Opinion : New Kick-ass Radio Station

last month, a coworker brought a new radio station to my attention. It quickly became the permanent station on all day at work and also in my car. This station is 104.5 owned by clear channel, and it is an interesting experiment in modern radio. It is a station that has no talkshows or DJ's. It is simply a computer that plays songs over and over. And because there is no staff overhead, they never play more than 60 seconds worth of commercials at a time. The format is a mix of modern rock, 90's alternative, with a rare 70's or 80's classic. Only the new songs seem to repeat and even then only once a day (I listen to this station for 8hrs straight, so this is really appreciated) The combination of song range and no commercials or annoying talking make this simply the best station I have ever heard. I hope that this station stays around and that it doesn't get big and start airing a lot more commercials.

As I now listen to a station run entirely by computers, I am starting to wonder if this is the future of radio. A similiar alternative concept has also started broadcasting nearby my apt, a station calling itself Skin Radio. A bunch of hipsters seem to have bought AM bands on the cheap as the believe HD tech and the internet will allow them to compete with FM stations. While this maybe the ultimate answer to the Clear Chanel beast, my tastes are a bi more mainstream to care at this point. As long as Clear Channel keeps innovating, they are fine by me.