The Axe Attack
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| Broadcast area | New Zealand |
|---|---|
| Slogan | "All your Rock Anthems." |
| Frequency | Various |
| First air date | 1992 |
| Format | Music (Rock) |
| ERP | N/A |
| Class | Terrestrial/Internet |
| Transmitter coordinates | 36°50′49″S 174°44′39″E / 36.846980°S 174.744269°E |
| Owner | MediaWorks New Zealand |
| 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.
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.
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.
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