It is also time to say thanks and pay our respects to KSWD 100.3 ("The Sound"). Simply put, with a few notable exceptions that I have noted on this board before (mainly, not investing time to identify new bands/product to put on their station, a few really dopey contests they have run in the past, promoting this crazy obsession with vinyl LPs, and very unimaginative 10@10s) this has been an overall very well produced and presented classic rock station. They realize that it is not 1978 any more and their audience is now comprised of adults, so the presentation was very adult and professional. The station was always low key and friendly and never ventured too far into the political (always a course for disaster. See "NFL") although you know that they are all lefties that run the place (not that there is anything wrong with that).
Most importantly they made it clear that they take their musical heritage seriously and that includes the local radio scene. After starting out as a true AAA station for about a year, market forces required that they adapt, and they changed the music to straight ahead classic rock without ever formally announcing the change in format or even changing the logo and imaging. In both cases, they played themselves off as the natural heir to the old KMET and even did a couple of salutes to KMET (the first one being one Friday in the summer of 2009, the other a few years ago) the first of which was very good and entertaining, the second of which, ahh... probably a rerun of the first would have been better. This was very good marketing as I ran into a lot of people that identified the linking between the two stations and it was definitely considered by them to be a positive thing. People still love KMET. Too bad they can't share the station with their grandkids, but I digress.
They showed they were serious about the music when they went out and got Rita Wilde, which I believe brought them a lot of credibility and immediately their image changed from upstart classic rock station to one that could go toe-to-toe with market heritage rocker KLOS and should be seen as equals. They showed even more good judgement when they refused to hire Jim Ladd when he was let go by KLOS. And no Laddies, with your Indian Dream Catchers hanging off of your car rear-view mirror, this is not a shot at Jim (not that I am at all above taking one, I am not), I listen to him all the time on Sirius/XM Deep Tracks which is where he really belongs, so save the hate posts. In fact, I think I can hear the Doors' "Texas Radio with a Big Beat", so I'm sure that's got to be Jim on the radio right now. In any case, Ladd's personality would have overridden the station's vibe and it wouldn't have worked out. Better they play the Album Side at night.
At the end of the day, they put on a pretty good classic rock station that played as much variety as big market forces will allow and never let their personalities get in the way of the music. What more can you ask for? Ok, that is it for now, I hear the opening strings of "Hotel California" and I am going to go turn it up, you know, for old time's sake. In the meantime, this is CF, trying, but not succeeding, to check out, err, leave. Thanks KSWD.
Most importantly they made it clear that they take their musical heritage seriously and that includes the local radio scene. After starting out as a true AAA station for about a year, market forces required that they adapt, and they changed the music to straight ahead classic rock without ever formally announcing the change in format or even changing the logo and imaging. In both cases, they played themselves off as the natural heir to the old KMET and even did a couple of salutes to KMET (the first one being one Friday in the summer of 2009, the other a few years ago) the first of which was very good and entertaining, the second of which, ahh... probably a rerun of the first would have been better. This was very good marketing as I ran into a lot of people that identified the linking between the two stations and it was definitely considered by them to be a positive thing. People still love KMET. Too bad they can't share the station with their grandkids, but I digress.
They showed they were serious about the music when they went out and got Rita Wilde, which I believe brought them a lot of credibility and immediately their image changed from upstart classic rock station to one that could go toe-to-toe with market heritage rocker KLOS and should be seen as equals. They showed even more good judgement when they refused to hire Jim Ladd when he was let go by KLOS. And no Laddies, with your Indian Dream Catchers hanging off of your car rear-view mirror, this is not a shot at Jim (not that I am at all above taking one, I am not), I listen to him all the time on Sirius/XM Deep Tracks which is where he really belongs, so save the hate posts. In fact, I think I can hear the Doors' "Texas Radio with a Big Beat", so I'm sure that's got to be Jim on the radio right now. In any case, Ladd's personality would have overridden the station's vibe and it wouldn't have worked out. Better they play the Album Side at night.
At the end of the day, they put on a pretty good classic rock station that played as much variety as big market forces will allow and never let their personalities get in the way of the music. What more can you ask for? Ok, that is it for now, I hear the opening strings of "Hotel California" and I am going to go turn it up, you know, for old time's sake. In the meantime, this is CF, trying, but not succeeding, to check out, err, leave. Thanks KSWD.
Last edited:
