The Rock (radio station)
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| File:The Rock FM New Zealand logo.svg | |
| Broadcast area | New Zealand |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Various |
| Programming | |
| Format | Music (Rock) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | MediaWorks New Zealand |
| History | |
First air date | 1992 |
| Technical information | |
| Class | Terrestrial/Internet |
| ERP | N/A |
Transmitter coordinates | 36°50′49″S 174°44′39″E / 36.846980°S 174.744269°E |
| Links | |
| Website | http://www.therock.net.nz |
The Rock is a New Zealand rock music radio station. It broadcasts controversial and the Broadcasting Standards Authority upheld multiple complaints upheld against it. The station is targeted exclusively towards males aged 25-44, but has a significant female fan base. It plays music from all rock eras and commits showcases up-and-coming New Zealand bands.
The Rock's major competitor is Radio Hauraki. The Rock have weekly features and countdowns that distinguish it from other radio stations, including The Rock 1000, in which the biggest 1000 rock songs in history are voted on and counted down annually; and "Wind Up Your Wife Wednesday", during which afternoon announcers Robert and Jono conducted prank calls with the aim of annoying or enraging a nominated spouse.
History
The Rock began broadcasting on 1 December 1991 in Hamilton as The Rock 93FM. The original line-up included Chris Clarke on breakfast (replaced by Mark Bunting after 2 months) and Roger Farrelly on Drive. Originally, The Rock 93FM was based in the basement of Radio New Zealand Broadcasting House in Hamilton, headquartered in the studios for ZHFM. The transmitter was originally located on the top of Waikato Hospital. In 1993 The Rock moved to new premises at 564 Victoria Street in Hamilton
The station purchased a collection of FM frequencies from the Christian Broadcasting Association and transferred them to Nevada. Using the first of these frequencies a local version of The Rock was started in Taranaki in 1993, this station was originally broadcast on 100FM but after Nevada Resources Ltd and Energy Enterprises merged, the station moved to 95.6FM. A third The Rock station was started in the Bay of Plenty in 1996 with local programming. In 1997 The Rock created a regional network by replacing the Taranaki and Bay of Plenty stations with the Hamilton-based The Rock station and also networked into Rotorua.[1]
Nationwide expansion
In 1998 The Rock began networking to other regions in the North Island. In 1999, The Rock relocated to Auckland, and began broadcasting there. Later that year, Energy Enterprises and Radio Otago merged to form RadioWorks; as a result, the station was networked into the South Island. In Christchurch, Radio Otago had already been operating their own rock station called C93FM and this station was networked to Dunedin and Invercargill, C93FM actually played a Classic rock format similar to Radio Hauraki. RadioWorks replaced C93FM in Dunedin and Invercargill with The Rock and kept C93FM operating in Christchurch, but changed its format to Adult Contemporary and launched The Rock on a separate frequency. C93 no longer operates as the station failed to attract listeners after the format change. Today The Rock broadcasts in almost every market in New Zealand.[2]
The only remaining original member of The Rock crew is Rog. Other DJs left, including Greenman, who went on his OE to the UK, Beachy (Christopher Beach) who moved into sales and Julie Mofett, who now works at Radio New Zealand.[3]
Programmes
The Morning Rumble
The morning radio show is known as The Morning Rumble, the members of which are currently Roger Farrelly (Rog), Bryce Casey, Andrew Mulligan, Jen Bainbridge and John Day. Rog has been a co-host on the show since its inception. Simon Doull spent several years as a co-host, left and returned in 2015, when Bainbridge joined. In March 2011 Andrew Mulligan joined.
Bryce has attempted to break two world records during his tenure on the show, his most notable attempt being to break the record for the longest time ten-pin bowling continuously. He fell short by only a few hours.[4]
Hosts
Roger, or Rog as he's known, joined the Morning Rumble in 1994. Prior to that he had worked the afternoon shift at The Rock. Rog serves as a 'leader' of sorts for the Morning Rumble crew, and his ongoing banter and power struggles with Bryce provide a lot of the show's entertainment. Jen provides the female perspective on the show and reads the news, while John reads the sports news. The producer is Ryan Maguire.
Features
On Fridays a section of the show was called 'Do Stuff To Jono Fridays'. This formed a large part of the entertainment value and was an early distinguishing feature of The Rock. Jono was made the victim of stunts such as 'The Human Slushy', 'The Pyramid of Fire', 'Human Coleslaw', 'Sleigh of Fire', 'The Skater Ramp of Doom', a full body wax, and giving Jono a tattoo on his bottom but not telling him that it was a love heart with the other DJs names.[5]
In 2006 when Jono got his own slot with Robert on weekday afternoons, the show then became "Do Stuff To Jimmy". Stunts included putting electrodes on his nipples, and other assorted painful and humiliating acts. Jimmy is no longer working at The Rock, and there is currently no 'Do Stuff' segment. A one-off 'Final Ever Do Stuff To Jono' stunt was planned and executed in September 2009, during which Jono performed a 'Mega Stunt' - riding a BMX bike down a steep slope, through pyrotechnics and a pane of glass, and finally scaling a ramp to jump over a parked ute.[6]
The Rock organized a "win a wife" competition in early 2011. The winner would travel to Ukraine to meet a girl via the "Endless Love" dating agency. In response the Ukrainian group Femen organized a topless protest against this competition (in March 2011). A Femen activist advised: "Femen warns the 'lucky' winner of the New Zealand competition that he can expect an unhappy ending in Ukraine".[7][8]
Rock Workdays
Jen takes over on-air from 10:00am – midday fronting the 'Rock Workdays' show and Jim Crawthorn does midday - 3pm which is mainly request-based.
Rock Drive
Thane Kirby and Duncan "Dunc" Heyde are the hosts of The Rock's drive show.
Duncan Heyde is the EP / Anchor of this show. Daniel Webby is the technical producer.
Rock Nights
Mike Garvey hosts Rock Nights. The show mostly features requests. Late night is hosted by various Rock staff, including Dan Webby. Saturday nights eliminate ads and an announcer to play requests.
The Rock 1000
The Rock 1000 is an annual chart show, counting down the 1000 biggest rock songs ever, as voted by listeners in an online poll. The chart order, including which bands and songs feature on the countdown, are determined by listeners via a voting system on the station's official web site. The countdown typically runs on weekdays over a two-week period and is broadcast throughout New Zealand. In 2016, the list expanded by 50% as The Rock 1000+500.
Winners
- 2017 – Rage Against the Machine - Killing in the Name
- 2016 - Metallica - Master of Puppets
- 2015 - AC/DC - Thunderstruck
- 2014 - Tool - Stinkfist
- 2013 - Tool - Sober
- 2012 - Metallica - One
- 2011 - Metallica - One
- 2010 – Rage Against the Machine - Killing in the Name
- 2009 – Metallica - One
- 2008 – Metallica - Enter Sandman
- 2007 – AC/DC - Back in Black
- 2006 – Guns N' Roses - November Rain
- 2005 – Metallica - Enter Sandman
- 2004 – Pearl Jam - Daughter
- 2003 – Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit
- 2002 – Metallica - Enter Sandman
- 2001 – Metallica - Enter Sandman
Frequencies
North Island frequencies
| Market | Location | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Northland | Whangarei | FM 90 |
| Auckland | Rodney | FM 100.1 |
| Auckland | FM 90.2 | |
| Coromandel | Mercury Bay | FM 105.5 |
| Bay of Plenty | Tauranga | FM 94.2 |
| Waikato | Hamilton | FM 93 |
| Rotorua | Rotorua | FM 92.7 |
| Taupo | Taupo | FM 94.4 |
| Gisborne | Gisborne | FM 94.1 |
| Hawke's Bay | Wairoa | 94.1 FM |
| Napier | FM 95.1 | |
| Taranaki | New Plymouth | FM 95.6 |
| Whanganui | Whanganui | FM 95.2 |
| Manawatu | Palmerston North | FM 95.4 |
| Wairarapa | Masterton | FM 95.1 |
| Kapiti | Paraparaumu | FM 91.9 |
| Wellington | Wellington | FM 96.5 |
South Island frequencies
| Market | Location | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Nelson | Nelson | FM 94.4 |
| Marlborough | Blenheim | FM 91.3 |
| Canterbury | Christchurch | FM 93.7 |
| Ashburton | Ashburton | FM 97.3 |
| South Canterbury | Timaru | FM 91.5 |
| North Otago | Oamaru | FM 104.8 |
| Central Otago | Alexandra | FM 98.3 |
| Queenstown | Wanaka | FM 89.8 |
| Queenstown | FM 100 | |
| Dunedin | Dunedin | FM 93.4 |
| Southland | Invercargill | FM 90.8 |
References
- ^ The Rock Internet Archive
- ^ The Rock Internet Archive
- ^ Jono and Ben at Ten
- ^ The Rock DJ bowling his way to world record
- ^ Do Stuff to Jono
- ^ Final Ever Do Stuff to Jono
- ^ "Ukraine protest over NZ 'win a wife' competition prize". BBC News. 2 March 2011. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
- ^ "Ukraine feminists protest 'Win a Wife' competition". Khaleej Times. 1 March 2011. Retrieved 15 March 2012.