I am KS95

Radio stations, even in concept, are a difficult vice. They play nicely into the heart of the American Gambler, the type of person who could have over 30,000 songs stashed away in their Mp3 player and yet will tune into the radio in hopes of hearing that one perfect song for the perfect situation.

When I was a younger and more impressionable youth, I was given Cities 97. Back then Cities was always the go to channel on my station, there could be the odd cuts by Dylan, a rare acoustic performance by the Foo Fighters doing Everlong or one of the tracks off of their then vaunted Cities Samplers. I recall a friend of mine, who worked for the large conglomerate that Cities is part of, saying how even the management didn't know what format Cities was following; and for us listeners this was fine.

I had, by that point, seen some of the best radio stations of my age come to their conclusion. Rev 105 and the original 93X had folded taking Brian Oake and Mary Lucia and the only station that would play all grunge all the time. They had left me with memories of Brian Oake launching into Don Henley, outing him as one of the biggest tools of all time. The graceful end of the 93X, breaking the record for repeating the same song the most times in a row; for that one shining moment, every kid in the Twin Cities metro area had a fall back song in R.E.M.'s It's the End of the World.

Then Cities 97 decided to turn itself into a joke, a mockery of the radio station that it formally was. They sold their soul to play more Coldplay, more Rob Thomas and Matchbox 20 (or twenty or whatever-- they suck). They tuned out so that they could compete with KS95 for who could be more adult contemporary and squeeze more soft ballads and more socially acceptable music. They became the station that would provide the theme song for shopping for vegetables at the grocery store.

When Brian Oake joined Cities 97, there was hope that the radio station would come back. Then Oake played a three song medley of Don Henley for the Drive at Five and we knew that it was over. Some radio stations burn out; some just fade away, some self destruct like a train wreck in slow motion. I just never thought that I would see a train wreck end with the touching notes of Meet Virginia.