Lexington Herald-Leader from Lexington, Kentucky • 70

LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER 2 05.31.021 friday, weekender WWW.KENTUCKY.COM The Heather Channel I go out of town for a week, and jeesh they kill Mark Harmon off The West Wing, they kill Kiefer Sutherland's wife off 24, Vecepia wins Survivor and Fox gears up for its latest puke-inducing offense: Bachelorettes in Alaska. But none of that compares with what's been going on in Lexington. Let's just call it All radio hell breaks loose In the past week or so, the local radio dial has undergone format changes out the wazoo. A recaplette: 1 The oncemodern-rock Z- 103 is now Z- Ozzy Rock "pure rock" which means more Puddle of Mudd, Papa Roach and System of a Down mixed with Ozzy, Aerosmith and Kiss. This A WEEKLY POP CULTURE WATCH means less (or nothing) from pop- Neither pier modern rockers like Weezer, but that won't Beck and Smashmouth.

Also gone ing my best are most of the station's on-air per- Howard Stern sonalities, including longtime, pop- that leads me ular morning show hosts Freakdad- switch to the dy and Sticky. One of Lexington's three oldies stations, WLXO (96.1), is in the middle of a format change. Right now, it's billing itself as an "all-Howard Stern" station. Freakdaddy Freakdaddy Many wonder: Is that for real? Nope. It's a stunt to generate interest in the new format, which won't be revealed for another or two.

The station is owned by the Charleston, S.C.-based Clarity Communications; Lexington's LM Communications is the station's Free Chicken Sandwich with purchase of large Waffle Fries and large drink. Coupon not valid with any other offer. One coupon per person per visit. Closed Sundays. Valid at: Chick-fil-A of Fayette Mall Expires MISC-05 mor Special Summer Sty Summer Special Summer Special Summer SunSpa Special Buy 2 Months Unlimited TANNING GET ONE MONTH FREE! (up to $69.99 value) The Shoppes at Tiverton Crossing (859) 271-0200 Andover Shoppes (859) 543-8833 Summer Special Summer Special Summer Special Summer Special Summer DESIGNER SUITS NEW SHIPMENT (Regular Retail $300-500) SAVE ON NAME BRAND BLAZERS, SPORTCOATS, SLACKS, SHIRTS, TIES etc.

Same Location For 31 Years check us out-you will be glad you didMILL OUTLET 859-255-4576 1066 E. NEW CIRCLE RD ACROSS FROM SAMS CLUB company is talking yet, stop me from sharguess: If they're using as a stunt shock jock, to guess it could new FM "hot talk" format, which aims for a young, male demographic. Groovin' 102.5 lost its groove and picked up an old-timey twang. The waning funk-oldies format has been dumped in favor of the burgeoning classic country format. Let's review: the Lexington market now has three country stations (K-93, The Bull and now the classic country WLTO) and three rock stations (Double Arrow 101.5 and the new Z-Rock).

Isn't this a little too much repeweek tition? While some listeners say yes, the folks pushing the new formats say no, no, no. LM Cumulus Broadcasting, which owns both Z-103 and WLTO (the former Groovin' 102.5), decided that in Lexington, it wanted to concentrate on the "meat and potatoes" of rock, talk and country, operations manager Lee Reynolds said. Cumulus already has the classic rock Arrow and the current country of The Bull, so it wanted to fill in the gaps. Reynolds calls the stuff on Z- 103 "real rock." "We felt that (rival station) Double has become a classic rock station," Reynolds said. "Maybe they play a new (song) Special was every a couple massive of hole.

hours, We but don't there go for long sets of classic rock." That's what their promos spout. One targets Double by saying: "1975 called, and they want their music back." But, as listener Rob Sarver observed: "They follow that up with Black Dog." (The Led Zeppelin classic was on the charts in 1972.) Sarver confesses that he thinks much of the new format "sounds good," but adds, "to be honest, if I wanted to listen to Led Zeppelin, et I would switch over to Double or 101.5 FM." It's a familiar refrain to the old morning host. "The thing that I've heard time and time again in e-mails 'If we wanted to listen to Double we would've," says Freakdaddy, whose real name is Leo Brown. "People are equating it with another sta- Expect to hear more from acts like System 103.3 FM. The station has switched tion that already exists, but (the station is) trying to position themselves like they're something new.

"I understand that research shows that rock is appealing right now, but a lot of listeners are left out in the cold now. There's nowhere for them to go." Freakdaddy noted that while a market this size can generally sustain two similarly formatted stations, it will rarely sustain three. "I feel horrible for fans of the show," he continued. "I know we had an entertaining show, and there were legions of fans who were loyal to what we did. To throw that away is just a ridiculous mistake.

But I know it's a business Freakdaddy, a Kentucky native, had been with Z-103 for nearly five years. He says he'd like to stay in the area. "Lexington has been my home since 1989, and I've been in Central Kentucky all my So why did Cumulus ax two popular DJs? "They were two of the best people I've ever worked with," said Reynolds. "Unfortunately the style of their morning show was synonymous with the old Z-103. We have to make a clean break in our sound, our cadence and everything else about the station." From 6 a.m.

to midnight, GINO DOMENICO ASSOCIATED PRESS of a Down on the new Z-Rock, formats from modern rock to "pure rock." Reynolds says, all the on-air talent will be live and Lexington-based. A few personalities from the old are staying with the station Suzy Boe will do middays, and Jill Jackson of the old morning show will do nights. New in the morning is Max Corona; Fish will do afternoons. Reynolds promises that the station will remain as involved with the community fund-raisers, stunts and the like as it had been in the past. "We're not gonna give that kind of stuff up," he said.

As for giving the boot to the funk oldies of WLTO, Reynolds said: "I was really fond of that radio station. But when you think of the strategy of our five stations, it was just a matter of time before someone did classic country. Our older country listeners feel a little disenfranchised they weren't hearing Loretta Lynn, George Jones and Tom T. Hall on a regular basis." And in TV news WLEX sportscaster Krista Voda will be leaving the TV station in June, as she's been offered a sweet national gig: a position with Totally Nascar on Fox Sports Net. Reach Heather Svokos at (859) 231- 3238 or 1-800-950-6397, Ext.

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