To the surprise and mostly glee of many of us in the Baltimore area came the announcement yesterday that much-beloved radio station WHFS would not only be returning with much of its previous roster and format from the days of yore, but additionally would find its home in Baltimore as opposed to the DC area. A point which may seem trivial to some, but we Baltimoreans are certainly very clingy when it comes to these things that identify us as our own city, preventing us from being lumped in with DC (God forbid).
The questions regarding the station’s future success are fairly obvious: can it compete with other local stations for earballs? Stations like WTMD, 98 Rock, and The Bay seem to have fairly strong followings – can HFS reclaim some (preferably most) of its massive popularity from the 90s without relying solely on nostalgia?
I happen to think that it can.
There’s no questioning the fact that those of us who came up through high school or college during the 90s will identify with their playlists in a purely nostalgic manner on some level, and some folks on the interwebs have poo-poo’d on the idea’s longevity. But put it this way: 100.7 The Bay plays nothing but classic rock, most of which is 30+ years old, and they do just fine. The folks that want to hear that sort of music entertainment will listen to it, just as those who love 90s alternative rock (and new stuff too) might do the same. At the same time, however, what made HFS so great in the 1990s was the fact that the music they were playing was at that time considered cutting edge, whereas now it’s merely “old” to some, much like Classic Rock was once Cutting Edge Rock, but does that diminish its quality? Of course it doesn’t. Having listened to the station over the past 24 hours or so, it seems as though they’re trying to strike the balance between spreading the word and playing the stuff you know and love while gently introducing listeners to new stuff; not a whole heck of a lot of new stuff, but either way it’s a good way to get things going. And there a lot of us out there hungry to hear that sort of thing in the Baltimore area without throwing in a shred of Butt Rock or (please God) Nü-Metal, a pair of genres that essentially poisoned rock radio in the late 90s (not at all an editorial). At the very least, for me personally, WHFS will make a great accompaniment for WTMD and my listening purposes.
And while it doesn’t seem likely that the newest iteration of WHFS will attain the superlargess it enjoyed during the mid to late 90s and the supersuccess of the HFStival, it’s entirely possible and in fact entirely likely they’ll enjoy a widespread, loyal audience that will sell some ads and keep some folks employed. I know I’m looking forward to it. Best of luck, WHFS!
(WHFS is on The Facebook and The Twitter too)
If they get a good morning show, i’d listen. that’s pretty much the only time i listen to the radio anyways. I do sirius on the way home from work.
Same. Satellite radio unless there is free sex at the harbor being announced.
YES! All Alice in Chains all the time. I never really wanted to grow up anyway. Now I can relive senior year into my senior years.