Monday, November 05, 2007

what's old is new again

So they recently changed to the format of 104.1 FM from rap/r&b back to alt-rock in the form of the new fm 104one. I have to say, I'm really psyched about this "new" radio station, which, right now, is very much like WMRQ Radio 104 was back when it first went on the air in the mid-1990s. I will never forget the day I first heard Radio 104 - I was in college, and my friends were buzzing about this new radio station that played bands like REM, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and the like, and had no DJs, and few commercials, and it was just....awesome. I remember getting in my friend Rich's car after our Ecology lab and listening. And loving. And for many years after that, I was a huge supporter of that radio station. I loved it when Dee Snyder had his morning show. I loved all of the Radio 104 Big Days Off and other day-long multi-band concerts. Hell, I still have the t-shirt I got from one of their promotional events at Foxwoods, way back at the beginning.

I was sad when it went away, obviously. And now I'm happy, so happy that it's back. Sure, it's not officially Radio 104 anymore, but right now, there are no DJs, limited commercials, and the first song I heard when I turned it on was by Nirvana. A lot of the music makes me nostalgic for a time when hanging out with my friends, drinking and going to bars, and being up on the latest and greatest in music were some of my top priorities. When homework was my biggest problem. When the idea of a husband, a kid, a house, two dogs and life in suburbia seemed like a million light years away.

I guess now I have the best of both worlds (plus, no homework!).

1 comment:

lgaumond said...

Oh, I LOVED Radio 104 I still have a Radio 104 bumper sticker on my trash can (which was my old dorm trash can).

I remember when the station was brandy-new and the were asking the listeners for suggestions for names and one guy called in to suggest they call it WALT, ALT being for "alternative" and the W for whatever all radio station have a W at the beginning of their call letters for. He said that he thought the call letters were fitting, and besides, his name was Walt and he liked the name. It would have been a good name.

I may have to turn my iPod off and give a listen to the new/old Radio 104.