The magic of college radio lies not just in the sounds that are transmitted over the airwaves, but also emanates from the spaces from which stations operate. Often these are in obscure locales, tucked away in basements or on the edge of a campus. And sometimes the buildings themselves have their own unusual story, like the former student bank that houses CJSR 88.5 FM at University of Alberta. Seizing on the opportunity to embrace a funky feature of the space, the campus and community radio station built its on-air studio out of the old vault. DJs enter through the thick, heavy red door to do their shows. And because of its weight, the door is always kept ajar, even though this means that sound from the studio wafts into the record library and vice versa.
While I love the story of the bank vault, I was also enamored with so much more at CJSR. My first visit to a station in Canada, the tour took place during a break while I was attending the SpokenWeb Symposium and Institute on the campus in Edmonton in May, 2023. Two long-time CJSR staff members, Program Director Chad Brunet and Music Librarian/Production Coordinator Matthew Gooding, showed me around the station’s basement digs in the Students’ Union building at University of Alberta.
In our wide-ranging conversation, we touched on everything from weird station traditions to the challenges of coming back after COVID to the maximalist office decor to some of the gems that have passed through the station’s treasure chest full of freebies. It was another one of those visits for me where it was difficult to leave, as I furiously tried to capture every last detail about the surroundings.
History of CJSR-FM
Launched over FM in 1984, CJSR has deep ties with its home institution, but is run by the not-for-profit First Alberta Campus Radio Association (FACRA), which holds its broadcast license. More than a third of the station’s budget comes from the University of Alberta Students’ Union. Dedicated fees from membership in the Students’ Union help fund not only the radio station, but also a student newspaper, campus food bank, health service, and more. With a very small staff, CJSR relies on its nearly 300 volunteers to keep the radio station running.
University of Alberta Radio Dates Back to the 1920s
Although CJSR’s FM signal debuted in 1984, campus radio at University of Alberta began with broadcasts over Edmonton radio station CJCA in 1925. Two years later, the school bought local radio station CFCK, changed the call letters to CKUA and ran the station as an educational broadcaster over AM beginning in 1927. CKUA’s studios were moved off campus in 1955 and its license was transferred to Alberta Educational Communications Corporation (ACCESS Alberta) in 1974. Additional license transfers took place over the years, with CKUA-AM and FM now run as a public radio station by the CKUA Radio Foundation.
By the mid-1940s, CKUA was funded by groups outside of the university, leaving an opportunity for another radio station to emerge of campus. In 1946, the University of Alberta Student Radio Directorate was formed and built a radio studio, from which it created and sent programming to CKUA. Changing its name to the Alberta Student Radio Society in 1948, this group began to originate campus-only broadcasts via a closed-circuit public address system and eventually shifted to AM carrier current transmissions (under the call letters CKSR for CKUA “Student Radio”) to various campus buildings and dorms. An FM cable signal was added in 1976 and the station changed its call letters to CJSR in 1978, as it moved it carrier current frequency to 1580 kHz. When it obtained its FM license in 1983, CJSR turned back its license for its AM carrier current transmissions.
Wide Mix of Spoken Word and Music on CJSR Today
Today, CJSR prides itself on the breadth of music and talk programming on its airwaves. Shows range from syndicated news (BBC World Service, Democracy Now) to locally-produced spoken word programs and music shows focused on metal, the history of punk, hardcore, hip-hop, classical, pop, blues, jazz, electronic, Caribbean music, film music, and music from Canada. The environmental news show “Terra Informa” is a lauded CJSR program running since 2003, which is now carried by other radio stations.
Rachel, the on-air DJ during my visit, was playing metal, which it turns out is one of the more popular genres at CJSR. Several CJSR shows are geared toward heavy sounds and metal programming is “hugely popular,” according to Program Director Chad Brunet. As he pointed to various shows on the schedule, which was craftily posted to his office wall using push pins and rectangular slips of paper, he reflected back on the challenges of the prior three years. Sadly, some long-time programs didn’t survive the COVID pandemic and the whole experience “messed up the volunteer make-up,” after classes and station operations went fully remote.
CJSR was doing all live programming (with the exception of syndicated shows) prior to 2020. A newly acquired automation system was just getting rolled out around that time and it proved useful when they had to evacuate the studios. Eventually programmers began to record shows at home and the station became a “ghost town.” Fifty-five percent of the prior schedule was lost and it was “difficult to maintain enthusiasm.” Thankfully at the time of my May 2023 visit, CJSR was on an upswing, as things shifted in fall 2022 with an influx of participants again. Students and alumni comprised about 50% of volunteers.
CJSR Traditions
As we wandered about the radio station, it was fun to hear about various CJSR traditions. One is linked to DIY sport coats and another to a shiny sign on the wall. The jackets, an early 2000s CJSR street team uniform, are adorned with the words “Guerrilla Laser Force” on the back and “Rock is Dead” on the inside. Brunet reluctantly slipped on a coat, saying “it’s just awful,” and that “we don’t force people to wear these anymore.” The outerwear is kept around as a station relic “for laughs.”
A long-time tradition that evokes more station pride is a metal CJSR sign in the lobby. Covered with signatures from notable visitors, the inked names include a Canadian astronaut, musician Frank Black, and broadcaster Amy Goodman amongst others.
Archives within the Station Walls at CJSR
Although Brunet articulated that CJSR wasn’t that great at capturing its history and archiving materials, the station was full of lovingly preserved items. Projects were underway to digitize CDs and reel-to-reels and one recent find was a 1986 episode of “Gay Wire,” a show devoted to LGBTQ issues that was assumed to have debuted later than the tape would suggest. Additionally, the station’s record library is filled with vinyl records, CDs, and cassettes.
The oldest records have flaking spines, showing the wear-and-tear expected at a decades-old radio station. At last count (over a decade ago), it was estimated that the collection held between 75,000 and 85,000 records. Amongst the vinyl are a range of genres, including “country AND western,” plus some uncatalogued records from an old show, “Chinese Connection” that left its records behind. Some of the intriguing albums from that program include a worker-themed record with “Spring Comes Early to the Commune” on its back cover.
As I wrapped up my tour of CJSR, Gooding and Brunet offered me various promotional items. Tote bags, T-shirts and decals adorned with adorable artwork were hard to pass up. The station also crafts CD compilations and some unique items like branded belt buckets, a wallet, patches, and earplugs. I accepted a few tchotchkes (it’s always hard to refuse) and said my farewells as I headed back to immerse myself in the SpokenWeb sound studies conference once again.
Thanks to CJSR + Full List of Station Tours
Thanks to Chad Brunet and Matthew Gooding for a really fun visit to CJSR! This is my 178th radio station tour report and my 120th college radio station tour. Please take a look at the entire collection of my radio station visits in numerical order or by station type in our archives.
