About "107.3 The Edge"

107.3 The Edge: Calgary's Home of Iconic Alternative

107.3 The Edge is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Calgary, Alberta, and owned by Corus Entertainment. Broadcasting a classic alternative format at 107.3 MHz under the call letters CFGQ-FM, the station plays three decades of alternative rock, grunge, and new wave from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, marketed on air as "iconic alternative." The Edge brand launched on July 31, 2024, ending the station's two-decade run as classic rock "Q107" and a brief eighteen-month detour as a news-talk simulcast. It is the Calgary sibling of Toronto's 102.1 The Edge (CFNY-FM), one of the most famous alternative stations in Canadian radio history.

History: four decades, five formats

The station's story begins in 1981, when CKIK-FM Ltd., headed by Robert K. Whyte, received a licence for a new FM station in Calgary. Whyte, backed mostly by Calgary investors, proposed a progressive format aimed at listeners aged eighteen to thirty-four, broadcasting at 107.3 MHz with an effective radiated power of 100,000 watts.

CKIK-FM signed on the air on April 15, 1982, with an adult album rock format. Its early years were turbulent: after pilots of small aircraft complained the station was interfering with air traffic communications at the city's airport, the Department of Communications ordered CKIK to cut its power from 100,000 watts to just 10,000. The station also ran into financial trouble, which was eased in 1985 when Ottawa music impresario and CHEZ-FM founder Harvey Glatt acquired a seventy-five percent interest, a stake he held until 1995.

Through the 1980s and much of the 1990s, the station cycled through rock identities as "107 KIK FM" and later "Rock 107." In September 1997 it flipped to contemporary hit radio as "Power 107." In January 2002 it evolved again, this time to hot adult contemporary as "The Peak 107.3." Then, on February 19, 2004, at 1:07 p.m., the station dropped the hot AC format and became a classic rock station branded "Q107," changing its call letters to CFGQ. In 2007, Terry DiMonte, one of Montreal's best-known radio voices from CHOM-FM, joined Q107 as morning host; he returned to Montreal in December 2011.

The Q107 years: 2004 to 2023

The Q107 era lasted nineteen years, making it the longest-running identity in the station's history. Launched on February 19, 2004, at 1:07 in the afternoon, Q107 positioned itself as Calgary's classic rock home with the slogan "Calgary's Only Classic Rock." The branding evolved over the years: in January 2015 the station adopted "Great Hits and Real Classic Rock," and in July 2016 it shifted to "Greatest Hits of the '70s, '80s and '90s," slightly widening its playlist to include newer rock alongside its core library. The station built its audience around heritage rock artists and a personality-driven presentation, and for much of its run it was one of the steadiest performers in Calgary's crowded rock market. By the early 2020s, though, Corus was looking for a new direction for the 107.3 signal, and in December 2022 the company announced that Q107's remaining local shows would end to make way for the QR Calgary news-talk simulcast.

The QR Calgary interlude

After nearly two decades as Q107, the station took an unexpected turn. On December 16, 2022, it was reported that CFGQ would launch a new format on January 9, 2023, and its remaining local personalities, including afternoon hosts "Tarzan Dan" Freeman and Cam Sullivan, announced the ends of their shows. At 5:30 that January morning, Q107's classic rock gave way to a simulcast of AM news-talk station CHQR (770 AM), with both stations collectively rebranded as "QR Calgary: Talk on FM."

The move made CHQR one of only two FM news-talk stations in Canada's large markets, but it quickly drew regulatory scrutiny. On January 24, 2023, the CRTC wrote to Corus questioning whether the simulcast complied with broadcasting regulations, noting that no rebroadcasting transmitter had been authorized to carry CHQR's programming and that CFGQ had not applied to operate in the Specialty format. That spring Corus filed applications to formalize the arrangement by re-designating CFGQ as the originating station of the news-talk format, revoking CHQR's AM licence, and repurposing 770 AM as a rebroadcaster. The CRTC examined the matter at length, issuing Broadcasting Decision 2024-132 on the station's apparent noncompliance.

Before the Commission ruled, Corus changed course. In June 2024 the company withdrew the applications and announced it would end the simulcast by the end of July, with a spokesperson explaining that Corus had "not been able to monetize QR on both AM and FM the way we had hoped."

The launch of 107.3 The Edge

Later in July 2024, RadioInsight reported that Corus had purchased the domain name 1073Edge.com, fuelling speculation of a modern rock format modelled on Toronto sister station CFNY-FM. The speculation proved correct: on July 31, 2024, at 7 a.m. Mountain time, CFGQ flipped to a classic alternative format as "107.3 The Edge," billed as "Iconic Alternative 107.3 the Edge."

The new format focuses on alternative rock, grunge, and new wave from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s: thirty years of hits from artists such as the Foo Fighters, Tears for Fears, Green Day, Florence and the Machine, U2, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Talking Heads, The Cure, David Bowie, The Killers, Blondie, and Stone Temple Pilots. Alan Cross, Canada's best-known alternative music authority, serves as an ambassador for the station, and his award-winning series The Ongoing History of New Music airs on the station. The station also continues to carry Calgary Stampeders CFL games, a sports tie inherited from its earlier incarnations. In February 2025, Corus named Justin "Drex" Wilcomes as the station's new morning host.

The Edge competes primarily with Harvard Broadcasting's modern rock CFEX-FM (X92.9) and, to a lesser extent, with Bell Media's active rock CJAY-FM.

Why classic alternative, and why Calgary

Corus framed the Edge launch as filling a gap in the Calgary market. The city's rock dial already had active rock in CJAY-FM and modern rock in X92.9, but no station was built specifically around the alternative canon of the eighties, nineties, and two-thousands: the grunge explosion, the new wave era, and the indie and alternative hits that followed. The station's positioning as "iconic alternative" leans on the formative-soundtrack argument: for adults who came of age between the eighties and the two-thousands, this is the music of their lives, presented without the harder edge of active rock or the current-heavy focus of modern rock. The presence of Alan Cross, whose syndicated series has chronicled alternative music's history for decades, gives the format a built-in authority that few music stations can match. And the continued carriage of Calgary Stampeders football keeps the station connected to the city's sports identity, a link that has survived every one of the 107.3 frequency's many format changes.

Ownership and sister stations

107.3 The Edge is owned by Corus Entertainment, which acquired the station from Western International Communications in 2000. Its Calgary sisters include CKRY-FM (Country 105) and CHQR (QR Calgary, 770 AM). The Edge brand places the station in Corus's national alternative family alongside Toronto's 102.1 The Edge, Vancouver's CFOX, and Kitchener's 107.5 Dave Rocks, among others.

Signal and coverage

CFGQ-FM broadcasts at 107.3 MHz with an effective radiated power of 100,000 watts, giving it full-market coverage of the Calgary metropolitan area. It also operates a rebroadcaster in the mountain resort town of Banff, CFGQ-FM-2, at 100.1 MHz with an effective radiated power of 92 watts, extending the station's reach into the Bow Valley. The station's studios are at 3320 17 Avenue SW in Calgary.

How to listen

Tune in at 107.3 FM in Calgary or 100.1 FM in Banff, stream live at 1073edge.com, or listen through iHeartRadio, TuneIn, Radioplayer Canada, and Amazon Alexa. The station can be reached at 403-264-1073 and maintains an active presence across social media under the 1073edge handle.