Beat Street
By Todd S. Inoue

Alternative to Alternative
KOHL rocks Top 40

Has anybody else checked out what's kicking at that Fremont radio station KOHL located at 89.3FM? On a recent drive up to Tahoe, we tuned in to hear Top 40 stuff mixed with some new-wave classics. TLC followed A Flock of Seagulls; Prince tailed Better Than Ezra. The DJs sounded a bit tentative (one embarrassingly pronounced Better Than Ezra, "Better than E-Z-Ra"), but then I learned it was the Ohlone College radio station.

Unlike 90 percent of college radio, on which the airwaves are ruled by free-form punk, jazz and other eclectic programming, KOHL's playlist is stocked deep with Top 40 hits--Gin Blossoms, Hootie, Mariah Carey. Further, the station adheres to many of the same trappings of commercial radio: back announcing, talking up to a song, on-air contests, weather reports broadcast over slick jingles. According to KOHL program director and former KWSS DJ Tom Gomez, the station wouldn't have it any other way.

"Most college stations, you can have a lot of fun," Gomez says, "but when you send tapes out, most program directors will see they don't have the entry-level skills available to do basic productions, set up a remote, or do a contest on the air. The goal was to make it a local station and to have a commercially viable format where students can get a job in the field after they leave. We operate in real-world style." Real-world style means that DJs are forbidden to talk about school or classes, or to play their favorite songs unless they fit in the format, and sticking to a strict, heavy-medium-light rotation.

KOHL began 1974 as just another anarchic college radio station. Since 1981, the station has become an alternative to the alternative. "In 1974, it was like any other college radio station: free form, do what you want," Gomez recalls. "It was a big party, and nobody got jobs. Then we decided to make it more vocational." The format appears to be working for its students. KOHL alums have landed jobs from KDON in Salinas to KMEL in San Francisco. Currently, around 65 students are involved with KOHL, broadcasting at 145 watts, 24 hours a day from an antenna placed on a mountaintop behind Ohlone College. This Wednesday, the station will move to a new studio, outfitted with the latest in digital technology, making the radio experience even closer to the real thing. "The equipment is exact to or better than other stations I've worked at," Gomez says.

Scalp-ology 101

San Jose State University Amphitheater is revving up for its free noontime shows: reggae rapper Screwdriver, Oct. 13; Air Miami, Oct. 17; The Magic Hour (featuring Naomi and Damon from Galaxie 500), Nov. 6; Ivy, Nov. 13. More bands will be announced while you wait. ... If you're not holding any Pearl Jam ticket stubs from the June 24 show and are hoping to purchase tickets for the Nov. 4 Spartan Stadium show, you're probably out of luck; latest word is that the show is sold out. For up-to-date Pearl Jam ticket information, call 415/905-8895 or 415/972-8095.

Kalb's Korner

Matt Kalb, waifish drummer of Cafe of Regret and Caustic Notions, is getting into the rehearsal space and equipment rental company. The smallish space has a PA and is available to bands for $30 for three hours. He can also rent Marshall stacks and maple studio drumkits. Reach Kalb at his pager: 408/932-1001. ... Construction on the former Marsugi's building at the corner of South First and San Salvador streets, now officially dubbed Agenda, is nearing completion. Look for a grand opening at the end of October. ... Too Broun to be missed: Broun Fellinis play a show at the Phoenix Club on Friday. Just so you know.

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