why WOXY why? / bye WOXY bye!
The WOXY/Squance continuum: a Timeline
1983: After a year of broadcasting, WOXY at 97.7 changes its format to modern rock and the Future of Rock N Roll is officially born to U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday."
I am only 9 and pay it no attention. However, I do tune in on sundays for Dr. Demento.
1989: I'm a freshman in high school, member of the marching band. I make new friends and they're all music nerds, skate rats, alternapunks, and smellers. I'm deep into my classic rock phase, I love the Black Crowes. But I'm exposed now to the spirit of 97x. I still resist, but it doesn't last.
1991: Pearl Jam releases Ten and BLOWS MY MIND. The paradigm shifts. I reject The Doors and embrace grunge. It's not completely alternative, but now I'm pointed in that direction. 97x plays "Evenflo" pretty regularly, and "Once," and I'm open to new sounds.
1992: Catherine Wheel releases Ferment and 97x starts spinning "Black Metallic." It BLOWS MY MIND.
I'm working summers full-time, pulling weeds and trimming bushes and mowing grass. The people I work with--older, cooler--listen to 97x all day long.
1993: I graduate, move to Athens, outside of WOXY's broadcast signal. I also start smoking pot, and get really into Pink Floyd. I discover Phish, but also Soundgarden. It's weird. I buy Gish because I miss my friends, I ask for Ritual de lo Habitual for christmas and All Things Must Pass. My tastes are all over the place.
1994: I meet musicians, start playing out. I listen to whatever they listen to: Dave Matthews Band, The Samples, lots and lots of Phish. I begin my OU jam phase in earnest.
Summers, it's back to 97x 8 hours a day. I'm listening to Porno for Pyros, Poi Dog Pondering. I'm reintroduced to Material Issue after a long hiatus and actually win tickets to see them play at First Run in Oxford. I visit 97x's studio for the first and only time. It's tiny and awesome.
Clare urges me to listen to the Modern Rock 500 every May, which catches me up on the fundamentals: The Smiths, Echo & the Bunnymen, Joy Division, Elvis Costello, REM, etc.
1997: Radiohead releases OK Computer and BLOWS MY MIND. This album, along with Whatever and Ever, Amen mark the beginning of the end of the jam band era.
1998: I graduate OU, move to Cincinnati, get a job job. I play some music still, but it recedes into the background as I focus on work...
WOXY begins its simulcast on the web.
2002/03: I'm deeply unhappy with how my time is spent. I've left one publishing company for another and am bored beyond comprehension. I take stock, realize that all the things I loved, that I was passionate about, I've left behind, that I've been investing huge blocks of my time and energy into work that does not interest me in the least. I vow to reignite passion, first and foremost by reengaging with new music. Step one: I listen to 97x during my commute and at work, now via internet. My modern rock renaissance begins. I discover Sigur Ros, Doves, Jeff Buckley (!), Metric, My Morning Jacket, Mellowdrone, etc. I spend a lot of time on Limewire. I exchange music nonstop with my friend, Chris Miller, who figures out a way to record KEXP's high bit rate, CD quality, live web stream.
December 2003: The owners of 97x, Doug and Linda Balogh, are pointed out to me at a wine tasting fundraiser at Millet Hall. I want to say hi, but don't.
January 2004: The Balogh's announce the sale of 97.7 on the terrestrial dial. They retain WOXY.com, their complete library, and the name 97x, but the radio signal will disappear. I want to go back in time to December 2003 and kick Doug Balogh in the sack.
May 2004: 97x plays nearly every song in their archive in alphabetical order, which takes a week. I get many hours of it recorded on cassette, even going home at lunch (an hour round trip) just to flip the tape. They spin Doves' "The Last Broadcast" and the signal from 97.7 goes dark at midnight. By morning, 97x has been replaced with a corporate nu-rock station that makes my arteries clog.
July 2004: WOXY.com relocates to Longworth Hall in Cincinnati and resumes its broadcast as an online radio station, reborn to "Orpheus" by Ash.
I quit my job, we sell our house, and move back to Oxford for the first time since 1993. 97x-less, Oxford seems a slightly different place. I miss the voices of Bakerman, Barb and Sledge (though Sledge still pops up in SDS's "thank you for waiting" automated message).
August 2004: I start grad school, make new friends, discover iTunes which, of course, changes everything. Steve gives me "King of Carrot Flowers, Part 1" on a mix and it BLOWS MY MIND. I discover Lane Library's music horde. Steve and Tom discover the data disc method of putting half a dozen albums on a single CDR which, like the splitting of the atom, is good for some and bad for others, depending on your attitude toward copyright law. Regardless, my iTunes begins a slow swell of new music.
2005: I finally give in and listen to Arcade Fire's Funeral and it BLOWS M--well, you get it.
February 2006: Struggling for cash, WOXY becomes subscription-based. We subscribe, but are listening less and less.
Summer 2006: My stepdad is dying. I find comfort in surprising places. I listen to Band of Horses' Everything All the Time album almost habitually. My mind is too cluttered to be blown by anything.
September 2006: WOXY ceases its broadcast yet again. Last song: "Kick Out the Jams" by MC5.
October 2006: After an investment of funds from Bill Nguyen, who owns music trading site Lala.com, WOXY resumes its broadcast. At this point, there are no "first songs" left to play.
I still love WOXY but listen sparsely.
February 2009: Lala sells WOXY to Future Sounds Inc., which specializes in band promotion.
Fall 2009: WOXY relocates to new studios in Austin, TX.
March 23, 2010: WOXY abruptly ceases broadcast, citing lack of funds. There isn't time to even consider a last song.
March 26, 2010: I miss WOXY abstractly, but find myself not thinking about whether it will come back or not. I'm not sure I need it to anymore. The DJ's seem emotionally exhausted and I don't blame them. Instead of another resurrection, I kind of want WOXY to start again anew, the way it was when I was too young or dumb or stubborn to notice it: small and close to home.
1983: After a year of broadcasting, WOXY at 97.7 changes its format to modern rock and the Future of Rock N Roll is officially born to U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday."
I am only 9 and pay it no attention. However, I do tune in on sundays for Dr. Demento.
1989: I'm a freshman in high school, member of the marching band. I make new friends and they're all music nerds, skate rats, alternapunks, and smellers. I'm deep into my classic rock phase, I love the Black Crowes. But I'm exposed now to the spirit of 97x. I still resist, but it doesn't last.
1991: Pearl Jam releases Ten and BLOWS MY MIND. The paradigm shifts. I reject The Doors and embrace grunge. It's not completely alternative, but now I'm pointed in that direction. 97x plays "Evenflo" pretty regularly, and "Once," and I'm open to new sounds.
1992: Catherine Wheel releases Ferment and 97x starts spinning "Black Metallic." It BLOWS MY MIND.
I'm working summers full-time, pulling weeds and trimming bushes and mowing grass. The people I work with--older, cooler--listen to 97x all day long.
1993: I graduate, move to Athens, outside of WOXY's broadcast signal. I also start smoking pot, and get really into Pink Floyd. I discover Phish, but also Soundgarden. It's weird. I buy Gish because I miss my friends, I ask for Ritual de lo Habitual for christmas and All Things Must Pass. My tastes are all over the place.
1994: I meet musicians, start playing out. I listen to whatever they listen to: Dave Matthews Band, The Samples, lots and lots of Phish. I begin my OU jam phase in earnest.
Summers, it's back to 97x 8 hours a day. I'm listening to Porno for Pyros, Poi Dog Pondering. I'm reintroduced to Material Issue after a long hiatus and actually win tickets to see them play at First Run in Oxford. I visit 97x's studio for the first and only time. It's tiny and awesome.
Clare urges me to listen to the Modern Rock 500 every May, which catches me up on the fundamentals: The Smiths, Echo & the Bunnymen, Joy Division, Elvis Costello, REM, etc.
1997: Radiohead releases OK Computer and BLOWS MY MIND. This album, along with Whatever and Ever, Amen mark the beginning of the end of the jam band era.
1998: I graduate OU, move to Cincinnati, get a job job. I play some music still, but it recedes into the background as I focus on work...
WOXY begins its simulcast on the web.
2002/03: I'm deeply unhappy with how my time is spent. I've left one publishing company for another and am bored beyond comprehension. I take stock, realize that all the things I loved, that I was passionate about, I've left behind, that I've been investing huge blocks of my time and energy into work that does not interest me in the least. I vow to reignite passion, first and foremost by reengaging with new music. Step one: I listen to 97x during my commute and at work, now via internet. My modern rock renaissance begins. I discover Sigur Ros, Doves, Jeff Buckley (!), Metric, My Morning Jacket, Mellowdrone, etc. I spend a lot of time on Limewire. I exchange music nonstop with my friend, Chris Miller, who figures out a way to record KEXP's high bit rate, CD quality, live web stream.
December 2003: The owners of 97x, Doug and Linda Balogh, are pointed out to me at a wine tasting fundraiser at Millet Hall. I want to say hi, but don't.
January 2004: The Balogh's announce the sale of 97.7 on the terrestrial dial. They retain WOXY.com, their complete library, and the name 97x, but the radio signal will disappear. I want to go back in time to December 2003 and kick Doug Balogh in the sack.
May 2004: 97x plays nearly every song in their archive in alphabetical order, which takes a week. I get many hours of it recorded on cassette, even going home at lunch (an hour round trip) just to flip the tape. They spin Doves' "The Last Broadcast" and the signal from 97.7 goes dark at midnight. By morning, 97x has been replaced with a corporate nu-rock station that makes my arteries clog.
July 2004: WOXY.com relocates to Longworth Hall in Cincinnati and resumes its broadcast as an online radio station, reborn to "Orpheus" by Ash.
I quit my job, we sell our house, and move back to Oxford for the first time since 1993. 97x-less, Oxford seems a slightly different place. I miss the voices of Bakerman, Barb and Sledge (though Sledge still pops up in SDS's "thank you for waiting" automated message).
August 2004: I start grad school, make new friends, discover iTunes which, of course, changes everything. Steve gives me "King of Carrot Flowers, Part 1" on a mix and it BLOWS MY MIND. I discover Lane Library's music horde. Steve and Tom discover the data disc method of putting half a dozen albums on a single CDR which, like the splitting of the atom, is good for some and bad for others, depending on your attitude toward copyright law. Regardless, my iTunes begins a slow swell of new music.
2005: I finally give in and listen to Arcade Fire's Funeral and it BLOWS M--well, you get it.
February 2006: Struggling for cash, WOXY becomes subscription-based. We subscribe, but are listening less and less.
Summer 2006: My stepdad is dying. I find comfort in surprising places. I listen to Band of Horses' Everything All the Time album almost habitually. My mind is too cluttered to be blown by anything.
September 2006: WOXY ceases its broadcast yet again. Last song: "Kick Out the Jams" by MC5.
October 2006: After an investment of funds from Bill Nguyen, who owns music trading site Lala.com, WOXY resumes its broadcast. At this point, there are no "first songs" left to play.
I still love WOXY but listen sparsely.
February 2009: Lala sells WOXY to Future Sounds Inc., which specializes in band promotion.
Fall 2009: WOXY relocates to new studios in Austin, TX.
March 23, 2010: WOXY abruptly ceases broadcast, citing lack of funds. There isn't time to even consider a last song.
March 26, 2010: I miss WOXY abstractly, but find myself not thinking about whether it will come back or not. I'm not sure I need it to anymore. The DJ's seem emotionally exhausted and I don't blame them. Instead of another resurrection, I kind of want WOXY to start again anew, the way it was when I was too young or dumb or stubborn to notice it: small and close to home.