By NOVEED SAFIPOUR, Read This! writer

Supriya Limaye, a senior at Saratoga High, unexpectedly heard her cell phone ring on an afternoon last February. Before she even put her ear to the speaker, she heard her friend blurt out the news in an excited squeal: “Channel 104.9 is back!”

For Limaye and many other Bay Area teenagers, the return of the alternative rock music station Channel 104.9 came as a surprise. Radio station mogul Clear Channel had changed the channel to play Spanish-language pop music at the beginning of last year, but after requests from fans and a decrease in listeners, alternative music returned, creating some mixed feelings among teenage listeners. Limaye was a long-time listener of “The New Music Alternative” on Channel 104.9, and was pleased with the station’s return.

“I’m thrilled to have it back,” she said. “It was my default station and the station I listened to the most.”

In the Bay Area, the alternative music 104.9's music format is one of the ones that appeals most to teens.

"They don’t have a lot of commercials, and I just like the types of music they have on it,” said Sabine Durand, a senior at Branham High in San Jose.

“104.9 is the only channel with its particular blend of music styles,” said Fiona Wilkes, a junior at Gunn High in Palo Alto. “It sits nicely between Alice 97.3, Star 101.3 and Live 105.3.”

Others, however, are not entirely satisfied with the station’s return, as the absence of old DJs left some listeners feeling unfulfilled. Shamita Jayakumar, a junior at Saratoga High, misses the station’s late-night DJ Kat.

“I think radio DJs are funny in general,” she said. “They forget people are listening, so they sometimes start to go insane. [Kat] would say funny comments about the song titles and make fun of the bands.”

Saratoga High sophomore Brian Tsai, however, stands at a greater loss. As a fan of the now-gone Spanish-language music channel, he misses the “upbeat melodies” the station once played.

“It’s kind of disappointing, because I like listening to the pop rather than the alternative,” he said.

The station’s sudden return also upset some teens, though, because the changes messed with their minds. Alternative music fans recall the frustration of having their station suddenly taken away.

“I was really upset, especially because I didn't know it was going to happen,” said Naomi Schacter, a junior at Gunn High. “I thought my radio was screwed up, so I hit it a couple of times, but then I gave up.”

Some fans of the station just want some consistency.

“I dislike the fact that Clear Channel can suddenly change radio stations,” Wilkes said. “It's upsetting and frustrating for listeners to be deprived of their favorite music and commentary.”

But fans of 104.9 are glad Clear Channel brought back alternative rock to the station.

“I am glad 104.9 is back,” Schacter said. “I think that radio station owners are more obligated to their wallets or investors or whatever than they are to listeners. But that is the nature of the world, and it is understandable. So I don't mind if that is their motivation, but I hate them stringing us along.”

 Noveed Safipour is a senior at Saratoga High.