 | |
| Broadcast area | Portland, Oregon Salem, Oregon Vancouver, Washington |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 105.9MHz (HD Radio) |
| Branding | 105.9 The Brew |
| Programming | |
| Format | Mainstream rock |
| Subchannels | HD2:Contemporary Christian (Way FM) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| KKRZ,KKCW,KLTH,KXJM,KPOJ,KEX | |
| History | |
First air date | February 5,2001 (as KBET-FM) |
Former call signs | KXMX (1998–1999, CP) KKLQ (1999–2000, CP) KBET-FM (2000–2001) KSTE-FM (2001–2002) KRVO (2002–2005) KIJZ (2005–2007) KQOL (2007–2009) |
Call sign meaning | K FBreW |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 60640 |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 22,500watts |
| HAAT | 470 meters (1,540 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 45°31′21.00″N122°44′45.00″W / 45.5225000°N 122.7458333°W /45.5225000; -122.7458333 |
| Translator | HD2: 94.9 K235CU (Bethany, Oregon) |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | 1059thebrew.iheart.com |
KFBW (105.9FM) is acommercialradio stationlicensed toVancouver, Washington, and broadcasting to thePortland metropolitan area. Owned byiHeartMedia, Inc., the station airs amainstream rockradio format with emphasis on the late 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s, branded as "105.9 The Brew". Thetransmitter is located inPortland'swest hills and the studios are inTigard, Oregon.
The station was initially licensed to theCincinnati-basedCiticasters[2] as of February 1996, when that broadcasting group was acquired byJacor Communications.[3]The station has had seven call signs since mid-1998.[4] While owned by Jacor, it changed call letters toKXMX. When Jacor sold it toClear Channel Communications, the call letters changed toKKLQ. In August 2000, it switched itscall letters toKBET. The station officially signed on air with amodern adult contemporary music format branded as "Star 105.9" on February 5, 2001; to match the format, the call letters changed toKSTE-FM.[4][5] It is also noted that the station used the same logo and slogan as Los Angeles stationKYSR. At that time, both stations aired a Modern AC format.
On June 21, 2002, KSTE-FM dropped themodern adult contemporary music format, likely due to lackluster ratings and direct competition from cross-townKRSK, which aired a similarmodern adult contemporary music format. KSTE-FM then began stunting with short clips of almost all music genres branded as "Quick 106" (this stunt was used earlier in the year onKJR inSeattle).
On June 25, 2002, KSTE-FM adopted aclassic rock music format branded as "The River".[6] A change ofcall letters followed on June 28, 2002 toKRVO to better match "The River" branding.[4]
On November 4, 2005, KRVO changed formats yet again, adopting thesmooth jazz music format that thePortland metropolitan area was lacking since the demise of KKJZ (nowKLTH) on February 1, 2002. A change of call letters toKIJZ was made to match the name of the format and new branding as "Smooth Jazz 105.9",[4] a format now heard on sister stationKKCW's HD2 subchannel.[7]
On August 30, 2007, KIJZ changed their format toclassic hits, with the slogan "Kool 105.9" and changed their call letters toKQOL on September 5, 2007.[4][8] The music, originally heavy on music from the 1970s and early 1980s, was shifted in spring 2008 to more of an evenly 60s/70s based format. After Clear Channel purchasedKLTH and itsclassic hits format fromCBS Radio in April 2009, it is now in the same building as KLTH.
On May 6, 2009, KQOL began stunting, directing listeners to KLTH. On May 8, KQOL launched an 1980s-based classic rock format and adopted its current branding "105.9 The Brew".[9] The station changed their call letters toKFBW on June 2, 2009 to make it branding-appropriate. As of 2011, it began to expand its library to include tracks from the late 1960s, 1970s and early 1990s, along with the new slogan "Next Generation of Classic Rock" to reflect the adjustment. In the fall of 2013, KFBW adjusted its slogan to "Real Classic Rock". In January 2014, KFBW adjusted its slogan again, this time as "Portland's Rock Station".
KFBW-HD2 features aContemporary Christian Music format from theWAY-FM Network. Its programming can also be heard on local translators K235CU 94.9 MHz in Bethany.
KFBW-HD3 featured aclassic country format branded as "103.7 The Legend" and was simulcast on FM translator K279BO 103.7 FM in Portland, owned by Educational Media Foundation.[10]
On May 9, 2019, K279BO dropped its simulcast with KFBW-HD3 and switched to "K-Love Classics" (simulcasting KLVP-HD3).[11]
The HD3 subchannel has since been turned off.