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WHFS Abruptly Changes Format
Pioneering Alternative Rock Station Now Spanish-Language
By Teresa Wiltz
Washington Post Staff Writer
The Washington-area FM radio station WHFS, long a pioneering purveyor of alternative rock, did a programming U-turn at noon today by ditching the genre for a Spanish-language, Latin music format featuring middle-of-the-road superstars such as Marc Anthony and Juan Luis Guerra.
WHFS-FM 99.1, the radio station behind the popular alt rock music festival called "HFStival," is now "El Zol," featuring Caribbean and Central American music, according to a prepared statement released by Infinity Broadcasting, the station's owner.
Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc., the nation's largest Latino-controlled radio broadcasting company, served as a consultant on the reformatting of the station. Infinity and SBS have formed an alliance, with Infinity owning an equity interest in the Florida-based company.
The abrupt switch came as a shock. Since 1969, WHFS has served as the arbiter of cutting-edge rock in the Washington area, introducing listeners to acts such the Cure and the Violent Femmes.
The HFStival has grown from an offbeat spring festival to a nationally-recognized Bacchanalia that last year offered 36 musical acts spread out over three stages and a techno hideaway called the Buzz Tent.
"Certainly this will have major ramifications for new music in Washington, D.C., said Seth Hurwitz, the owner of the city's 9:30 Club and producer of last year's HFStival, which drew 65,000 fans to RFK Stadium in May.
"They were always the forerunner for presenting new music," he said of WHFS. "They were a vital fabric of Washington's culture."
Pioneering Alternative Rock Station Now Spanish-Language
By Teresa Wiltz
Washington Post Staff Writer
The Washington-area FM radio station WHFS, long a pioneering purveyor of alternative rock, did a programming U-turn at noon today by ditching the genre for a Spanish-language, Latin music format featuring middle-of-the-road superstars such as Marc Anthony and Juan Luis Guerra.
WHFS-FM 99.1, the radio station behind the popular alt rock music festival called "HFStival," is now "El Zol," featuring Caribbean and Central American music, according to a prepared statement released by Infinity Broadcasting, the station's owner.
Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc., the nation's largest Latino-controlled radio broadcasting company, served as a consultant on the reformatting of the station. Infinity and SBS have formed an alliance, with Infinity owning an equity interest in the Florida-based company.
The abrupt switch came as a shock. Since 1969, WHFS has served as the arbiter of cutting-edge rock in the Washington area, introducing listeners to acts such the Cure and the Violent Femmes.
The HFStival has grown from an offbeat spring festival to a nationally-recognized Bacchanalia that last year offered 36 musical acts spread out over three stages and a techno hideaway called the Buzz Tent.
"Certainly this will have major ramifications for new music in Washington, D.C., said Seth Hurwitz, the owner of the city's 9:30 Club and producer of last year's HFStival, which drew 65,000 fans to RFK Stadium in May.
"They were always the forerunner for presenting new music," he said of WHFS. "They were a vital fabric of Washington's culture."
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Re: WHFS is history!
Thu, January 13, 2005 - 12:29 AM -
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Re: WHFS is history!
Thu, January 13, 2005 - 11:20 PMThere's a lesson to be learned here. WHFS has a story that should be heard by KEXP listeners and those who power it.
When I first moved to Seattle, I was immediately turned on to KCMU. It was the closest thing I had found in the country to the old HFS.
The old HFS was indispensible in building the thriving scene that created D.C. harDCore music and harbored the development of many of the musicians that came of age in the nineties. This is a well-known story and I don't need to drop names, but some come immediately to mind. Fugazi, Dave Grohl, Shudder to Think...
Many of the HFS d.j.'s moonlighted by playing at the old 9:30 club and they frequented the shows at the 9:30 and d.c. space.
I still remember calling up the d.j. one night (Milo) and requesting the newest Minor Threat 7 inch. He had it and he played it on the spot.
In 1984, the station was sold and converted to 50,000 watts and moved from Bethesda to Annapolis, Maryland. This move was scary and the station lost its intimate, small-scale feel. Some of the beloved d.j.'s lost their jobs and we feared we'd lost a good friend.
A few d.j.'s continued on. One that stands out was Jim Dunbar. He continued commuting to Annapolis every night. I still remember Jim playing whole sides of l.p.'s in the middle of the night with no interruptions.
And then WHFS changed over time. As the term "Alternative" came to be well-known, the station changed and became another big main-stream commercial station. And now, its demise.
All things change.
KEXP needs to be careful how it changes.
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