40 WATTS FROM NOWHERE
By WTJU Rock
By Sue Carpenter.
Book reviewed by Annie De Blanco
40 Watts From Nowhere is an absorbing story of the ups and downs of running a pirate radio station. It is also the story of the incredible resiliency of the woman making it happen.
Back in the 1990s Carpenter was a bored receptionist at a law company in San Francisco wanting a little more from life. Inspired by the college radio stations in the area, she decided to set up her own station, to play the music that other stations ignored. Just the sort of thing everyone does when they are bored.
Obtaining a license, however, was impossible so she had to go pirate. KPBJ was the result, followed shortly after a move to Los Angeles, by KBLT. Wake Up and Hear the Bacon!
Setting up an illegal radio station in your own home takes passion and drive to negotiate the many obstacles. The transmitter and the antenna issues; the neighbor upstairs who has a habit of skipping on the hardwood floor; there has to be publicity to attract DJs and listeners, and secrecy to keep the FCC away. The equipment breaks, CDs go missing and no-one really respects the fact they are in her house and help themselves to beers in her fridge. They leave cigarette butts around, spill things and ignore the little messages requesting they clear up after themselves.
In addition to this Carpenter has to somehow make a living, sometimes as a magazine editor and when that job folds, as a freelance writer. And as a motorcycle instructor (65 hours of training) since, after life in a law office, boring jobs are no longer an option. As a freelancer she embarks on crazy adventures, such as changing her hairstyle once a week to see if she gets treated differently – she does, friends don’t recognize her!
What started as a tiny station with herself and one other DJ, and a listening area of just a few blocks, becomes an almost round the clock tiny station with a waiting list of people hoping for a slot. There are no rules and DJs can play and say whatever they want. Musicians also pile in, to play live (just one mike) or to play the records they brought along. It is a massive success.
It is an amazing and exhausting story but funny too. She makes no bones in appreciating one of the DJs not for their shows but because they have a Costco card. That helps when providing food at benefits for the station legal fund in case they get discovered by the FCC.
And in the end she does. The FCC, not without its own sense of humour, launch Operation Gangplank and start sinking the pirate stations. For KBLT it was only a matter of time.
It is a fascinating story that will leave you in awe of those who are driven to do this. We are lucky at WTJU to be able to bring music to the listeners, that other stations don’t play, from the safety of dry land. But no doubt about it, all hail to the pirate captains who used to, or continue to, steam along at 40 Watts From Nowhere.
If you have anything to contribute to the Rock Spot – a concert review, a protest playlist, why you like the music you like, record reviews etc, please send to anniedeblanco@gmail.com
