereal/dance/chillout aspects of the format. When I listened on April 2, I heard Dirty Vegas’ “Days Go By,” but also acts like Monolink, Perfume Genius, Synkro, and Vintage Voltage, without the records that you’d hear on a mainstream format here.)

Pepper’s presentation was low-key/conversational, which would actually describe much of the radio I heard, even in contemporary formats. The station’s giveaways included a flyaway to Billie Eilish in London as well as the station’s listener series, the Church Sessions, next bringing Kid Moxie (whose cover of Radiohead “Creep” the station is playing) to St. Paul’s Anglican. There are also a series of “Pepper Secret Nights” in conjunction with Jameson at an undisclosed bar. (Pepper is consulted by Ken Benson & Max Dugan’s P1 Media Group.)

My soft AC/Art listening thus far has been divided between Melodia 99.2 and Diesi 101.3. Melodia felt softer, with more of what Americans think of as traditional Greek music. The hour I heard spanned the ’80s to compatible recent music. I heard Diesi as more contemporary, also throwing in a few English-language Mainstream AC standards such as “Every Breath You Take” or “It Must Have Been Love.” 

My first listen to a laïkó outlet was Sfera 102.2, which despite being thought of as “Greek CHR” felt more like contemporary Middle Eastern music than a foreign-language version of Western pop music. (Alexis Karakatsanis, digital audio manager for local owner Audiomax, has been very useful in helping guide my listening diving into Athens radio. He is also part of the Radiodays Europe program group, as well as the head of that country’s Radioplayer. Ratings expert Chris Huff is a fan of the market and also assisted.) 

In honor of World Radio Day, here are a few other music monitors from Athens stations playing primarily English-language music, in afternoons/early evenings on February 10-12.

Easy 97.2 (AC)

• Sia, “Unstoppable”
• Rick Astley, “Never Gonna Give You Up”
• Imany, “You Will Never Know”
• Cyndi Lauper, “I Drove All Night”
• Aventura, “Obsession”
• Cher, “Believe”
• Bryan Adams, “Heaven”
• DJ Snake & Justin Bieber, “Let Me Love You”
• Slimane, “Mon Amour” — the station was also promoting an upcoming Athens show
• Chris Isaak, “Wicked Game”
• Matthew Fisher, “Why’d I Have to Fall in Love With You” — the former Procol Harum member with a 1980 retro-soul flavored song that became an enduring Greek hit
• Shakira, “Whenever Wherever”

And for fun, here’s a brief monitor of Easy 97.2’s ’80s side channel, monitored simultaneously:

• Stacy Lattisaw, “Jump to the Beat”
• R.E.M., “The One I Love”
• Tina Turner, “Let’s Stay Together”
• Roxy Music, “Love Is the Drug” — there was no separate ’70s channel; late ’70s did seem to be included here
• New Kids on the Block, “You Got It (The Right Stuff)”
• Sheila, “Spacer”
• John Paul Young, “Love Is in the Air”
• Philip Bailey, “Woman”
• Robin Beck, “First Time”
• Eric Carmen, “I Want to Hear It From Your Lips”
• Andy Gibb, “I Just Want to Be Your Everything”
• Whitesnake, “Here I Go Again”
• Cameo, “Word Up”

Radio Deejay Athens (Top 40)

• Joezi, “7 Seconds” — dance update of the international Youssou N’Dour/Neneh Cherry ’90s hit
• Teddy Swims, “The Door”
• Lucenzo f/Don Omar, “Danza Kuduro”
• Lost Frequencies f/Callum Scott, “Where Are You Now”
• Hozier, “Too Sweet”
• Pitbull, “Give Me Everything”
• Adam Port, Stryv & Malachiii, “More”
• Rema & Selena Gomez, “Calm Down”
• Bomfunk MCs, “Freestyler”
• Zerb, the Chainsmokers & Ink, “Addicted”
• Metro Boomin’, the Weeknd, 21 Savage, “Creepin’”
• Disclosure, “You and Me”
• Anitta, “Evolver”

I’m just delving into one of the market’s other international CHR outlets, Music 89.2, but I did hear it in afternoon drive segueing Lady Gaga’s new “Abracadabra” into Steve Miller Band’s “Abracadabra,” followed by Eminem’s SMB-sampling “Houdini.”

Happy 104 (Classic Hits)

• Michael Jackson, “Billie Jean”
• R.E.M., “Losing My Religion”
• Madonna, “Into the Groove”
• Inner Circle, “Sweat (A La La La La Long)”
• Sniff ’n’ the Tears, “Driver’s Seat”
• Mr. Mister, “Broken Wings”
• Spin Doctors, “Two Princes”
• Modern Talking, “Cheri Cheri Lady”
• Coolio, “Gangsta’s Paradise”
• Roxette, “The Look”
• Frankie Goes to Hollywood, “Relax”
• Chris Isaak, “Wicked Game”
• Michael Jackson, “Bad”
• Modjo, “Lady (Hear Me Tonight)”
• Kenny Loggins, “Danger Zone”
• Knack, “My Sharona”

More information on Radiodays Athens is available here.