97X - Rumblings from the Big Bush

In 1991, Randy Malloy started as an unpaid college intern at WWCD-FM in Columbus, an independent, alternative rock radio station cut from the same cloth as 97X. He held a variety of positions at the station, including promotions director, marketing director, and operations director, before buying the station in 2011. Together with a dedicated band of staffers, they kept the independent/alternative flame alive for 33 years as the station moved around the radio dial from 101.1 ("CD101") to 102.5 to 92.9 before eventually signing off on February 1st of this year.  We talked to Randy about the"Ran-sanity" of his radio career, how WWCD looked up to 97X, how they programmed the music to let the listeners "pass through them" and why being part of the community was so important to them.

Friends, we're gathered together today for a very special episode of "97X Rumblings from the Big Bush" as we pay tribute to the man who saw Jesus at McDonald's at midnight. The man who impregnated Debbie Gibson. The man whose antipathy for Don Henley knows no bounds, and whose love for Martha Quinn is eternal. The man, the myth, the Mojo-est MoFo of them all. The Bo-Day-Shus Mr. Mojo Nixon!  Dave "The Dick Cavett of Modern Rock" interviewed Mojo in 1990, and that interview clip is part of this episode - and stick around for his live in-studio performance of "I'm in love with Oprah" from 97X back in 1986. 

After nearly 100 episodes, and a gazillion great memories, it's time for "97X Rumblings from the Big Bush" to rumble off into the sunset (or be devoured by the Big Bush in the station's old parking lot). Dave & Damian reflect on the podcast and "the voice" of 97X returns to bring it home. Thanks so much for listening! 

It sounds like the setup to a joke: "A punk rock guitarist and a preacher's daughter walk into a theater..." But when Billy Alletzhauser and Beth Harris starting singing songs together in 2004, the result was pure magic. Their band, The Hiders, is the Kevin Bacon of music, with connections to Ass Ponys, The Afghan Whigs, Throneberry, Wussy, Heartless Bastards, Band of Horses, Plow On Boy, Comet Bluegrass All-Stars, Pearlene and more. And their sound is an amazing amalgamation of folk, country, rock, psychedelia, bluegrass, and indie rock. We talked to B & B about their start, the band's evolution, Billy's Ass Ponys tenure, Beth's harmony vocal work with Erika Wennerstrom and Heartless Bastards, the Hiders most recent album (2021's Forever at the End) and their plans for the year ahead.

On May 11th, author Robin James discussed her new book The Future of Rock & Roll: 97X and the Fight for True Independence at The Mercantile Library, with your friendly neighborhood podcast hosts Dave and Damian. The event was streamed via Crowdcast, but due to the dreaded technical difficulties, the first 10 minutes of the discussion have been lost to the ether. However, we reconnected with Amy Hunter from the Mercantile Library staff so she could reprise her intro and then this episode picks up the discussion when the audio came onto the Crowdcast feed.

After 97X signed off in 2004, "the future of rock and roll" stayed alive as woxy.com - with many fits and starts (and stops) along the way. "Angel investors"... LaLa.com... Future Sounds... Oxford... Longworth Hall in Cincinnati... Austin, Texas. The dot-com version had several homes, and more lives than a cat, before finally ending quite abruptly on March 23, 2010.   We talk to the folks who experienced all those ups and downs, and lived to tell the tale: Shiv, Mike Taylor, Joe Long, Brian Niesz, and Bryan J. Miller share their stories of the woxy.com era. 

Kerry Gray was the program director at 97X in the late 80s/early 90s, and a radio "lifer." He was a real live wire - super-energetic, enthusiastic, funny as heck... and also completely into the music. In fact, Kerry and Phil Manning teamed up to expand the back catalogue of the station, and they also launched the first ever "Modern Rock 500" in 1989.  In this episode, Julie Maxwell, Julie Maxwell, Jeff Rohrs, Mike Taylor and Steve Baker join Dave and Damian to share their remembrances, and the episode wraps up with some archival audio of Kerry and Brett Heartz on-air at 97X back in October of 1989.

It's hard to believe it's been nearly two decades since that fateful evening when Steve Baker said "goodbye to the future of rock and roll." For current and former staffers and loyal listeners, it was like the death of a loved one. We reunited an all-star cast of folks who were at the station at the bittersweet end (Bakerman, Shiv, Barb, Mike Taylor, Sledge, Bryan J., Gentleman Jim Mercer) to share their memories of that time. 

"Day in Eden 1993" was the first concert that 97X produced. Things did not go as planned. Goo Goo Doll meltdowns, tainted food trays, wrestling moves, copious amounts of cheap beer and cheaper smokes, folk music slam-dancing...   Former staffers Steve Baker, Phil Manning, Jae Forman, Rob Ervin, Steve Roemer, Joe Sampson and Aaron Borns share their memories of that ill-fated afternoon - and reveal a couple of secrets along the way.

Colin Miller listened to 97X obsessively. As in "boxes of cassette tape recordings of 97X on-air" obsessive. He might've been a 97Xtreme listener, but that same passion for the music and the station is something most listeners can relate to. We talk to Colin about what made the station so special, some of the shows he remembers, and the 97X events like Rock & Bowl and 97Xtrabeats on the Riverboat. 

Carlton Smith and Happy Chichester formed the super-cool, super-tight rhythm section of the Royal Crescent Mob. They -- along with lead singer David Ellison and guitarist "B" -- are getting the band back together to play two fundraiser shows to benefit cancer research. They'll be rocking the house at the Athenaeum Theatre in Columbus on Friday, December 16th and the Madison Theater in Covington, KY on Saturday, December 17th. We talked to Carlton and Happy about how they got together way back in the mid-80s, their legendary live shows at Bogart's, what 97X meant to their band, and why they're looking forward to performing as a group once again.

The RC Mob is getting back on the bus for two fundraiser shows - Dec. 16th in Columbus and Dec. 17th at the Madison Theater in Covington, KY. Proceeds will benefit the American Cancer Society and the Tri-State Cancer Research Fund. We talk to David about the reunion shows, the early RC Mob days, the impact cancer is having on the band, and his longtime career as a tour manager for many bands and pop stars like Miley Cyrus. 

Ken "Mr. K" Glidewell put the personality into "radio personality." He had the gift of gab, a wicked sense of humor and a way of making friends wherever he went. Ken worked at 97X during the station's formative years while also playing with fellow 97Xer Dan "Danny Crash" Reed in Chemdyne. He later moved on to WEBN-FM and 92.9 The Fox in Cincinnati for his day job, and co-founded the Americana band Big in Iowa.  Unfortunately, Mr. K passed away in May of 2008 from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. In this episode of the podcast, we talk to 97X-ers who worked with Mr. K: Phil Manning, Julie "Jae" Forman and Steve Baker, as well as the founding members of the Mr. K Fan Club, Elizabeth Cannon and Wendy Dorn. 

Back in the mid-70's, long before 97X came along, there was a free-form station on 97.7 FM in Oxford called WOXR. Chuck Cowdery was part of that merry gang playing progressive rock... and whatever else they wanted to. It's clear from talking to Chuck that WOXR was on the same frequency as 97X, both literally and figuratively - and that station influenced a generation who, if they stuck around the area, were much more receptive to a modern rock format. 

Keri Crawford was at 97X from 1998-2003, as a DJ and program director. She talks to us about her radio and record label background, the unique energy of 97X, the fun shows she got to organize and promote, the fervor of the listeners... and how her dog had free rein at the office. 

Rhett Leibecke (a.k.a. "Reed LeBeak") spent a single semester as a student co-op for Rictile and Dave on the Breakfast Club back in 1996... and it's clear that he's been scarred for life (and not just from the lawn jarts). He got the gig based on his shady past doing a SoundScam... and it was all downhill from there. Rhett and special guest Rictile join to talk about Rhett's stellar work cleaning a "sound room," the Aye Team, BatBoy, 97X bitcoin, Barenaked Ladies and Northern Exposure.

Garin Pirnia grew up in Centerville, Ohio and discovered 97X when she returned to the area after stints in L.A. and Chicago. She's written about music (as well as film, food, and travel) for dozens of publications including Rolling Stone, Esquire, Vanity Fair and The Atlantic. Her book about bands from the state of Ohio, Rebels and Underdogs, came out a few years ago. We chat with Garin about the many bands who hail from the Buckeye State and explore why Ohio is such a fertile ground for musicians. You can find out more about Garin's writing on her website.  

Taylor Fox (a.k.a. "TayFo") is a co-founder and morning host on Inhailer, a streaming/HD radio station that plays indie rock and helps promote local bands and the music scene in Cincinnati. The impetus for the station came from losing other local stations that played cool music, first 97X and WVXU's Nightwaves, and later WNKU. Taylor tells us about how the station started, how he discovered 97X, and how the 97X message boards helped him connect with kindred spirits.

Brian Niesz engineered more than 400 live on-air performances at the woxy.com studio in Longworth Hall in Cincinnati, as well as dozens more during the station's short-lived stint in Austin, Texas. No one had more of a hand in capturing the magic of those live music moments than he did. Brian tells us how he connected with woxy.com, lists some of his favorite live performances, and shares how he's keeping "Lounge Acts" alive at WCPO-TV in Cincinnati. 

Dave Tellmann spent nearly a decade on the air at 97X (1988-1997)... and sometimes he thinks he's still on the air there! Dave combed through his "aircheck" cassettes from 1993 and put together some snippets of audio that give you a feel for what listening to the station was like back in the day. Come for the Eavey's commercial, stay for the Marge Schott news story. 

Jim Vinch was a Cleveland-raised classic rocker... until he moved to Oxford for college and caught the earliest years of 97X. Jim credits the station and its community of listeners with helping him be open not just to new music, but to new ideas. As he puts it, "I am now an assistant visiting professor at Miami and every time I step onto campus I can't help think about how the university and the local radio station exploded my small little Midwestern world." We talk to Jim about those connections, some concerts he saw back in the day, and his day job protecting America's waterways as an environmental lawyer for the EPA. 

The second part of our conversation with Jay Batista, who helped WOXY-FM make the transition to the 97X we all know and love. Jay was the station manager, was involved in programming, did sales, and also knew how to whip an ancient transmitter into shape. In this episode, we hear about Dr. Demento, an "Army of Ticks" (not a Dr. Demento song, but it could be!) and the infamous "Beer or Buns" guerilla promotion for the station. 

Jay Batista joined 97X before it was 97X... it was more like a real-life WKRP. Jay played a pivotal role in helping the station make the switch to the modern rock format. We talk to him about those formative days, going from spinning the Spinners to hanging with the Talking Heads.  

Aaron Sharpe never listened to 97X... but he wore many hats at WNKU-FM, a station that picked up the mantle from 97X/woxy.com in being a free-spirited, adventurous, community-oriented radio station that introduced many to music they couldn't hear elsewhere -- including plenty of local artists. Unfortunately, WNKU suffered a similar fate to 97X, signing off for good in September of 2017. In this episode, Aaron talks about how he got involved at WNKU-FM, the bittersweet ending, and what he's up to now.

Here's Part 2 of our interview with Jeff "DJ Sloth" Rohrs, where he talks about the community of music lovers at 97X, the great program directors during his tenure, his scary sighting on the Party Patio, his side hustles (DJ... and grocery bagger), and "Balogh University." 

Jeff Rorhs was hooked on 97X from the very first song he heard on the station. In fact, he attended Miami University mostly because of 97X, and he was so determined to work at the station that he played polka music at his hometown radio station just to get on-air experience. All that polka-playing paid off - he wound up working weekends and fill-in shifts at 97X for his entire college career, from 1987 through 1991. In this episode, we talk to Jeff about that first song he heard, how he scored the weekend gig, his unfortunate mispronunciation of an artist's name, how he pissed off Doug Balogh, the longest song in the 97X library, the bands he championed both at 97X and on his music video show at Miami U., his MTV regrets, and the Violent Femmes concert at Bogart's when it started raining on the stage. 

Anthony Hartke was really into music even in grade school. He discovered 97X around 6th grade and stuck with the station throughout its existence. (He even tuned in to woxy.com when he was deployed overseas in the Army back in 2005-2006.) When woxy.com sold off vinyl LPs from the original 97X music library, Anthony picked up several albums that still contained an old school "grid" on the cover for 97X DJs to mark the date and time that they played a track. We talk to Anthony about his love for the station, and Dave explains what the heck "ultracore" meant. 

Joe Voet was a mild-mannered student in a small Midwestern college town, working at the Miami U. student radio station and listening to 97X... until one day Rictile turned him into Joe "Rock the" Voet, political correspondent. That led to a Breakfast Club co-producer role, with highs (a meeting with The Cure) and lows (reading the news on-air without any prep). Joe claims he was the worst Breakfast Club co-producer ever, but we beg to differ. We talk to him about his 97X memories, and learn how he's used his IT skills to build a mini-97X radio station that he listens to every day. We also learn that Damian sucks at geography. 

Here's more from our chat with 97X/woxy.com alum Barb Abney. In this episode, Barb discloses her 97X souvenirs, we try to solve the mystery of where 97X's music library wound up, a secret prankster is revealed, and we get more scoop on Barb's new podcast "Tied to the Tracks." 

Barb Abney, who was on-air at 97X and woxy.com from 1994-2006, returns to talk about weird promotional giveaway items, why corporate radio still sucks... oh, and her great podcast "Tied to the Tracks." Barb has some great podcasting pointers for Dave and Damian... which we will probably ignore.  On Barb's podcast, she and co-host Augustus Watkins are joined by a different guest each episode and they dive deep into one of their guest's favorite albums, song by song. Tied to the Tracks is available wherever you get your podcasts, including on Spotify, Apple Music and iHeart.

Matt Lacefield played cutting-edge music on a Cincinnati radio station... but it wasn't 97X. While Dave and Damian were on the air at 97X in the 90s, Matt was a DJ for Nightwaves, which aired overnights on WVXU-FM. So we were kindred spirits... and still are, because Matt loves discovering new music. He's sharing his favorites via his blog/podcast called "The Unfamiliar." We chat with Matt about his radio days and how he finds and shares the latest and greatest indie tunes. 

Jayne Sachs credits her discovery of 97X (thanks to her now-husband) with putting her on the singer/songwriter path. She's been able to carve out a career in music, and has picked up plenty of accolades along the way, including winning 97Xposure in 1995 and garnering two first place wins (in different years and different categories) in The John Lennon Songwriting Contest. We talked to Jayne about her Xposure spoils, her performing career, record label interaction, and her current songwriting work in Nashville.  You can keep up with Jayne's latest songs on her website and her Facebook page. 

This is a shorter episode, but it's deep. The culmination of our conversation with 97X station owners Doug & Linda Balogh includes Doug's "big thought" about the legacy of the station... and how the listeners and the station alums will always be a connected community. 97X Forever! 

Here's Part II of our second interview with 97X station owners Doug and Linda Balogh. (It's like a Star Wars triple trilogy... the subtitle for this one is "Episode 5: Revenge of the Good Guys.") In this podcast, we talk about 97X's memorable artwork, the outside-the-box thinking that went on at the station, the diversity of programming, and we find out if Doug and Linda ever thought about getting back into the radio game after selling 97X.

Yes, we've interviewed 97X station owners Doug and Linda Balogh before (check out Episodes 56 and 57). But they are such founts of 97X knowledge and stories that we had to go back to the well. In this episode, Doug does a 97X role call, we talk about 97Xposure, the station's charitable endeavors, a Riverbend-adjacent party, and one of Linda's decidedly unglamorous yet crucial behind-the-scenes role on the prize patrol.

Mike Jacobs is a legendary independent record promoter who ran campaigns for alternative success stories like The Offspring, Rancid, Nine Inch Nails, Bush and No Doubt, among others. He also was CEO of MCA joint venture Way Cool Music from 1995-98, where he signed Blink-182, and was a lifelong friend of Rick Carroll, who started the pioneering modern rock radio station KROQ-FM in L.A. We chat with Rick about his time in the trenches, his memories of 97X and the modern rock format. 

"Randy the Redneck" - the name pretty much sums it up. He's like a hillbilly Forrest Gump, and had the uncanny knack for showing up at pretty much every 97X event ever. Concerts at Bogart's, B&B Riverboat Cruises, Rock & Bowl, Breakfast Club Home Invasions... somehow he even managed to attend an music industry convention with 97X program director Phil Manning. In short, if 97X was there, so was Randy.

Author and college professor Robin James is a self-described "philosopher of popular music." She grew up in West Chester, Ohio listening to 97X and is writing a book about the station and the community that formed around it. She's also going to give a talk about the Modern Rock 500 at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame once we get through the pandemic phase. In this episode, Robin gives us an update on when the book will be published... and turns the tables by interviewing Dave and Damian for that book. On her blog, It's Her Factory, here's how Robin summarizes the 97X book project: The Future of Rock and Roll: 97X WOXY and the fight for true independence. (Under contract with UNC Press). This is a book about the philosophy behind former modern rock radio station 97X FM/woxy.com. The station and its programming was driven by the idea that true independence is possible only when practiced with and for other people. The book argues that this idea of independence is what we need to fight the 21st century corporate mainstream, which is driven by the false idea that real independence is being left to fend for yourself.

Mark Abuzzahab (who just went by "Mark" on air... we can't imagine why) was at 97X for a year and change (Jul '98-Sept. '99) at the dawn of the streaming era. He then served as music director at several other cool stations all over the map (Vermont, Boulder, Austin, Dallas) and still programs music and promotes cool artists today. We chat with Mark about his 97X memories, his current gigs and how he protected our ears from bad "alternative" music. 

Steve Roemer (a.k.a. "Roemie da Homie") served three tours of duty as a Breakfast Club co-producer in 1993, commuting to the station on a balky bicycle. He also started a heavy metal sport at Miami U., was the 90s version of "Schneider" from One Day at a Time... and even though he's a lifetime non-smoker, his two favorite stories from his 97X days involve generic cigarettes. Steve shares his radio memories and also talks about PawsForPatrick, the charity that his family started to honor his son Patrick, who passed away last May.   

Steve Leeds has had a long and illustrious (dare we say even Gump-like) career in the music business. Terrestrial radio (Murray the K!). Major labels (Led Zeppelin!). Indie promotions (Joan Jett!). MTV (Adam Sandler!). Today he's a VP of Talent for Sirius XM and a college professor. If it's happening, Steve was -- and still is -- involved. Steve shares his memories of working with 97X (and getting lost leaving...) and what stations like 97X meant to emerging artists. Check out Steve's blog for his take on today's music business. 

Here's Part Deux of our chat with Brett Heartz, who bookended his long and illustrious radio career with stints at 97X in the late 80s and 2004. This episode includes the on-air banter between Brett and the late Kerry Grey when an earthquake struck the San Francisco area during a 1989 World Series game between the SF Giants and the Oakland A's, as well as Brett's tales of corporate radio (spoiler alert: it sucks). 

Brett Heartz got the 97X bug when he was in high school, a fever that was aided and abetted by his interview with Danny Crash and Mr. K for a cable-access program. Thanks to his Mr. K connection, he wound up working on-air at 97X in the late 80s (and being roommates with Phil Manning). His long career in radio came full circle 15 years later when he returned to 97X for weekend shifts before the terrestrial station signed off in 2004. We talk to Brett about Hamilton's "Modern Rock Mafia," limo rides to REM, backstage at Bogart's, and random encounters with fellow 97Xers in The Big Easy.

The Lovely & Talented Elizabeth Cannon started working at Riverbend as an usher when she was 16... and wound up staying there for nearly 15 years. For most of her tenure, she managed Riverbend's marketing, working closely with local radio and TV stations and record labels on media buys, ad scripts, promotions (ticket giveaways, meet-and-greets), artist interviews, and more. As a 97X listener in high school and a Miami U. grad, she always had a special place in her heart for the tiny modern rock station in Oxford... and the feeling was mutual. Elizabeth fills us in on her behind-the-scenes work at Riverbend... including why a mullet man was making a sick kid's heart achy-breaky, and who was cool and who was a tool in CS&N (and sometimes Y). 

In the second part of our interview with 97X station owners Doug & Linda Balogh, we find out why Steve Baker was the soul of the station, Dave was Mr. Sunshine, and Linda was the lady behind the curtain. Doug also talks about "buyer's remorse" at his welcome BBQ and Linda recalls the 97X mission statement and the baby in the file cabinet. Oh, and we hear about how the Rainman movie appearance happened... and how legendary record exec Howie Klein freaked out about it.

Doug and Linda Balogh bought 97.7 FM in Oxford, Ohio in July of 1981, adjusted the format to modern rock in September of 1983, and spent 23 years giving their heart and soul to a "mom and pop" radio station. 97X's signal was tiny, but its impact was mighty, and Doug and Linda guided it every step of the way. In the first of a multi-part interview, Dave and Damian talk to Doug and Linda about why they got into the radio game in the first place, and the station's formative early years.

Dayton native Dan Bockrath left San Diego in the mid-90s, returning to southwest Ohio and joining forces with editor John Fox to launch CityBeat, Cincinnati's alternative weekly newspaper. One of the first media partnerships they formed was with 97X, because championing local music, arts and culture was their raison d'êtra and 97X listeners were open-minded and adventurous. We talk to Dan about that synergy, CityBeat's sponsorship of Midpoint Music Festival (MPMF), and his ongoing love affair with live music in local clubs.

In the mid-80s, Terrence Burke came to Cincinnati from Boston, where he was weaned on a steady diet of Beantown's finest alternative/indie/college rock stations. He quickly discovered 97X and was hooked. After a few years back in Boston, he returned to Cincinnati in 1993 and was so enamored with how the Cincinnati/Dayton music community had blossomed that he published a 'zine about it called Screed. (He made several appearances on 97X's Local Lixx during this time.) Terry also hosted a show at WAIF and worked at CD World, so he was fully immersed in the music scene. After his father passed away suddenly in 2001, Terrence decided to pursue his life's calling of bringing joy to kids via his Wump Mucket Puppets shows. Terry's a DIY guy to the core, and it was a real treat to catch up with him.  [Visit 97Xbam.com for bonus content, including photos, videos, and the audio recording of Terry's guest appearance on a Local Lixx show in 1996, featuring songs from Brainiac, Throneberry, The Wolverton Brothers and Stitch.] 

Stase worked weekends at 97X in 1995-96, and then handled the midday shift in 1997. She got the gig partly due to the fact that her previous job was working alongside Rictile (in his side hustle) at GE Credit... and partly because she went to the same high school as 97X co-owner Doug Balogh. But what sealed the deal was her effervescent personality, which remains intact 25 years later. We chat with Stase about the party patio, unbreakable piñatas, the Michigan Mafia and pandemic parenting. 

Brian Ewing spent the early to mid-90s on the air at 97X, including three full years doing the overnight shift, which surely must be a record for "the cave." During that same time, he was also playing in the local band Messerly & Ewing, so music ruled his life. We talk to Brian about his 97X days, including party patio drunks, open mike nights, long-distance tea-making, and rocking the vote. 

Dorsie Fyffe worked at 97X from 1993 to 1998, eventually winding up as Music Director (nominated by Billboard Magazine for "Music Director of the Year") and afternoon host. During that same era, he led the local band Johnny Smoke, and lived with Tim Taylor, lead singer of Brainiac, and Dave Doughman of Swearing at Motorists. Since then, much like Johnny Cash, he's "been everywhere, man" - San Francisco, Seattle, Kansas, Austin, Los Angeles. But he's still rockin'. We chat with Dorsie about his 97X days and his new Cincinnati-via-California band Beverly Hills Supper Club.