WEQX is an FM

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

located at 102.7

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

and broadcasting from

Manchester, Vermont Manchester is a town in, and one of two shire towns (county seats) of, Bennington County, Vermont. The population was 4,484 at the 2020 census. Manchester Village, an incorporated village, and Manchester Center are settlement centers within ...

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with an effective radiated power of 1,250 watts at 759 meters (equivalent to 50,000 watts at 150 meters). Their tower is located on nearby

Equinox Mountain Equinox Mountain is a mountain in Bennington County, Vermont, United States, in the town of Manchester. The mountain is the highest peak of the Taconic Range, and the highest point of Bennington County. It is one of thirteen peaks in Vermont wi ...

. Because of its location and power the station is able to reach Albany-

Schenectady Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

(while distantly),

Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over 2 ...

and

Glens Falls Glens Falls is a city in Warren County, New York, United States and is the central city of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,700 at the 2010 census. The name was given by Colonel Johannes Glen, the falls refe ...

along with southern and central Vermont, western

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, and western

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. It broadcasts an

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

format which is more varied than most stations owned by larger corporations. Despite being located in Vermont, WEQX has been voted the best radio station for the Capital Region (

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

) by the ''Metroland'' alternative newsweekly for 15 years running (up to 2006) and voted best radio station of 2002 and 2006 by the Albany ''Times Union''. It has also won Best Radio Station of the Year awards from ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine in 1993, 1995 and 1996. In addition, the ''Album Network'' (a radio industry magazine) voted the station the Best Alternative Radio Station in the Country (small market), in 1995.

History

WEQX was founded in November 1984 by Brooks Brown as an independent radio station, when he moved to Manchester and couldn't find a station to meet his advertising needs. Brown built the studio himself, and was involved in building the antenna. The station originally broadcast an Adult Contemporary format for its first ten months of operation until flipping to Alternative Rock or Modern Rock in September 1985. The station is located in a Victorian house at 161 Elm Street. Some of the DJs on WEQX in their early days as a Rock station included Ellen McKinnon formerly of WQBK-FM in Albany, NY as well as former WPYX Albany DJs Ernie James and John Clark. WEQX, or "EQX", as it is commonly referred to by its listeners, is a large sponsor of live music and has presented various concerts in the Capital Region (Albany, New York). In the summer of 2007, EQX held the first EQX Fest at the

Saratoga Performing Arts Center Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) is a large amphitheatre located in Saratoga Springs, New York, on the grounds of Saratoga Spa State Park. It presents summer performances of classical music, jazz, pop and rock, country, comedy, dance, opera, ...

. The concert started at 3 PM and ran until around midnight. It had three different stages; one for local bands, one for mainstream bands, and one for the headliners. The headliners included

The Nightwatchman The Nightwatchman is the solo project of American musician Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine, Street Sweeper Social Club and former Audioslave). Morello began performing as the Nightwatchman in 2003 as an outlet for his political views whil ...

Matisyahu Matthew Paul Miller (born June 30, 1979), known by his stage name Matisyahu (; ), is an American reggae singer, rapper, beatboxer Beatboxing (also beat boxing) is a form of vocal percussion primarily involving the art of mimicking drum mac ...

, and

311 311 may refer to: * 311 (number), a natural number * AD 311, a year of the Julian calendar, in the fourth century AD * 311 BC, a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar * 311 (band), an American band ** ''311'' (album), band 311's self-titled album ...

(in that order). On September 28, 2013, EQX held its fourth annual Pearl Palooza in Albany, New York. It was an all day free music festival that featured Portugal. The Man, Said The Whale,

Cayucas Cayucas, previously Oregon Bike Trails, is an American indie pop band from Santa Monica, California. The group includes Zach Yudin and his twin brother Ben Yudin on guitar. The band signed to Secretly Canadian in 2012. History 2011: Oregon Bike ...

among others. On November 14, 2014, WEQX celebrated its 30th anniversary as an independently owned-and-operated Alternative station, 1 year right after WEQX's founder and owner A. Brooks Brown died in August 2013. On December 29, 2015 the WEQX transmitter tower collapsed due to ice and wind. Broadcasting continued on their online feed, and reduced coverage was re-established with the use of a temporary tower a few days later.

References

External links

*
WEQX Stream LiveWEQX Tune InArticle on WEQX's 25th anniversaryTimes-Union Story on Tower Collapse
{{Albany Radio EQX Manchester, Vermont Alternative rock radio stations in the United States Radio stations established in 1984 1984 establishments in Vermont