#danfriel

Rock DJ Brian Sunberg climbs the stairs above Hutch, signs into WHPK, and pops open a 2 a.m. Coke. He fingers through a stack of records and makes his selection, placing the vinyl on the turntable. He takes the mic, greets his listeners, and—like a pledge he knows by heart—repeats the government-issued advisory on bomb threat procedures.

“It’s nice to have a place I can go to and just relax for two solid hours. I don’t really think about outside stuff,” Sunberg, a second-year in the College, said.

Now in its 49th year, UChicago’s second-oldest RSO is undergoing some changes: DJs are working to increase public programming, archive the thousands of records in the office, and line up a pre–Summer Breeze sister show.

Just last month, WHPK invaded the Film Studies Center for its annual event “Pictures and Sounds,” a multimedia showcase featuring artists like Japanese electronic composer Ryoko Akama and Brooklyn-based rock musician Dan Friel. Basking in the wild success of the event, WHPK has now shifted gears to preparing for its May 13 show, which, after two years of preemptive rain cancellations, is finally back.