SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — From 1986 to 2001, WSOU 89.5 FM’s Monday Night Mayhem melted the faces of heavy metal listeners in the New York market with what was then some of the hardest, loudest and most aggressive music on the airwaves. In honor of the 30th anniversary of WSOU’s current loud rock format, the station is bringing back Monday Night Mayhem for five special broadcasts in August that feature former hosts.
“Monday Night Mayhem was a staple of WSOU for 15 years and helped launched the careers of bands like Sick of it All, Biohazard, Carnivore and Cro-Mags,” WSOU program director Holly Fitzpatrick said in a press release. “As part of our 30 Years of Metal celebrations, I am thrilled that we are able to not only bring the show back, but also include some of the original hosts.”
Monday Night Mayhem was the brainchild of then-student Missi Callazzo, who saw the need for a specialty show that would showcase songs or bands considered too heavy for WSOU’s nascent all-metal format. Over the years, Monday Night Mayhem nurtured the careers of dozens of hardcore and metal acts that went on to commercial success. As time progressed and the station’s format evolved, most Monday Night Mayhem bands became part of WSOU’s regular rotation.
“It is hard to believe that there was a time when some songs by Anthrax and Metallica and bands like Testament and Motorhead were considered too intense for regular rotation. Today, these are the types of bands our listeners like to hear again and again,” general manager Mark Maben said in the release. “It is an honor for us to bring back WSOU alumni to educate listeners about the station’s history and that of the music we play.”
Monday Night Mayhem’s original host and founder, Missi Callazzo, is excited to be reprising the show. “It’s amazing to me that it’s been 30 years since WSOU changed format and we started Monday Night Mayhem,” Callazzo said in the release. “I can’t wait to get behind the mic and play the bands that gave WSOU its place in music history.”
Beginning Aug. 1, Monday Night Mayhem will air from 10 p.m. to midnight every Monday in August. The hosts returning to 89.5 FM are: on Aug. 1, Missi Callazzo, who founded the program and hosted it from 1986 to 1989, and is currently president of Megaforce Records; on Aug. 8, Matt Young, host from 1990 to 1993, who is executive vice president of artist services at Warner Music Group and Kim Burke, host in 1995 and the show’s engineer from 1991 to 1993, who also works for the Warner Music Group; on Aug. 15, Randy Falk, host from 1993 to 1995, who is now director of product development for the National Entertainment Collectibles Association, and Tom Ferrari, Falk’s co-host in 1993, who works in law enforcement; on Aug. 22, Iris Duran, host from 1999 to 2001, who works at Mountainside Hospital in New Jersey; and on Aug. 29, all of the alumni hosts will return for a roundtable discussion about the music played on Monday Night Mayhem and to share some of their favorite memories of their time at WSOU.
The return of Monday Night Mayhem to WSOU is sponsored, in part, by Loud and Proud Records, Season of Mist Records and Music for Nations.
WSOU, which began broadcasting in 1948, is the student-run radio station of Seton Hall University. Celebrated for its loud rock format and coverage of Seton Hall athletics, WSOU’s signal reaches all five boroughs of New York City and much of northern and central New Jersey and is available on iHeartRadio. More information about the station can be found online at www.wsou.net and www.facebook.com/WSOUFM.