After 31 years on the airwaves of northern Nevada, “The X” is closing its doors.

KTHX 100.1 FM will cease broadcasting around 5 p.m. Monday, according to a press release sent out Monday by Lotus Radio Corp.

“100.1 The X would like to thank its partners and listeners for helping to make ‘X-Ville’ a thriving community,” the press release said.

Fan support saved the station in the turbulent early years

KTHX has graced the 100.1 frequency since 1997 after a chaotic start.

The station aired on November 1, 1990 on 101.7 FM with program director Bruce Van Dyke at the helm, bringing in deep album tracks and shows like “The Risky Biscuit Hayseed Hoot,” a Saturday morning staple. with roots, american and bluegrass music. .

The new format was discontinued by then-owner Olympic Broadcasting due to poor ratings the following spring. But a massive letter-writing campaign convinced Olympic to bring the station back a few weeks later.

Longtime “Dead Air” host Dave Herold joined the following year. Other on-air talent including Ken Allen, Diane Michaels, Paul Doege, Don Darue (aka “DJ Dondo”), Bob Grimm and Darren Vassis have won over a small but unconditional audience known to program every preset button on their car. radio to KTHX – and proselytizing others to do the same.

Despite the vocal fan base, the following years brought new challenges – ownership changes, a switch to a news format, a lost lease on a frequency, and two dialing position changes.

Throughout the turmoil, fans remained loyal through letter-writing campaigns, efforts to attract new owners, and a 12-hour “wake-up call” as it looked like the station was definitely gone in 1994. When the KIZS station manager expressed interest in recovering the format, 800 callers scrambled the studio’s phone lines one morning to express their support.

The station landed at 100.1 in 1997, and although it changed ownership groups in the decades that followed, it had not experienced an existential crisis until now.

Format abandoned on the airwaves of Reno

Frequency 100.1 will host a new format launched on Thursday, September 30 at 10 a.m. No details on the new format have been announced.

The station’s departure leaves northern Nevada without an alternative adult album station, a format that combines today’s independent rock and alternative music with classic rock, with more willingness to play songs deeper in albums beyond singles ready to be released.

Brett McGinness is the editor of the Reno Gazette Journal. He is also the author of The Reno Memo, a free newsletter on the news of the biggest small town. Subscribe to the newsletter right here. To consider support the Reno Gazette Journal, too much.