RADIO SHOW OF THE WEEK: `HEADSETS'.

Byline: Fred Shuster

At midnight Wednesdays, longtime rock jock Jim Ladd hosts a commercial-free hour of sound effects, poetry and obscure music designed for headphone listening. Ladd created the show more than 20 years ago and has brought it to each station he's called home. On his regular nightly shift, Ladd has the freedom to spin what he likes and his shows are often thematic.

--Where: KLOS-FM (95.5).

--When: 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. weeknights; ``Headsets'' at midnight Wednesdays.

--Typical segment: ``Inside Job,'' Don Henley; ``The Powers That Be,'' Roger Waters; and ``Eat the Rich,'' Aerosmith.

--Quote: ``Because I have the freedom to approach radio as an artform, I'm going to go in every night to create radio that actually takes people out of themselves and on a journey. If people understand that everything I do is thematic and the lyrics connect one song to the next, they'll hear radio in a new way. These aren't just random songs - they all mean something.''

--Off the air: A Hollywood resident, Ladd enjoys horseback riding and computers.

--Background: Ladd, who chronicled the birth of underground radio in his 1991 semi-autobiographical novel, ``Radio Waves: Life and Revolution on the FM Dial,'' has been spinning classic rock since before the term was invented. He has worked at local stations KNAC, KMET, KEDG and KLSX.

--Taking a stand: Ladd is helping promote a benefit concert featuring Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne and others Aug. 8 at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium to help Westwood Music store owner Fred Walecki, who is suffering from throat cancer.

--You'll like this if: You like free-form and classic rock radio.

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Photo: Jim Ladd hosts "Headsets" Wednesdays at midnight on KLOS-FM (95.5).