Long-lived DC rock radio station killed with no notice. Fuck Infinity Broadcasting!

[Green Cymbeline]

With no notice to listeners, Infinity Broadcasting replaced 99.1 WHFS with a Spanish station. FUCK! There is already a shortage of plain good-old rock stations in the DC area, then they have to go and kill off one of the oldest and most popular one with no notice, and replace it salsa and merengue?!?

Article here: http://billboardradiomonitor.com/radiomonitor/news/format/rock/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000751157
In a shocking move, Infinity has converted 20-year modern rock bastion WHFS Washington, D.C., to Spanish as "El Zol" 99.1. The station will play a mixture of Salsa, Merengue and Bachata, targeting adults 25-54.

WHFS became one of the country's original free-form progressive rock stations in the mid-to-late '60s, evolving to modern rock in the mid-'80s. It spawned the HFStival, the grand-daddy of station festivals and a perennial summer concert box-office leader.

Anyone from the DC area, northern Virginia and Maryland knows WHFS very well. Their HFStival was a huge concert every year. I just don't understand why they are getting rid of it. But what I am pissed about even more is that they didn't give listeners any advance notice. We just get in our cars today and instead of our favorite rock music, we hear salsa music. What the fuck!?!?

[Lord Ashtar]

This sucks. WHFS was one of the few radio stations I still listened to on occasion, and I've been to several HFStivals. I understand that they want to tap into the Spanish market, but couldn't they have just started a new one and cross-promoted?

[Mr. Moto]

What's going to happen to the Sports Junkies?

[gobear]

This is sad, but I'm not surprised. The rock market has been shrinking, and the Latino demographic has been growing, especially here. It's just business.

[Dob]

im listening to Don and Mike talk about this now. I cannot freaking believe it. I LOVEED the HFSfestival. And yea, what about the junkies??

[Belowjob2.0]

Absolutely. Fuck 'em up, and back, and down the goddamned railroad track. Are there any alternatives in the DC area for alternative/progressive rock?

[robgruver]

Same thing happened in Houston a month ago where the 30+ year old Rock 101 KLOL was shut down, and replaced with the 7th Tejano station on FM in Houston.

This is my reason number one for downloading MP3's.

Fuck radio!

[av8rmike]

Holy shit.... and Elliot (http://www.elliotinthemorning.com) of DC101 had been absolutely convinced that ClearChannel was going to "go Spanish" in a matter of weeks. He didn't talk about this on his show today, so I wonder what they'll have to say about it tomorrow?

XM or Sirius is starting to look better all the time...

[UrbanChic]

Absolutely. Fuck 'em up, and back, and down the goddamned railroad track. Are there any alternatives in the DC area for alternative/progressive rock?Is DC 101 still around/playing alt rock?

[Ravenman]

The reality is that HFS had been a downright shitty radio station for several years, and it was only getting worse. I will miss the HFSestival, and I really, really hope some other station picks up Loveline.

But good riddance to the Sports Junkies. That was the only morning radio program I've ever heard that made me long for the Morning Zoo type of crap that is played on 90% of other alternative radio stations. Those idiots barely had a command of the English language -- I think my soul died a little every time I heard the term "hurtkin" or "strange" -- and I'm more than happy to never have to listen to another one of EB's right wing rants. I had no idea that the Freepers had an "in" with alternative music stations.

I'll remember the good days of HFS, but all in all, I probably wish that station had been put out of its misery earlier.

[Lord Ashtar]

http://www.hfstival.com/

What a fascinating little link.

[Green Cymbeline]

More articles:

http://www.radioandrecords.com/Newsroom/2005_01_12/topstory.asp

http://www.dcrtv.org/ (<-----This one has an MP3 of the switchover. We hear the end of a rock song, then are blasted by a Spanish language promo, then it goes into some strange different music... very weird)

http://zfmq.fimc.net/Article.asp?id=61446

[manhattan]

Bummer. I remember when they moved to Annapolis and to 99.1. They were the shiznet back then (except that word hadn't been invented yet). They'd play the newer stuff, the tail end of punk and new wave, that 98 Rock and DC 101 wouldn't. XTC, INXS, Alison Moyet. Great stuff.

In retrospect, of course, it was like having a damn John Hughes movie in your car, but a year in advance.

[Green Cymbeline]

The reality is that HFS had been a downright shitty radio station for several years, and it was only getting worse. I will miss the HFSestival, and I really, really hope some other station picks up Loveline.
It wasn't my favorite station either, but it's one of the last rock stations in this area! Now all we have is DC101, 94.7 (classic rock) and 98 Rock out of Baltimore. NOw I have ONLY 3 stations to listen to! Time for sattelite radio!

[lieu]

Same thing happened in Houston a month ago where the 30+ year old Rock 101 KLOL was shut down, and replaced with the 7th Tejano station on FM in Houston.We only had two decent stations, one playing Classic and 101 handling that and everything newer. I stopped by that afternoon and had a conversation with Jim Pruett about it (ex Stevens & Pruett, now Pruett Guns & Ammo) and we agreed that Houston radio and especially ClearChannel suck with unmatched fervor.

[Caffeine.addict]

I agree with Ravenman. I really loved HFS back in 1993, but it seemed that in the last few years, the playlist had barely changed since the mid 90s. Whenever I turned to it in the car, it seemed like they were playing early Pearl Jam, Nirvana or Stone Temple Pilots. Not that these groups are bad, but it would have been nice to hear some more modern groups. That being said, it seems kind of odd that they are gone, and that DC-101 could be next. I guess I won't listen to commercial radio anymore.

. The station is also well-known for its annual HFStival concert, held since 1993.

That can't be right. I went to the HFStival in 1993, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't the first one. They had one the year prior to that.

[Lord Vega]

XM or Sirius is starting to look better all the time...

Better make it Sirius. Clear Channel is an investor in XM. Linky (http://www.xmradio.com/corporate_info/fast_facts_cons.html)

Cheers,
Vega

[RTFirefly]

Like I said in the other thread, the only thing the station with call letters WHFS lately had in common with that station as it existed 15, 25, 35 years ago was its call letters. The real WHFS lives on as WRNR in Annapolis (http://www.wrnr.com/).

[Winnie]

http://www.hfstival.com/

What a fascinating little link.

Looks like now it will be the El Zolestival from now on!
El Zol 99.1 (http://www.elzol991.com/)

[neuroman]

Same thing happened in Houston a month ago where the 30+ year old Rock 101 KLOL was shut down, and replaced with the 7th Tejano station on FM in Houston.
I thought about pitting this when it happened but never got around to it. Fuck commercial radio up the ass and around the corner with a rusty cheese grater soaked in HIV infected blood. Goddamn motherfucking shiteating donkey molesters. My current cheap car (Escort) doesn't even have a working tape deck nor is the broken one integrated into the dash easily removable, so I'm basically stuck with what I can pick up on the dial. Fucking spanglish garbage. Fucking goddamn Clearchannel.

Fuckers. :mad:

Btw, I recommend to everyone that they check out their local non-commercial college radio stations (if applicable.) They can be hit or miss, but often they play good stuff, and it won't be Freebird for the 500th time.

[BF]

I found out about this today because a local alt/rock station's dj is from NoVA and couldn't believe it when she was emailed by a buddy. I remember switching from DC101 in the am after the Greaseman signed off and listening to HFS for the rest of the day. DC101 was playing Freebird for the nth time while HFS was playing Souxsie, the Furs, U2, Gang of Four, the Buzzcocks, REM, Sex Pistols, Dead Kennedy's, the Cult, Howard Jones, Talking Heads and I could go on and on. And who could ever forget the Weasel in afternoon (read rush hour) drivetime. Farewell, oh commercial college station, fair winds and following seas. XM or Sirius is starting to look mighty attractive.

[Green Cymbeline]

My current cheap car (Escort) doesn't even have a working tape deck nor is the broken one integrated into the dash easily removable, so I'm basically stuck with what I can pick up on the dial. Fucking spanglish garbage. Fucking goddamn Clearchannel.
Exactly, this is why I am pissed because all I have is a radio, and there are only four decent stations I can listen to... now there are only three.

I'm sorry, it just strikes me as... fucked up that they kill this old and beloved rock station for a FOREIGN LANGUAGE station! Come on, people, this is the United States and most of us speak English! :mad:

XM or Sirius is starting to look mighty attractive.
XM or Sirius is starting to look better all the time...
Tell me about it!

[Kamino Neko]

A couple years ago...back in spring 2001, 1050 CHUM - then an oldies station, and one of Toronto's first rock stations - went 'all-sports'.

By summer 2002, the oldies were back. Because the all-sports format wasn't proving as profitable as they hoped.

So, don't lose hope, the rock station might come back,

OTOH, 99.9 went from 'mix' to 'rock' in 2003, and shows no signs of changing back.

[Neurotik]

Meh, I always thought 98 Rock was better - but I've only been out here since 1998.

Happened to flip on 98 Rock in the car a little while ago, they're gloating their asses off. Just dedicated a song to HFS - "We Are the Champions." Apparently, they're going around Baltimore to various bars and letting people trade in their HFS schwag for 98 Rock stuff.

[Caffeine.addict]

I'm sorry, it just strikes me as... fucked up that they kill this old and beloved rock station for a FOREIGN LANGUAGE station! Come on, people, this is the United States and most of us speak English! :mad:

What the hell does this have to do with anything?

I grew up in NOVA and I'll probably listen to the new station on occasion. There is a large market here for Spanish language radio. Take a drive down Columbia Pike. There is a good stretch where most of the residents are Hispanic. If you go to Columbia Heights in D.C. the same holds true for now. I suspect the new station will have better ratings than HFS did for the last few years.

[Rock-n-Rolga]

Better make it Sirius. Clear Channel is an investor in XM. Linky (http://www.xmradio.com/corporate_info/fast_facts_cons.html)

Cheers,
Vega

Having sold off their XM stock in '03, CC is no longer a major investor (looks like that corporate info page linked above badly needs updating) and have no say over programming except maybe for the 'Nashville" "SUNNY" and "KISS" channels; it's hard to say for sure. But there's almost 100 other music channels on XM that CC has absolutely nil to do with. If even a whiff of CC influence makes you raise an eyebrow that's fine; but IMO your decision should be ultimately be made by comparing XM and Sirius side by side with regards to equipment, sound quality and depth of playlists and content of non-music channels. It's super easy to do some objective research and good luck to all of you who are making the escape from AM/FM hell. It's abso-fuckin'-lutely changed my life for the better.

Satellite Radio: shitting on FM from a 10,900 mile height!

Two links that should help "clear" (oh, smack me) this up:
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/it?s=XMSR
http://www.xm411.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=9110

Oh yeah, DC HFS listeners: sorry to hear about this. Yep, it sucks out loud - literally - when your favorite station gets pulled out from under you with no warning. (Remembers with great sadness the sudden demise of Z-Rock in Phoenix ca. '95)

[Mojo]

Infinity killed HFS years ago; this is just the burial.

[Lord Vega]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Lord Vega
Better make it Sirius. Clear Channel is an investor in XM. Linky

Cheers,
Vega

Having sold off their XM stock in '03, CC is no longer a major investor

[Johnny Carson] I did not know that! [/Johnny Carson]

That's good to hear. I've got two workmates, one has Sirius, the other XM, They both love it.

It's not worth it for me to get sat radio, my commute is all of 15 minutes. The car doesn't even warm up.

Cheers,
Vega

[MsRobyn]

Guys, how many times do I have to tell you? It comes down to MONEY. WHFS was probably no longer pulling in the ratings, so its owners decided to change it to a format where it would. Ratings translate into advertising dollars, you know.

In one of my broadcasting courses, we have to do a group project where we have to get a hypothetical radio station financed and operating. My group is seriously considering a Spanish-language station, even though none of us speaks that language. The reason is because there's a market for it and advertisers who want to tap into that market. Advertisers want the ears of listeners, and stations want the dollars of advertisers. That's all it is.

Just remember, kids, it's all about the Benjamins.

Robin

[danceswithcats]

I feel your pain, everyone. WFLN (http://members.aol.com/philaradio/curr957.html) was the only commercial classical station in the Phila market, and was killed off 1997. Now that I live out of the Phila area, I saw the news on a Sunday Philadelphia Inquirer front page and called my Dad almost asking him to 'say it ain't so'.

There were great 'album side' radio stations and those with unique programming, but sadly they have all faded away.

With reduction of rules regarding how many stations can be owned in how many markets, you're going to get glurge radio, because profit is what is all about-not what your ears want. Sad, but as Walter Cronkite put it, "That's the way it is."

[RTFirefly]

What we really need, of course, is simply a whole bunch more radio spectrum, so there'd be room for a lot more choices on the dial. Move TV entirely to cable and satellite (with a certain amount of free spectrum on each, to replace the loss of free broadcast TV), then open up some of that spectrum for radio.

I'm sorry, it just strikes me as... fucked up that they kill this old and beloved rock station for a FOREIGN LANGUAGE station! Come on, people, this is the United States and most of us speak English! :mad: What the fucking fuck?!

Wash your mouth out with soap, girl.

[Rock-n-Rolga]

Vega, I hear ya about the commute. Mine's about five minutes now, so I didn't bother to get sat. radio in my new car and got an XM PCR (uses any computer, does not require one to be online) instead so I can keep the music going constantly while at home. It's a shame the PCR isn't for sale anymore due to concerns that users were using DIY software programs to save songs as mp3s. Maybe Sirius has a version? Otherwise the Delphi SkyFi2 is pretty damn spiffy for at home use and Sirius should have a similar unit.
Wow, look at me huckstering for both companies! But hey, 'tis no skin off my nose if people choose to subscribe to a different service than the one I chose. Competition is healthy; it would be nice to see both Sirius and XM stay in business. Err, not to mention that I'll do whatever it takes to avoid starting a Sirius vs. XM flamewar along the lines of those seen elsewhere online. Seriously, they can make some of the politically-oriented throwdowns on here look like a giggly preteen pillow fight. :eek:

[Lord Vega]

The guy that has the Sirius setup bought all the toys to go with it. Like the guy in the commercial that takes the head unit from the car to the desk. It's pretty spiffy. He has it connected to his home stereo and hasen't listened to radio for months.

Heh, I'm doomed to not be able to justify sat radio. It would make my 40+ gigs of mp3's obsolete. (All ripped from cd's and vinyl that I own.)

Cheers,
Vega

[Frank]

What we really need, of course, is simply a whole bunch more radio spectrum, so there'd be room for a lot more choices on the dial. Move TV entirely to cable and satellite (with a certain amount of free spectrum on each, to replace the loss of free broadcast TV), then open up some of that spectrum for radio.
That will only help if the same three companies don't own all the new stations too.

I listened to WHFS in the 80s, when I lived in St. Mary's County, and it was tremendous then. They'd play anything, and everything. Those days have been long gone.

[ultrafilter]

I'm sorry, it just strikes me as... fucked up that they kill this old and beloved rock station for a FOREIGN LANGUAGE station! Come on, people, this is the United States and most of us speak English! :mad:

Yeah! Those damn foreigners! First they take our jobs, and now they're taking our radio stations!

I know you're better than that, nyctea.

That aside, do you know why the radio selection in the DC metro area is so bad? It's because the broadcast licenses are so expensive that no one is willing to take a chance on a station that might not make gobs of cash. If someone is willing to pay for a license for a Spanish-language station, they've got a *damn* good reason to believe that it'll make gobs of cash.

Whoever invents a mobile internet radio player is going to be able to print their own money.

[Captain Crunchy Crunch]

Shit, I didn't see this thread when I started this (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=296630) one. My apologies.

This really sucks ass!

I grew up on WHFS dammit! I can still remeber Weasel introducing REM's Chronic Town to my little ears back in the day!

I don't know how I am going to manage my morning commute without The Sports Junkies, I really don't.

No warning, no nothing! Just drop the needle on Salsa dance music, and shut down every WHFS-related website!?!

WTF!!!!!!!!

:mad:

:confused:

[Weirddave]

FTR, The Sports Junkies will likely be airing their same old sad schtick on JFK-1300 on the AM dial, another Infinity station.

Nyctea, RTF has alluded to it without giving the frequency, but tune to 103.1 FM tomorrow morning, I think you'll find that it's a lot like HFS used to be. IIRC it was started by an X-HFS DJ.

[Captain Crunchy Crunch]

FTR, The Sports Junkies will likely be airing their same old sad schtick on JFK-1300 on the AM dial, another Infinity station.

Nyctea, RTF has alluded to it without giving the frequency, but tune to 103.1 FM tomorrow morning, I think you'll find that it's a lot like HFS used to be. IIRC it was started by an X-HFS DJ.

Yeah, well The Sports Junkies are a hell of a lot better than Kirk, Mark, & Lopez on Bawlmore's 98 Rock, I can tell you that!

But thanks for the tip, anway. ;)

[Enginerd]

FTR, The Sports Junkies will likely be airing their same old sad schtick on JFK-1300 on the AM dial, another Infinity station.

Nyctea, RTF has alluded to it without giving the frequency, but tune to 103.1 FM tomorrow morning, I think you'll find that it's a lot like HFS used to be. IIRC it was started by an X-HFS DJ.
It was started by Jake Einstein, the same guy who started HFS. I used to love WHFS when I was in high school, but the station went to hell when Jake sold it. He bought 103.1 about a year later, and it took over the void that Clearchannel left.

The only problem with WRNR is that it doesn't have great range (at least it didn't as of 2 years ago... that's when I moved out of Maryland).

[ruadh]

Well, count me as another "I remember when HFS was in Bethesda" Doper. In fact, I remember when it was called WLOM. It was a great station back in the early/mid eighties. When it had no playlists, no stupid "99.1, WHFS" jingles, when you could hear anything from the Beatles to Black Flag, sometimes within the same hour. I used to sit there with a blank tape in my radio and just start taping every song, stopping and rewinding halfway through if I decided I didn't like it, saving it if I did, and I'm extremely proud of the knowledge of really (and I mean really!) obscure music I gained from it.

That is the HFS I mourn the loss of.

And nyctea, your comments about speaking English are beneath contempt.

[mks57]

WHFS has been spiritually dead for a long time. I started listening to the station back when they were still in Bethesda and the DJs played what they wanted to play, not brain-dead formats designed by accountants.

WGTB is gone. WMAL-FM is gone. WAMU is more interested in being a repeater for NPR than supporting local/regional music and diversity.

http://www.dcrtv.org/hfs.html

[Typo Negative]

I long ago resigned myself to the fact that my music was not mainstream and I was not really gonna hear it on the radio. And I stopped listening to it.

Welcome to my world, y'all.

After a while, you won't miss it.

[RTFirefly]

The only problem with WRNR is that it doesn't have great range (at least it didn't as of 2 years ago... that's when I moved out of Maryland).As far as the DC area is concerned, you're right. But it does a good job of covering Annapolis, Baltimore, and at least the eastern side of the DC area, outside the Beltway. It reaches fairly far into southern Maryland, and they've got a transmitter on the Eastern Shore too.

The WaPo's WHFS obit (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A4390-2005Jan12.html), which made front page, above the fold.

[Trunk]

Who's going to the HFieSta this year?

(I heard that on Don & Mike)

I've lived in B-More since '96 and HFS has not been good that entire time.

Between DC 101 and 98 Rock, there is NO HOLE in the programming.

It's existance it much more worthy of a pit than it's demise.

I hit the HFStival in '97. I saw Beck, Foo Fighters (IIRC), Debbie Harry, MM Bosstones (who I never liked, but loved live), Soul Coughing on a small side-stage.

As an aside, I think both RNR and 98 Rock are good stations. RNR, I'd consider a great station, one of the best I've ever known and I've lived quite a few places in my life.

98 Rock, at least, still seems like a good ole straight up Rock & Roll radio station. They have DJ's around the clock (I'm not sure DC 101 does).

A lot of the talent is local, a lot has been there forever. It always has a Baltimore flavor, and a good chip on its shoulder towards DC.

The music, as they say. . .it is what it is.

They love classic Hard Rock: Sabbath, Metallica, G n F'n R, Van Halen, AC/DC but they're not just rooted in the past either. . .it's certainly not cutting edge but over the last few years through them, I've been exposed to Tantric, Creed, Buckcherry, Shinedown, Linkin Park, Korn, Papa Roach, a lot of stuff like that. And you know you're always going to be able to hear the new Audioslave, Green Day, U2.

They take a lot of shit because they're meatheads, but it's not a bad station at all.

[av8rmike]

I suspect the new station will have better ratings than HFS did for the last few years.
Amusingly enough, one of this morning's callers into Elliot's show on DC-101 claimed to have a Spanish background and said that the music on 99.1 sucked, saying it was like "his grandfather's music", like classic country music. Maybe they're still tweaking the playlist.

And from reading the article, I thought it interesting that WHFS started as a classical station before switching in the early 1960s. I think I'll be upping my contribution to the local Baltimore classical station, because G-d knows I'd hate to lose that.

[butter pie]

A friend on the east coast IMed me tonight to bitch about this, and I was telling him the same thing the other posters mentioned... about 101 here in Houston getting replaced by a Spanish hip hop station. I do believe Infinity has picked up most of the DJs from Clear Channel's rock 101, though, and is starting a new station for "adult rock," whatever the hell that is. If it wasn't for 88.7 (the classical public radio/NPR station) and 740AM (coast to coast am) I'd probably never turn on my radio. I used to listen to the pop stations in the car, but since I haven't had a car in over a year, I just don't have any interest in the other stations.

Someone told me Sirius, I think, is going to start playing commercials during their programming? Does anyone know anything about that, because I always thought it was commercial-free. The boyfriend already has a Sirius-compatible stereo in his car, and we've been thinking about signing up for it maybe this coming summer, since it's cheaper than buying CDs and easier than downloading stuff and burning discs. I don't want it if it's going to have commercials though.

[Caffeine.addict]

Originally Posted by av8rmike
Amusingly enough, one of this morning's callers into Elliot's show on DC-101 claimed to have a Spanish background and said that the music on 99.1 sucked, saying it was like "his grandfather's music", like classic country music. Maybe they're still tweaking the playlist.

Yeah, I listened to it a bit last night, and the mix was odd. I heard them play something that I would swear was a remake of "Last Kiss"., something that sounded like traditional music, and then some fairly standard Latin pop. It also didn't sound like they were all from the same station. Maybe they are switching feeds?

[ultrafilter]

As far as the DC area is concerned, you're right. But it does a good job of covering Annapolis, Baltimore, and at least the eastern side of the DC area, outside the Beltway. It reaches fairly far into southern Maryland, and they've got a transmitter on the Eastern Shore too.

Dunno about the rest of y'all, but I'm about 20 miles west of DC, and it comes in crystal clear for me.

[Trunk]

Dunno about the rest of y'all, but I'm about 20 miles west of DC, and it comes in crystal clear for me.
That surprises me. Do you get it for home and car, or just a specific spot at your home?

It's "touchy" in Baltimore. In my home stereo, I can get it all right, but I need to aet the dipole just right.

In one of our cars, we get it fine, in the other, it's very tempermental.

In Silver Spring and points west, I have a hard time getting it in either car.

[ultrafilter]

That surprises me. Do you get it for home and car, or just a specific spot at your home?

I only listen to the radio in my car, so that's the only place I've tried it. But my car's receiver is pretty good--I remember sitting around in Culpeper once and being able to pick up stations from Charlottesville and DC.

[Green Cymbeline]

Guys, how many times do I have to tell you? It comes down to MONEY.
Yeah I know it's about the money, and I can accept that. But why pull it with absolutely no notice to anyone? That is heartless. And it's just sad to me, as a rock fan, that there's not enough rock fans out there to keep rock stations viable. Everyone's listening to rap, pop, R&B, country, Latin and all that shit I can't stand. (Just IMO.)


What the fucking fuck?!

Wash your mouth out with soap, girl.
Whaaa?? :confused: I'm sorry, but what part of this statement is not true? "This is the United States and most of us speak English!" Have the foreign-language speakers surpassed 50 percent and I didn't get the memo?


Nyctea, RTF has alluded to it without giving the frequency, but tune to 103.1 FM tomorrow morning, I think you'll find that it's a lot like HFS used to be.
I tried that last night and my car radio doesn't pick up the signal at all! :(


98 Rock, at least, still seems like a good ole straight up Rock & Roll radio station. They have DJ's around the clock (I'm not sure DC 101 does).

A lot of the talent is local, a lot has been there forever. It always has a Baltimore flavor, and a good chip on its shoulder towards DC.

The music, as they say. . .it is what it is.

They love classic Hard Rock: Sabbath, Metallica, G n F'n R, Van Halen, AC/DC but they're not just rooted in the past either. . .it's certainly not cutting edge but over the last few years through them, I've been exposed to Tantric, Creed, Buckcherry, Shinedown, Linkin Park, Korn, Papa Roach, a lot of stuff like that. And you know you're always going to be able to hear the new Audioslave, Green Day, U2.
Hell yeah! I love 98 Rock, it's my favorite station. I'm just glad I still have that.

[ultrafilter]

Whaaa?? :confused: I'm sorry, but what part of this statement is not true? "This is the United States and most of us speak English!" Have the foreign-language speakers surpassed 50 percent and I didn't get the memo?

What you said was true. The fact that you think it's in any way relevant does not reflect well on you.

[Trunk]

KML this morning were saying they pulled it without notice so that they wouldn't have throngs of protesters outside. Even with 30 minutes notice, they had a small gathering.

Also, of COURSE the US is mostly english speaking but there's enough Spanish speakers here to make a Spanish radio station profitable. Just because they're not over 50% doesn't mean they don't merit a station. "Scan" the FM dial up in New York City sometime. I think about half the stations are Spanish speaking.

Basically, I figure Infinity was looking at being one of 3 Rock stations (4 if you count RNR) versus being the only Spanish station. Easy call.

[Green Cymbeline]

What you said was true. The fact that you think it's in any way relevant does not reflect well on you.
Well sorry you feel that way, but like I said above, as a hard-core rock fan, it's sad... To me, rock is an All-American Art Form. So, the fact that rock stations are being phased out and there aren't enough rock fans to keep these stations viable, and being replaced by a foreign genre of music, it's just sad to me... Can you blame me for being said that rock is dying, and salsa is taking its place? If that reflects poorly on me, then so be it.

It's sad to me that what Neil Young sang about is not true anymore:
Hey hey, my my
Rock and roll can never die

[Enginerd]

The rock and roll that old Neil was writing about hadn't been played on WHFS in years. When was the last time you heard Johnny Rotten on any conglomerate-owned station?
Well sorry you feel that way, but like I said above, as a hard-core rock fan, it's sad... To me, rock is an All-American Art Form. So, the fact that rock stations are being phased out and there aren't enough rock fans to keep these stations viable, and being replaced by a foreign genre of music, it's just sad to me... Can you blame me for being said that rock is dying, and salsa is taking its place? If that reflects poorly on me, then so be it.
Those damn foreigners! First they take our jobs, now they're taking our music! :rolleyes:

[Captain Crunchy Crunch]

Basically, I figure Infinity was looking at being one of 3 Rock stations (4 if you count RNR) versus being the only Spanish station. Easy call.

Wrong.

The station will target radio's "money demographic": Adults ages 25 to 54. Washington has five other radio stations aimed at Spanish speakers: WBZS-FM, WPLC-FM and WKDL-AM, all owned by Mega Broadcasting; WILC-AM, owned by ZGS Broadcasting; and WACA-AM, owned by Entrevision.

So now we have 6 Spanish music stations vs. 2 Rock stations (not counting Baltimore)? :confused:


At noon yesterday, the station behind the HFStival, a popular annual concert, broadcast the late Jeff Buckley's 1995 hit, "Last Goodbye." And then came something that WHFS listeners hadn't heard before in the station's 36-year history as the arbiter of cutting-edge rock:

"WHFS transmitiendo desde la ciudad capital de America:

"Esta! Es! Tu! Nueva! Radio!"

"Transmitting from America's Capital City: This! Is! Your! New! Radio!"

That is just not right! A station that has been around for 30 + years deserves better. A one week send off was called for; Lamenting time.

[Mr. Moto]

I always get pissed off when someone turns the classical station on. Damn Germans, Austrians, Russians and Italians! ;)

[Green Cymbeline]

The rock and roll that old Neil was writing about hadn't been played on WHFS in years. When was the last time you heard Johnny Rotten on any conglomerate-owned station?
I've heard it and other Neil Young tunes on 94.7 (classic rock), DC 101 and 98 Rock.

99.1 was not my favorite station by far, but don't you get what my point is? Now DC is down to only one modern rock station and one classic rock station. (98 Rock is out of Baltimore). So now I have just three stations to choose from.

It is sad that the number of rock fans has dwindled so much that there are only a couple of rock stations left, that's my point.

[Caffeine.addict]

So now we have 6 Spanish music stations vs. 2 Rock stations (not counting Baltimore)?

Out of the list from the post, three of those were AM stations. I've never heard of the other two stations. I recall that there was one Latin Station maybe 92.3, but it always faded out by around Alexandria.

[romansperson]

Someone told me Sirius, I think, is going to start playing commercials during their programming? Does anyone know anything about that, because I always thought it was commercial-free. The boyfriend already has a Sirius-compatible stereo in his car, and we've been thinking about signing up for it maybe this coming summer, since it's cheaper than buying CDs and easier than downloading stuff and burning discs. I don't want it if it's going to have commercials though.

I am a Sirius subscriber, and I have not heard this. You will, however, hear public service announcements on the stations whose feeds are designed for commercial radio - like the Fox News, ABC and CNN stations. Since those feeds have to have breaks for ads, Sirius has got to fill them with something, and they use public service announcements to do it. Of course, that could change in the future - they do need to pay Howard Stern his huge new salary, after all :dubious: .

The music stations are all music, with some of the stations having DJs that talk a little between songs and some of them not having anything but a brief stream ID in between.

Actually, nyctea scandiaca, you should consider yourself lucky you've got 3 stations to listen to. Around these parts rock fans got nothin', which is why I've got Sirius now. I also love being completely morning-show free. I've never listened to one I actually liked.

I love Sirius so much that when I bought my new car, I was at Circuit City the next day buying a new receiver and having it installed, since it didn't come as an option from the dealership and my old radio and receiver wasn't right for the new car. I literally did not want to go a day without it.

[RTFirefly]

Whaaa?? I'm sorry, but what part of this statement is not true? "This is the United States and most of us speak English!" Have the foreign-language speakers surpassed 50 percent and I didn't get the memo?
It was the concatenation of that sentence with the one preceding it:
I'm sorry, it just strikes me as... fucked up that they kill this old and beloved rock station for a FOREIGN LANGUAGE station! Come on, people, this is the United States and most of us speak English! :mad: Sure, most of us speak English, but a lot of Americans, and noncitizens residing here, speak Spanish. So what's the deal - they shouldn't get one lousy station until they're in the majority??

Pardon me if I find that attitude pretty fucked up. Along with the racist tinge that seems to be part of it: that it was somehow worse that HFS got turned into a Spanish-speaking station than, say, an English-speaking easy-listening station.

[gobear]

It was the concatenation of that sentence with the one preceding it:
Sure, most of us speak English, but a lot of Americans, and noncitizens residing here, speak Spanish. So what's the deal - they shouldn't get one lousy station until they're in the majority??

Pardon me if I find that attitude pretty fucked up. Along with the racist tinge that seems to be part of it: that it was somehow worse that HFS got turned into a Spanish-speaking station than, say, an English-speaking easy-listening station.

It's not a matter of "they" getting anything, as if Latinos had been granted a radio station of their very own by the Broadcasting Fairy. There's a large segment of the market that was overlooked, and Infinity wanted to get some Latino ad dollars, simple as that. I don't see the problem with a Spanish-language radio station; my cable provider has a Latino tier of cable channels, and I get HBO Latino with my cable movie package, so I can watch Carrie and Samantha talk about vibrators in Spanish.

As far as rock dying, get over it. Big band died, country and western died (yes, there's "country" music, but that's a pale, weak copy of the real thing), and now AOR is fading away along with the Boomers who listened to it. Hip hop has been the dominant music genre for some time now, and it, too, will disappear someday when a new form of music arises. Then a whole new generation of old farts with saggy tattoos and grown-over nipple rings will complain about the good old days, and how Eminem broke his hip dancing at a benefit at his retirement home, poor old thing

[Captain Crunchy Crunch]

Indeed gobear. Take a look at the current Top 100 Albums (http://www.billboard.com/bb/charts/bb200.jsp) list. Rock is getting pummeled, although Green Day does have the number one album! ;) 16 weeks after it's release no less!

[JRDelirious]

Dang...

(The old, "real") HFS was where folks from (the old, "real") WJHU wanted to go when we grew up. But it would not have been a stretch even 20 years ago to predict that what we called "98-Schlock" (yeah, we were smug condescending little poseurs, weren't we?) would outlast and outlive both. Even smug condescending little poseurs knew how the galletita crumbled in El Mundo Real.


Oh, well... sic transit gloria mundi (Real Latin... so nobody can knock it, being a basis of our civilization ;) ). Let's face it, commercial radio will play to where the dollars are... and the dollars aren't in broadcast Rock. Never really were that much, if we're talking true AOR, it was always just a relative handful of stations, when compared to Pop.

But no need to lash out inappropriately -- if the projected high-growth-in-discretionary-income demographic for the next 20 years were Russian emigrés, we'd be having stations converted to playlists heavy on tAtU. So chill.

[E-Sabbath]

Hee hee. Rock dead. That's a _good_ one. Don't worry. It's all just a bit of history repeating.
Remember before Nirvana? Remember the late 70s? Remember... aw, don't _worry_ about it. Long as people like to screw around with music, rock lives.
Hip-Hop's fun, but eventually, it'll be deader than disco.

[Neurotik]

Hip-Hop's fun, but eventually, it'll be deader than disco.
Yup, annyyy day now. It's been going strong for 25 years now. I don't think hip-hop is in any danger.

[gobear]

Yup, annyyy day now. It's been going strong for 25 years now. I don't think hip-hop is in any danger.
Not now, but eventually, it, too, will disppear into the realm of nostalgia as the current teens become middle-aged and their kids get into some new genre of music.

All things pass with time.

[FrostySonofThunder]

I have to agree that the "real" HFS died years ago. When I first moved to the DC area HFS was still in Bethesda. I can't remember if a co-worker told me about the station, or I stumbled across it searching the dial. But I do remember that the first song I heard made me go: Wow! I can't believe I'm hearing that song on the radio. I was hooked.

Over the years they changed, but I still listened. Until the new owners tried to take Damien off the air! Then I knew it was only a matter of time until HFS went the way of all conglomerate radio: playing the same playlist over and over again.

I listened to 98 Rock for a while, but haven't been a regular listener for years.
Haven't listened to DC101 for awhile due to the fact that I really don't like adolescent humor morning jocks like the Greaseman or How-weird Stern, though I do have to admit that I was listener of How-weird when he got kicked off the radio for his "One-way ticket to the 14th Street Bridge" joke, if anyone remembers that(Og, I'm getting old), so I don't know what type of music DC101 is currently playing.

WRNR/103.1 is my current choice for home and car. The reception is very spotty and it will fade in and out when driving to work down the Balt/Wash Parkway. This seems to be weather dependent/related since, if the conditions are right, it doesn't fade out until I'm in our parking garage.

At work, I have been listening to WARW/94.7(Classic rock), since I can't get RNR on our crappy radio. Weasel and Cerphe(both former HFS DJs) are working at 94.7 so at least IMO it can't be too bad of a station. Even though they did get rid of a morning show that I didn't find too annoying for one that I just can't stand.

Any hoo, that's my little rant about the demise of HFS.

On the subject of satellite radio, I just can't quite bring myself to shell out the money for the equipment and subscription, yet. That may change once I start upgrading to vehicles that are satellite radio ready.

[Jonathan Chance]

Yeah, I'm another of the WHFS Bethesda crowd. High School and such way the hell back when.

Here's an article from The Washington Post on DC Radio. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16855-2005Jan17.html)

[Sauron]

I'm a little confused here. Are any of you familiar with a station being given a "send-off" before the format changes? I've not seen that happen in the past. Well, I did once, with a small, locally-owned AM station that was going bankrupt.

Why would the station owners want to announce that they were changing formats beforehand? All that will do is piss off the current listeners and possibly cause protests/demonstrations at the station in the days leading up to the switch. By making it a fait accompli, they reduce that possibility greatly. Sure, there may be a handful of folks who will take the time to go to the station to complain, but nobody will organize a massive rally the day of the switch.

Does no one remember the classic first episode of "WKRP in Cincinnati", when Dr. Johnny Fever was awakened and told in mid-shift that the station's format had changed from easy-listening to rock? (And, of course, the classic follow-up scene, where a little old lady comes into the booth while he's napping again and bangs the turntable on which a rock album is playing with her umbrella. Fever: "I've killed a lot of old people in my time, and I'm not above doing it again.")

Locally, a sports-talk station changed its 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. show a few months back. They made the announcement a week before the show was to end, so for a week callers bashed management on the show while the host (who was being fired) kept saying "It's a business decision." Horrible PR for the station, but they were stuck -- they'd already announced the day the new show would start running, so they couldn't change it. And, of course, the new show has tanked.

Radio doesn't announce format changes in advance, especially if the format is radically different from the current station.

[Green Cymbeline]

Heh! I guess I am not the only one to use Neil Young's words to comment on the death of another rock radio station....
It's sad to me that what Neil Young sang about is not true anymore:

Hey hey, my my
Rock and roll can never die
From today's Washington Post: Rock, Rolling Over: Pressured by Other Formats and Ways of Listening, a Radio Staple Is Crumbling (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A16855-2005Jan17.html)
Way back in 1979, when rock still ruled the radio, Neil Young offered this confident lyrical couplet in a popular tune of the day: "Hey hey, my my / Rock-and-roll can never die."

Young may still be right, but the radio stations that once played the Canadian rocker's music are showing clear signs of mortality. With baby boomers switching to other formats and younger listeners increasingly bypassing radio altogether, once-dominant rock stations are withering and in some cities dying.

The latest casualty turned up last week. WHFS-FM, the "alternative" station that pioneered free-form rock radio in Washington in the 1960s and '70s, abruptly pulled the plug on rock and began carrying Spanish-language pop. The move by WHFS's owner, Infinity Broadcasting, left the Washington region -- a radio market of more than 4 million people -- with just one area-wide station, DC-101 (WWDC-FM), playing contemporary rock.