Thursday, May 27, 2010

Radio Station Field Trip 22 - KZYX in Philo, California

For over a decade I've been intrigued by community/public radio station KZYX in the small town of Philo, California. As I drove through the area during weekend get-aways to Mendocino and Anderson Valley I listened to the station and became a huge fan of their weekend show "Trading Time." After citing the show as one of my favorite radio shows of all time on Radio Survivor, I got a nice email back from KZYX's General Manager John Coate. So, with another trip planned to Anderson Valley, I decided to stop by the station on May 13th to learn more about what they are up to.

Philo is a small town located in Anderson Valley, which is about a 2 1/2 hour drive north of San Francisco on scenic highway 128. Known for its wines, Anderson Valley was a hub of activity when I visited KZYX two weeks ago, as it was the weekend of the annual Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival.

Back Deck of KZYX
Photo by Jennifer Waits

When I arrived at KZYX on a Thursday afternoon, I was directed out to the station's outdoor deck area to find General Manager John Coate. Situated in a rented house just off the highway, but nestled in the woods, KZYX's physical location couldn't be more idyllic for a small town community radio station. As we began to chat in the afternoon sun, it was hard to miss the mellow, country, hippie vibe emanating from both the speakers and from the surroundings. I was delighted by the sight of a lizard darting out from under a rock while we spoke and by the presence of a radio station dog.

 
KZYX in Philo
Photo by Jennifer Waits

Moments later the calm was disrupted by the buzz of a helicopter directly over our heads. As it continued to circle the station at a very low altitude, John and other staffers were both surprised and perplexed by its presence. We speculated that it was scoping out the woods for marijuana plants, as that's not uncommon in Mendocino County. But then the in-the-know locals quickly added that it was actually the wrong season for pot plant surveillance. After getting no response from the local airport, the collective theory changed and we were told that it was probably a rich tourist joy riding in advance of the Pinot Noir Festival.

After the excitement subsided, we continued our conversation and tour of KZYX. The FM station (at 90.7 in Philo) began in 1989 and has additional studios in Willits (KZYZ) and Mendocino, allowing the station to broadcast on a few FM frequencies in different parts of the country (as well as online). John has been the General Manager of the station since August 2008, after working for many years in new media. A pioneer in online social networking, he was employee #2 at "The Well," arriving there in 1986, becoming part of a very influential online community. He went on to found SF Gate, one of the first websites devoted to bringing newspaper content online.

KZYX Studio in Philo
Photo by Jennifer Waits

It was interesting talking to John about both new and traditional media, as much of what I love about KZYX hearkens back to an earlier time. Their call-in "swap" show "Trading Time" is truly a slice of small town life, as its hosts read off a laundry list of items that neighbors are offering up for sale or trade. Old refrigerators and pick-up trucks are proffered, along with requests for rides or for help hauling. John told me that it may be the most popular show on KZYX as it "speaks to commonalities" among listeners as opposed to a niche audience.

The programming at KZYX is interesting in that it includes a mix of music, public affairs, local, and syndicated shows. They air shows from NPR, PRI, APM and Pacifica radio, as well as their own locally produced shows. When I visited the station a DJ was doing a world music show and for that particular week she was focusing on music from Asia. John told me that most of the music shows are "specialty shows," playing a specific genre. He mentioned one DJ who only plays acoustic Delta blues music and another who plays Doo Wop on a late night show. KZYX has also broadcast live events, including a reggae festival.

KZYX General Manager John Coate in the Vinyl Library
Photo by Jennifer Waits

Half of the programming schedule is devoted to public affairs shows and John mentioned that they were doing a lot of local election coverage for an upcoming June election, including interviews, debates, and appearances by various candidates for judge, supervisor and district attorney. Archives of their election coverage can be found on their website. John pointed out that the election coverage has been quite lively, adding that "Mendocino...socially...is not that mellow," describing the local community as being quite engaged and "way more Berkeley" than "Haight Street." He said that the mission of the station is "to cover the county" entirely, adding that, "My job is to keep my views out of it." The station's one-person news department is actually run out of a caboose (a left-over train part from a chain restaurant in Japan) out behind the main station building

In talking about the role of KZYX for the community, John said, "We're serving up the whole person...it's a Renaissance approach." He added that since there is no local television station that reaches everyone, it's been important for them to be a community resource. Additionally, one transmitter isn't enough to cover all of Mendocino County, so KZYX invested in a second transmitter in Ukiah and a translator above Ft. Bragg. Local shows can be broadcast from any of their studios using ISDN lines. The combined moniker for all of their studios and frequencies is KZYX and Z.

Part of the International Library at KZYX
Photo by Jennifer Waits

I was happy to see that KZYX has a large music library, full of both vinyl and CDs. John said that vinyl does get played at the station. He also said that the local programming at the station is really good, adding that in particular the jazz and classical music shows are some of the best he's heard anywhere.

John also reflected a bit about the state of radio, arguing that music and culture used to be "propagated" over radio, but that today that seems to happen more "virally" in the online world through "attachments." He agreed that college radio is "still a potent force for developing culture" and said that it has launched music careers. He said that to him it's just important for DJs to focus on being "really good at what you do." Impressed by the devotion of KZYX DJs, John mentioned that one of the new music DJs will spend 6 hours planning for a 2 hour show. A few nights later I caught one of the new music shows, Amplified Mixtape, and enjoyed the DJ's pairings of cover songs and originals and was immediately taken by the fact that she played the first dance song from my wedding (Cat Power's cover of the Velvet Underground song "I Found a Reason").

KZYX General Manager John Coate looks out at the NPR Satellite
Photo by Jennifer Waits

As we left the station we were shown a large NPR satellite used to beam in programming and were then warned about a beehive in a tree. The juxtaposition of nature and technology could not have been more pronounced and seemed to be a metaphor for KZYX, with its blend of both folksy small town programming and slick syndicated public radio shows emanating from a funky station in the woods.

Previous Spinning Indie Radio Station Field Trips:

Field Trip to WECB at Emerson College
College Radio Field Trip 2 - Cal Poly's KCPR
College Radio Field Trip 3 - Notre Dame's WVFI
Radio Station Field Trip 4 - WFMU in Jersey City
Radio Station Field Trip 5 - East Village Radio in NYC
Radio Station Field Trip 6 - WNYU in New York City
Radio Station Field Trip 7 - Northwestern's WNUR
Radio Station Field Trip 8 - Stanford's KZSU
Radio Station Field Trip 9 - University of San Francisco's KUSF
Radio Station Field Trip 10 - Santa Clara University Station KSCU
Radio Station Field Trip 11 - UC Berkeley's KALX
Radio Station Field Trip 12 - KSJS at San Jose State University
Radio Station Field Trip 13 - WBAR at Barnard College
Radio Station Field Trip 14 - KFJC at Foothill College
Radio Station Field Trip 15 - UC Santa Cruz Station KZSC
Radio Station Field Trip 16 - Haverford College Station WHRC
Radio Station Field Trip 17 - FCCFree Radio in San Francisco
Radio Station Field Trip 18 - Flirt FM in Galway, Ireland
Radio Station Field Trip 19- WRXP 101.9 in New York City
Radio Station Field Trip 20 - WGBK at Glenbrook South High School, Illinois 
Radio Station Field Trip 21 - KPDO in Pescadero, California

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Radio Station Field Trip 21 - KPDO in Pescadero

It's not every day that a brand new community radio station gets launched, so I couldn't miss the opportunity to make the trek down to Pescadero, California to witness the beginning minutes of KPDO. In honor of their 1st official broadcast day on Saturday, May 8; KPDO 89.3 FM hosted a day-long bash on the lawn outside the offices of their community radio station.

Located in the small, rural town of Pescadero, KPDO is about an hour's drive south of San Francisco. On my drive down to the station I traveled along the scenic Highway 1, passing not only surfers, but also cows and fruit stands. The town of Pescadero is known to city folk for its proximity to the beach and also for the famous fruit pies at the historic (since 1894) eatery Duarte's Tavern. Within spitting distance of "downtown" Pescadero, KPDO is located in a small building next to a grassy field. For the launch party on May 8th, bands set up on the lawn and performed live on the air. During breaks people could mill about, take a look at the station, chat with DJs, grab a beer, or even catch the sound of a nearby rooster.

 KPDO Station Manager Daniel Roberts Checks out the Signal at the Launch Party

As I wrote on Radio Survivor, KPDO has actually existed as a licensed station since 2003, but hasn't really had a staff or DJs at the helm until now. Former middle school teacher Celeste Worden applied for the license for the station back in 1994 and had planned to use the community radio station as an educational platform for young people. Unfortunately by the time she got the license from the FCC, she'd already moved out of the area. Fast forward to Fall 2009 when Pirate Cat Radio owner Daniel Roberts (aka Monkey) offered to work to bring the station in Pescadero to life. His other station, Pirate Cat Radio in San Francisco, had recently been levied a hefty FCC fine for broadcasting without a license and Monkey jumped at the opportunity to broadcast over the FM airwaves again in an FCC-authorized way. However, he was quick to point out to me that HE hasn't technically broken the law in at least 7 years since he hasn't been operating an illegal transmitter for Pirate Cat (his fans have).

Music Performances outside KPDO

When I talked to Daniel at the opening party for KPDO, he told me that he submitted a proposal to Celeste and was lucky enough to be given the opportunity to run the station as its Station Manager and Treasurer. In addition to that, he'll be doing the "News Mongers" show every weekday morning as well as a music show on Sunday nights. 


I was there when KPDO officially began broadcasting at 11am on May 8th during the launch party. Live DJ shows were slated to begin the following Monday, with gaps in the schedule being filled by rebroadcasts of Pirate Cat Radio shows. The station will stay true to its original educational mission, with plans already in place for interns and teen participation. Daniel said that he "has a massive lesson plan lined up" and that "people are ready" to start training new DJs. Some of the staff, including Daniel, have previous radio experience at both community and college radio stations.

KPDO Studio in Pescadero

KPDO is licensed to broadcast at 300 watts, but is currently only operating at 100 watts. Daniel told me that the station will be heard from Ano Nuevo to San Gregorio and from La Honda to the Foothills. The cramped radio dial and the geography of the hills on this part of the coast conspire against them a bit, as well as potential interference from 43-watt station on the same frequency out of nearby Pacifica. In fact, as I drove down to KPDO (just before they went on the air), I caught bits and pieces of programming from both KLSI (QFM out of Pacifica) and from college station KOHL on 89.3FM.

KPDO Studios

Daniel was dismissive when I asked him about KLSI, saying that the station is run by a guy from out of town and that it's "basically a jukebox from Florida." Daniel said that the owner of KLSI runs a bunch of radio stations and that he's not connected with the local community and added, "Scum of the earth are people who treat radio like real estate." I told Daniel that I'd heard that UC Santa Cruz had been helping out with KPDO about a year ago and asked him what happened. He said that UC Santa Cruz had made an offer to purchase the station, but that the owner of KLSI contested that purchase. Apparently because of the related legal fees, UC Santa Cruz pulled out, leaving the future of KPDO uncertain. I asked Daniel why KLSI wasn't taking issue with his takeover of KPDO and he said that it's because he's just running the station and the license isn't being transferred.

KPDO Couch (a station MUST HAVE item), with a View to the Studio

Since it's a brand new station, KPDO is pretty bare bones, with just the basic equipment and no record library. Daniel said that eventually they will have a library with both digital and physical (CDs, vinyl) music. Although he has moved to Pescadero, Daniel will still run both KPDO and Pirate Cat Radio. When I asked how he would run 2 stations, he said that "Pirate Cat is really kind of able to run itself."

In the meantime, KPDO is seeking both volunteer DJs and underwriting support as they begin their broadcasts to the "south coast." I wish them luck!

Previous Spinning Indie Radio Station Field Trips:

Field Trip to WECB at Emerson College
College Radio Field Trip 2 - Cal Poly's KCPR
College Radio Field Trip 3 - Notre Dame's WVFI
Radio Station Field Trip 4 - WFMU in Jersey City
Radio Station Field Trip 5 - East Village Radio in NYC
Radio Station Field Trip 6 - WNYU in New York City
Radio Station Field Trip 7 - Northwestern's WNUR
Radio Station Field Trip 8 - Stanford's KZSU
Radio Station Field Trip 9 - University of San Francisco's KUSF
Radio Station Field Trip 10 - Santa Clara University Station KSCU
Radio Station Field Trip 11 - UC Berkeley's KALX
Radio Station Field Trip 12 - KSJS at San Jose State University
Radio Station Field Trip 13 - WBAR at Barnard College
Radio Station Field Trip 14 - KFJC at Foothill College
Radio Station Field Trip 15 - UC Santa Cruz Station KZSC
Radio Station Field Trip 16 - Haverford College Station WHRC
Radio Station Field Trip 17 - FCCFree Radio in San Francisco
Radio Station Field Trip 18 - Flirt FM in Galway, Ireland
Radio Station Field Trip 19- WRXP 101.9 in New York City
Radio Station Field Trip 20 - WGBK at Glenbrook South High School, Illinois

WFMU's Record Library Gets the Star Treatment

I talk a lot about my love for both radio stations and physical music. For me, the two go hand in hand. Part of the reason that I do a radio show every week is because I enjoy having access to a record library full of tens of thousands of CDs and records. Just this week I did a music special in which I pretty much relied on the station's archives since I don't personally own the music that I was playing. It's amazing to learn about some awesome band from the past and then find their LPs and 7"s safely nestled amid the other gems at one's college radio station.

Goldmine Magazine just started a new series where they will be visiting various record collections. Up first is their trip to New Jersey community radio station WFMU. This video does a great job of showing why WFMU DJs embrace vinyl and is the perfect companion piece to my recent PopMatters article "Technology and the Soul of College Radio, as it really depicts the magic of doing radio using physical music.



If you want to see more of WFMU, take a look at the post I did after touring the station in 2008.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

CBI is Seeking College Radio Entries for Student Media Awards

I'm not sure how fixated your station is on radio competitions, but here's one whose deadline is rapidly approaching on May 21st. College Broadcasters Inc. (CBI) is seeking entrants for its annual National Student Production Awards. Student-produced worked for a campus media outlet is eligible to win in categories including:

Best DJ
Best Station Promo
Best PSA
Best Newscast
Best News Reporting
Best Feature Show or Broadcast
Best Documentary
Best Technical Production
Best Sports Reporting
Best Sports Play-by-Play
Best Entertainment Program (for example, a weekly serial)
Best Station Promotion (including off-air events)
Best Website

You can submit your entries online in MP3 format and there's a $50 entry fee if your station is not a member of CBI (many college radio stations are members, so be sure to double check with your station).