101.9 WRXP

[baldvinny]

www.1019rxp.com/2songs.aspx

The first two songs played on 101.9 RXP signify the music scope of New York's Rock Experience. Segueing from 1969 and Velvet Underground's "Rock and Roll" to 2008 and R.E.M.'s brand new "Supernatural Superserious," listeners were immediately exposed to the breadth of New York's Rock Experience. Credible rock music from then and now. Classic rock and new music. Local music and local artists. New York's rock music heritage lives on one station now at 101.9 RXP, New York's Rock Experience.

[$heriff Tom]

Oh man, one of my coworkers is going to be mad...he was a big "Smooth Jazz" fan, CD 101.1. There goes that.

When I saw this I was hoping for something a bit heavier, or closer to the classics. This looks like WBAB, NYC version. The first hour songlist goes from Bruce to U2 to Nickelback....someone on the NY Radio board said they even played Melissa Etheridge....and Blondie is on the webpage too. And they played Ozzy and Beastie Boys too....what up?

I am in LI today, so no listening to me - does not appea to be a stream up yet.

[$heriff Tom]

WQCD/New York Flips To Rock

February 5, 2008

Emmis Smooth Jazz WQCD (CD 101.9)/New York has flipped to Rock, as "The New York Rock Experience." Described as "an innovative new adult rock format," it promises "a respectful and intelligent mix of new music, Classic Rock and Alternative" as 101.9 RXP. The new Rock station has launched a brand new Web site as well at www.1019rxp.com.

"On-air personalities will play a direct part in choosing the music," announced 101.9 RXP Program Director Blake Lawrence. "It's unheard of in radio these days, but 101.9 RXP is about the music and not so much the music business - we're merging rock styles and generations into a singular community that we call The New York Rock Experience."

"Having grown up on the great NY rock radio of the past, I'm absolutely thrilled that Emmis has identified an unserved audience that now has a great new 3 dimensional rock brand!" said Emmis VP of Programming Jimmy Steal. "This brand builds, and expands upon, NY's great rock radio legacy - RXP is a rock station that truly represents a rock culture, for rock music lovers.....and is not just another rock format."

The first song to air on 101.9 RXP was "Rock and Roll" by The Velvet Underground, followed by the world premiere of R.E.M.'s "Supernatural Superserious. " For a look at the first hour of songs, click here.

"We're the first station in the world to premier the new R.E.M. song 'Supernatural Superserious,' and the only station that truly embodies the New York spirit of Lou Reed and the Velvet Underground classic 'Rock and Roll.'" said Director of Marketing Brian D'Aurelio. "Both songs are a fitting representation of this unique new adult rock brand."

The station, which is located in the West Village, will include another feature unique to New York radio with the regular inclusion of local rock artists, such as Hold Steady, White Rabbits, Santogold, The National, and Nada Surf. All will be part of the initial playlist, and the type of local talent that the station will support moving forward. "Some of the world's greatest rock artists got their start playing by the fountain in Washington Square Park just steps away from our studios," said new on-air personality and Music Director Bryan Schock. "That communal rock spirit is what we mean by the New York Rock Experience, and it is the spirit with which 101.9 RXP will be playing and launching new local artists." Schock will also be heard weekdays in the afternoon drive shift.

"The Emmis trombo is now even more diversified benefiting advertisers with an array of reach in gender, geography, ethnicity, demography, psychographics of lifestyle, values and attitude orientation through three distinctly different products," said Director of Sales, Emmis NY Alexandra Cameron. "WRXP-FM will bring an adult audience focused on A18-49 and competitive in the A25-54 arena with greater suburban, non-ethnic composition. The spectrum of multicultural young adults with HOT 97, Non ethnic suburban adults with WRXP and African American professionals largely in the 5 boroughs is a strong combination reflective of New York's individuality and culturally diverse consumer segments."

Smooth Jazz CD 101.9 will continue to exists on 101.9 HD-2 in New York. Emmis Communications New York commissioned multiple research projects from Paragon Media Strategies prior to the launch of WRXP. Programming consultants included Mike Henry of Paragon Media Strategies and John Bradley and Dave Rahn of SBR Creative Media.

www.fmqb.com/Article.asp?id=573046

[9]

Apologies to any jazz fans who will miss their station, but ABOUT TIME. New York radio is brutal.

[Furious D]

This is the best news that I have heard in a long time.

I do not like the smooth jazz format at all and I was being subjected to it for the entire day at work, by our Admistrative Assistant who thought she was doing us all a favor by blasting her radio.

Home hasn't been a refuge from CD101.9 either as it was my wife's favorite station. Unless we were watching TV, the radio in the kitchen would be on and airing all of my "favorite" smooth Jazz tunes.

10 to 12 hours a day listening to music I don't like.

[$heriff Tom]

Did you break the news at home yet?

When we have our kitchen radio on, and its not a CD of choice of whoever is using the kitchen at the time, its on Q-104, generally. But its a 10 station preset, so its easy enough to bounce around the dial, and there as no smooth jazz available, thats for sure.

[Furious D]

Actually the format changed sometime yesterday because I'm pretty sure smooth jazz was playing at work, but when I got home, Julie was expressing concern because the Pretenders were playing on 101.9

[$heriff Tom]

LOL @ "expressing concern."

Yeah, I read some people were confused as to why a station would slip it under the radar like they did (no tease, and a change on the day of the Giants parade and the NY Primaries) - not a big deal, but part of changing formats is generating buzz. Wrong day to do it.

[Chris]

I'm not sure how BIG of a blow this format change is.

But this story reminds me of one of the saddest days (to me) in LA Radio. I think Jackass probably remembers this.

We had just a phenomenal radio station here in SoCAL in the early/mid 80s called KMET (94.7). KMET was Dr. Dementos flagship station, but it also had a great mixture of classic rock, new rock, and even specialized shows for Heavy Metal (The Lucifer LaRock show which I suspect was DJ Mike Harrison speaking into a demonic harmonizer...this show routinely played WASP, Metal Church, and other lesser known metal bands), Jazz, Comedy (Dr. Demento), and I believe were the originators of the much copied "Breakfast With The Beatles" Sunday morning shows that are played throughout the nation. KMET is also the station that many famous DJs that are now considered LA Radio institutions got their start.

KMET was much better than it's competitors K-EARTH (classic rock/oldies) and KLOS (classic rock and some modern rock) both of which still exist. But I don't know what happened - perhaps the mixed bag of eclectic music was KMET's undoing, as they folded and became a MUZACK station known as The Wave. It was quite a shock when KMET abruptly pulled the plug sometime in the late 80s.

[$heriff Tom]

Burning rumors that 92.3 K-Rock may be flipping sometime soon, perhaps even to Country. There were a heap of firings (promotional staff, web staff etc) at both K-Rock and CBS-FM (which happens to be a ratings winner through this all) today.

Some major changes are coming, apparently.....stay tuned!

I will say this - if there is one station that will be severely hurt by this new rock offering its K-Rock.

[Jackass]

I stopped listening to KMET in the late '70's when I turned on to KXLU and KROQ for my commercial free punk music.

I do remember many days and nights in jr and senior high school listening to KMET with the "The Burner" Mary Turner, "Paraquat" Pat Kelly (and the Fish Report with a beat). They had a great show on Sunday nights called The Seventh Day where they would play entire albums. Jim Ladd and his obsession with The Doors. "The Beemer" B. Mitchel Reed was good too. Dusty Street was a big assed chick that played good music.

They started to take the pipe when Frasier Smith left and went to do mornings on KLOS (his show was fucking funny). When KNAC came on, they were done.

Fuck the Mighty Met.

[Chris]

Paraquat Kelly - now THERE'S a blast from the past.

Loved KMET.

[Chris]

Jim Ladd is still around, still bragging on the air about how he is different from any other DJ because he has "complete autonomy."

[$heriff Tom]

So I have been listening to 101.9 a heap. Its on the kitchen radio, the radio in the shower, here at work, on the car preset. Good mix. Thing is, although they go "deep" - they seem to play the same "deep" tracks. I have heard that song "Yellow" a few times already. But the mix is so much better than a lot of the other rock entities going now.

Today is a radio day at work, did not bring the CDs along. I am going to flip over to K-Rock and Danni at noon till 3, then back to 101.9 for the day.

[$heriff Tom]

Interesting story in todays Daily Snooze regarding the brewing battle between what is now no less than THREE rock radio stations in the NYC market. Here on Long Island, I get to throw 102-3 WBAB into the mix as well.

For those about to rock, 3 radio stations recruit you

By DAVID HINCKLEY

Suddenly it's a mini-golden age for rock music on New York radio - thanks less to any musical awakening than to a mundane change in ratings methodology.

Long known as a "rhythm town" where radio listeners like Latino beats, soul beats, dance beats and hip-hop beats, New York now has three full-time rock stations: WAXQ (104.3 FM), which plays classic rock; WXRK (92.3 FM), which plays rock from the '80s to the present, and WRXP (101.9 FM), which straddles the two.

Since WAXQ is the only rocker whose music has thrived in the ratings over the last decade - K-Rock was big for years largely because of Howard Stern - this has sparked discussion over where the listeners will come from.

"I'm confident they're here," says Greg Strassel, senior vice president of programming for WXRK's parent, CBS. "New York has been under-rocked in terms of radio stations."

Bob Buchmann, program director of WAXQ, says Q's decade of success with 25- to 54-year-old men shows there's a solid rock base here. But he thinks the new landscape may test its breadth.

"New York can definitely support two rock stations," he says. "I'm not sure about three. I think we may see a game of chicken between WRXP and K-Rock."

The winner, he suggests, could be the one that gets a New York feel. "Personalities are critical," he says. "No out-of-town move-in can duplicate New Yorkers like [WAXQ's] Jim Kerr, Carol Miller, Maria Milito and Ken Dashow."

Dan Halyburton, senior vice president of WRXP's parent Emmis, says the same thing about a New York aura, which is why WRXP is promoted as "New York's rock experience."

"We're after the feel of the old WNEW-FM," says Halyburton. "When you talk about New York as a 'rock town,' think how many people remember that station."

But the real impetus behind any new rock surge isn't the past. It's the future: the Personal People Meter (PPM) by which Arbitron will start measuring radio ratings here this year.

The PPM is an electronic device that in early markets has recorded far more rock listeners than the old "diary" system.

Buchmann notes that WAXQ's weekly listenership figure leapt from 1.5 million to 3.5 million with PPM. Strassel says K-Rock went from 916,000 a week to 1.6 million a week with PPM.

PPM was a major reason Emmis dropped smooth-jazz WQCD for WRXP, says Halyburton. "Rock does very well in PPM."

It's too early for WRXP ratings. But with K-Rock, which has struggled since it switched back to rock from "hot talk" Free-FM last year, Strassel says CBS thinks the station is now in the right place at the right time.

"Our goal is to be top-three with men 25 to 54," he says. "I'm very optimistic we will get there."

[$heriff Tom]

Couple of interesting notes. First, it was refreshing to hear the evening jock ripping a band that was just played last night. After a Cars tune played, he started going off on how he saw the Cars live back in the day, and was savagely dissapointed, as the guys had no life and "just stood there." It was all done not as a shock jock rant, but a music fan griping about a live expererience.

While the playlist is deep in terms of tunes they are pulling out, I am hearing the same ones a few times too many, including the same Beastie Boys song you dont normally hear on the radio each time I hear the Beastie Boys. The mix on this station is excellent, though. Right now they are playing some peaceful Fleetwood Mac. Oh, wait, just as I complained about the same "deep tracks" being played, here is Coldplay's "Yellow" again. Sigh.

I am also starting to hear some of those "local artists" - we heard some dope Mike Doty or something, with some doofy song "27 Jennifers" - it goes, "I went to school with 27 Jennifers....16 Jens, 10 Jennies, and then there was her" or some such schmazz.

[baldvinny]

i have been listening to this station a lot as well

not too happy they finally got DJ's, but that was inevitable

i dig the song selection, though i am getting a bit tired of that sheryl crown song "cry over babylon" or whatever its called

[$heriff Tom]

If any of you out-of-towners want to check it out, the station is now streaming. Just go to the homepage and click on or around the headphones shown on page.

WWW.1019rxp.com is the site.

[4dogg]

The Cars did suck live

[$heriff Tom]

Word on the street is RXP finally got around to hiring a morning guy, and its a good move. Our old friend and Donahuge soundalike Matt Pinfield. Pinfield knows his stuff, and is a good listen. He had been dropping in on the afternoon show here and there, and I enjoyed his banter.

[$heriff Tom]

New WRXP jock got an early start

By DAVID HINCKLEY
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Matt Pinfield says he was so psyched about becoming the morning host on WRXP (101.9 FM) that before he got the job, he started training.

"When I knew there was a possibility," he says, "I started setting my alarm for 4:15. I'd get up, walk 5 miles, do some cardio.

"I've also been backing up my music collection, so I used the time to do that - and find cool things to play on the show."

Starting May 28, that training pays off. Pinfield (r.), who may be best known for hosting "120 Minutes" on MTV, becomes morning jock on the city's latest rock station.

Besides being "incredibly excited," he says he hopes to help establish the station's whole tone.

"WRXP has been doing something different," he says, "and it's about time. New York radio has gotten stale and predictable because it's all divided into subgenres. Everyone's afraid to step outside their box.

"We're not. I'm not. I know music fans today have the same passion I had when I was 15, or 25. They just want good music. They may like the White Stripes, but if they hear a good Bob Dylan or Jimi Hendrix or Psychedelic Furs song, they'll dig that, too."

Pinfield started his musical odyssey at 3, when he'd listen to his parents' records. Now he's 42, and "my passion is the same. Next to my loved ones, music has always been the most important thing in my life."

He'll start the morning show with no specific sidekick .There'll be traffic, weather and news, but mostly, he says, it will be music-focused.

"We'll have more music than other shows," he says. "There will also be interviews and special features. We'll have fun, but it won't be a comedy show. This is about music."

Pinfield started as a radio guy 26 years ago, with WRSU at Rutgers, and although MTV and other TV gigs built his reputation, he says he's happy to get back.

"I've had offers before," he says. "But they were just to play all preselected songs. That's not me. I grew up with the classic New York stations - the old WABC, WNEW, WPLJ, WPIX. I think 'RXP can bring that kind of excitement back.

"It's particularly great for me to come to 101.9 because that was my favorite station in the late '70s. I remember one night I was working at a convenience store. I locked the doors at midnight and then listened to WPIX play all of [the Clash's] 'London Calling' the night it came out.

"That was great radio."

[baldvinny]

i gotta admidt...i havent been listening to this station as much latley

i feel like they have become "classic alternative" instead of classic rock. they still have a good mix, but they play too much depeche mode/midnight oil type stuff for my tastes

[$heriff Tom]

Well, its about 4 months in and the ratings are beyond astounding. As in, hardly a blip. Radio "pundits" can not remember a mass-market station showing so low on the trends, they are under a 1 share in the coveted demos.

Sadly, basically no one is on board. They just did bring in a new PD, but if things dont turn around sometime soon this experiment may come to a crash. I also have not listened as much, I stray towards the Q, but its cause they seem to be playing a lot of the same songs too many times. It also appears to be "The Tom Petty" station to me.

But its still good, and I hope its not a lost cause.

[Chris]

Good. so tune into compoundradio.org!

[$heriff Tom]

The end is near.....Im surprised this station, which lags behind some LONG ISLAND stations in the NYC books, is still around.

Hey, Cho, say hi to this guy when he gets out to Southern Cali.

Schock To Exit WRXP

R has learned that due to personal reasons WRXP/New York MD/afternoon host Bryan Schock has handed in his resignation. His last day at the Emmis triple A outlet will be Feb. 6.

"This is one of the hardest decisions that I've ever had to make, but I've learned over the years that family comes first," says Schock of the decision. "Having the opportunity to be a major part of the development of a brand-new rock radio station in the biggest market in America has been an experience that I wouldn't trade for anything. Emmis Communications has been a wonderful company to work for. I want to thank Dan Halyburton, Rick Cummings, Jimmy Steal and Paragon Media Strategies' Mike Henry for believing that I was the guy to help get 'RXP off the ground. I also want to thank Leslie Fram as well as the rest of the on-air and programming team at 'RXP for being such an amazing group of people to work alongside."

"It's with a heavy heart that we have to say goodbye to the person who almost single-handedly launched the radio station," says Fram, WRXP's PD.

Schock will be relocating to Southern California and can be reached at [e-mail].

[$heriff Tom]

Well, with the death and demise of 92.3 KRock, RXP lives on. Always sad to lose a rock station, but Ill find myself stopping back at RXP more often. I hear Pinfield, the Mike Donahue soundalike, had some of the old KRock jocks on his show this morning, where they all mourned together.

Speaking of 92.3, here were the first 5 songs they went with, when they kicked "The Rock of New York" to the curb.

1. "Boom Boom Pow" - Black Eyed Peas
2. "Right Round" - Flo Rida
3. "Just Dance" - Lady Gaga
4. "Heartless" - Kanye West
5. "Beautiful" - Akon

[$heriff Tom]

A WORD FROM MATT PINFIELD



NYC just lost another rock station…the legendary K-Rock. We are sad that many people have lost jobs and that the new york rock scene just lost an outlet. We play a lot of the music that K-Rock embraced, so we would appreciate your support if K-Rock was previously your preferred station.

Also we would appreciate it if you would tell your friends about the RXP choice. We play new music, classic rock, and alternative, and we really support the local music scene as part of our everyday music mix. And as you already know, 101.9 RXP is also the only station in NY where the DJs actually select their own music to play.

We've set up an email address for your feedback [e-mail] and phone line 888-797-1019. New York is the greatest city in the world and deserves a great rock radio station. We hope to be that radio station, and we promise to serve your needs.

1019RXP not only reflects our city’s great rock heritage, but the vibrant new music and future rock scene as well. Thanks for listening, and please tell everyone you know about 1019RXP – “New York's Rock Experience"

[baldvinny]

i had rxp on in the car this morning, and i wanted to reach thru the radio and choke the shit out of matt pinfield

he is pretty annoying...and i had to turn the station off when they started to play the theme song for the sopranos. it wasn't a gag or anything, they were really playing the song as part of a music block

thank god i own an ipod

[9]

Mar 13, 2009 7:09:32 GMT -5 baldvinny said:

thank god i own an ipod

Amen!

[sancho231]

Damn KROCK got deaded? that sucks, i hadn't really warmed up this RXp stuff.Waqs another top 40 station needed? there are enough Crappy Radio stations in this city.