By Ben Adams
By Ben Adams
The radio has come a long way since its beginning in the early 20th Century. Today commercial FM radio stations rule the airwaves, reflecting, and in some cases determining, the nation's tastes in music. Top 40, modern rock, classic rock, oldies, country, rap, blues, jazz, bluegrass, talk radio, news, and of course commercials... it's all available to us with the touch of a dial/button/switch/whatever. Many of us listen to the radio in our cars, while driving to and from work, and on road trips; some like to sit at work or at home with their clock radios, boom boxes, or expensive stereo systems blaring the music of their choice.
In short, the radio is a crucial part of the music and entertainment industry. Not only do the popular music stations help determine what's hot and what's not, and boost record sales, but they are also vital for advertising. Everywhere you go in this country, your radio can pick up at least a few signals. And in metropolitan areas such as Northern Virginia where I live, there are plenty of radio stations to choose from. And here I will share with you some of my favorite radio stations.
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101.1 (WWDC FM) This station has been around since the 1970s. When I was younger, they used to be the "best mix of new and old rock." But since WHFS came along, they switched to being the "Best New Rock" to compete. They still play some classic rock songs from time to time, though. If you go to their web site, you can listen to them live on the web in RealAudio format... lots of stations are starting to do that now. |
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99.1 (WHFS FM) WHFS is a modern rock station. It has also been around for awhile, but it didn't become really popular until the early 1990s, when it started putting on the HFStival, an annual summer event that features lots of really good bands. I went this year and saw Rage Against the Machine, Stone Temple Pilots, The Bloodhound Gang, Third Eye Blind, Godsmack, Vertical Horizon, Filter, Cypress Hill, the Deftones, and many more. There were 90,000 people there at FedEx Field this year, and it ROCKED. |
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94.7 (WARW FM) Arrow 94.7 is a relatively new classic rock station, that came on the air sometime in the early 1990s. It plays rock from the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Gotta love classic rock. |
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97.9 (WIYY FM) 98 Rock rocks. They play a bit more hard rock than DC101 and HFS, and less of the faggy alternative crap. They also have some hilarious stuff on their morning show with Kirk, Mark and Lopez, and also on their 5:00 Happy Hour every weekday. Click here to hear what I mean. |
