Control
By Jaguardini
Humanity
By Jaguardini
Pick Me, Choose Me
By Her Majesty
Folsom
By Unmarked Pavement
Speed Racer
By Unmarked Pavement
NEW - 02/28/26
Back in my home town for spring break (it's weirdly early this year idk) so I went to a show with my bestie. We met at my house before to eat biscuits and get ready, then we went to pick up my bestie's friend. I'd never met her, but she was super cool :) Hopefully we can go to shows together again.No one knew when the show started. One poster said 7:00, another said 7:30, and another said 8:00. Shows always have some confusing timing lol. Once my friends went to a show on time, but no one was there. The checked the bands instagram story and they were drunk in a field.
We showed up at 7:00 and messed around till it started at 8:30. We found plenty to do in the meantime. The streets were super busy with frat-goers and people waiting outside of bars. The weather was pleasant for the first time in ages, so I guess everyone was out.
My younger brother came to this show to sell these spoon rings he makes. They're realllllly nice and I think he made good money :) We bothered him for a bit before checking out the other merch tables. We got to talking with the closing act. Her name is Shartchan and I'm kinda obsessed with her. She was sooooo nice and my friends bought some kandi off of her. My friend had tried to see her before, but the show'd been shut down by the cops before she could play :( Thankfully she gave our town another chance lol.
She brings a ballpit to every show, so we three went to go play in it. Every show should have a ballpit. It was very calming, and we got some other strangers to join us. A nice girl from Nebraska with fuzzy boots and some people my friends know from classes all came and sat with us. Luckily we were some of the first people to sit in it, cause by the end of the night I'm sure it was gross.
The first set kept going on, playing a few chords while someone filmed, and getting off the stage. IDK really what that was about. Guess their instagram story needed fuel. They finally actually started while we were in the ballpit, and we could feel the vibrations through the wall. We eventually actually went in and watched. The band was BIG fan of their guitar. They made a great opening set. The crowd wasn't the most receptive, but I think that's just how college students are. I never come to shows while schools in session, and the vibe was way different than when it's just townies. Not bad at all, just more like a party than a show. They finished up and we headed outside. We all love HorsegiirL, so we started skipping and running around the building singing her song Little White Pony. So fun lol. We were all out of breath and came back in to chug water.
The next set came on, and I really liked them. Just very solid shoegaze. The band was Flowers for the Dead. The crowd was too busy talking and doing drunk people stuff during the set, which I think bothered the band. Near the end they said, "This is going to be our last song, so feel free to dance... or movee around... or do something other than talk." D: Well the crowd did do that, cause everyone started moshing. Their song was kinda slow and sad, so not ideal mosing music, but the people made do. I had fun with it. Like moshing in slow motion lol. But I didn't get smacked in the head so yay!!!!
Now the set everyone was waiting for was on. Shartchan. I could tell most people were there for her. Lots of Kandi and more rave-esque outfits. Also a lot of people in cat costumes, but that's pretty normal tbh.
The set started and omg. Actually amazing actually life changing. The set was so silly and so much fun. There was a lot of older internet noises thrown in. Like she had the "bruh", "21", ect as buttons on her DJ board and would just throw them in. I promise it worked so well. The crowd was losing it. People (also me) got on the stage to dance with Shartchan. Me and my friends danced and screamed so much my voice and bosy was wreaked by the end. Songs that were included include the Adventure Time theme song, the "Making Bacon Pancakes" song also from adventure time Boy U Nasty, Join us for a Bite, Peggy by Ceechynaa, and so many more. I've never seen a crowd lose it like they did when Adventure Time came on. There was a lethal looking mosh pit that kept going the whole set, and everyone was screaming. A guy with glowing gloves did tricks that looked like he was casting spells. He even let other people try them on. People kept attempting to crowdsurf, but there weren't enough people. They'd spend a few seconds in the air before going down. We stayed till almost the end of the set. Our trio was all tired and sore lol. We walked back to the car in a daze and made our way home. I was trying to show them Peggy, but all we could find was a remix of it with 365 lol. Honestly pretty good.
At home I showered cause I was covered in other peoples sweat lol. I took so many pictures of this one. Look at our ballpit :)
02/21/26
Finally got to go to another show!!!! And it was the venue near my college again, The same one I went to on 09/14/25, which was nice. Truthfully I didn't stay long, only for one set, cause I had slept poorly the night before and wanted to conk out. (If anyone reading this by chance has a good recommendation for a PRN sleeping pill plz tell me lol, I am somehow immune to Hydroxyzine and Tradezone)The price you pay for this venue is horrible parking. You drop your car at an elementary school then walk down a dark hill past a scary daycare to get to the house. My friend (the one I went with last time) told me to meet them at the show cause they were picking up someone. I made it down the hill in the dark but I was freaked lol. The show was starting 30 minutes late as always, so I just waited for my friend to get there. It's alwasy good people watching at shows. There was a nice girl who was a friend of the band. She wore a crocheted jester hat she made herself that I might copy. It was sooo cute and had bells that I know sound crazy when moshing. My friend and her buddy got there right bfore the music started. They'd parked at the wrong school D:
But anyways, the set was lovely. It was by Simplest Form. I really liked the main vocalist. He had a raw and emotional voice which is my fav. Very pro-voice cracks. I felt so calm in the crowd. Live music is so soothing to me. If I was rich I'd just keep a band on standby so I'd never feel bad.
The crowd was light tonight. The whole show was for a local band guy's birthday, so their was a sweetness to the whole event. This venue is great at that. Making everything feel homey and community-like. The band did some originals and some covers. Big fan of them playing "Head in the Ceiling Fan". That'll be the second time I've heard a band cover it live.
There was no moshing, which was fine. I didn't feel like getting all sweaty anyways. A guy in front of me did take of his shirt anyways though. He had his whole back tattooed with Mary and Angels and Cherubs. I was obvi a fan.
The set ended and I headed back to my car. It was a short night but I was happy to see the one band and support the venue. Only one good pic, but you can see the hill and the daycare here.
01/10/26
It was winter break, and I hadn't been to any shows all month. I live in a college town, so when all the students disapear, so does the music. The couple shows thatwere happening I had missed, and I was leaving the next day. I wanted to go to at least one show before I went back to college.Also, this show was a benefits show for the Starbucks union in my area, so I wanted to go and support them. I love unions. Me and my BFF were paying at the door when all the sudden by little brother, who was also going to the show calls me. He was trying to tell me to wait and not go in yet because the guy playing was "The worst music he's ever heard." I thought he sounded fine lol.
I had to pee in the scary bathroom the venue had, but that's kind of a right of passage anyways. The venue we went to was one that every plays at in my town. I love it cause you see some really experimental stuff. It's maybe an old rock climbing gym? There's a rock wall, so who knows.
Me and BFF went around to all these little booths set up inside. There were lots of organizers, and I signed up for many mailing lists and took many informative papers. I even got a free Free-Palestine pin. The DIY-scene is a great place to remind you that there are people who care about the same issues you do. That you're not overdramatic or over-serious or anything. We got to talk to the Starbucks workers too. Great people :)
The guy playing had changed, and now someone very acoustic was on. The venue was really busy, especially for it being only townie. Me and BFF went outside and skipped in a circle linking arms. My glasses kept falling of though, so we calmed down.
We always feel so whimsical when we're at shows. Since we don't smoke either, there is less for us to do when outside the venue. We kept talking, seeing peoples outfits and such. Someone had a curly white tail on, which was fun. The age range for this show was great too. I like to see older people in the scene. They always dance in ways I've never seen before.
We went back when we heard the next guy start. He was wearing a mouthpiece. thing and a headlamp, so I knew it was going to be great. His name was Gull, and I loved him. Go check out his Insta he's a visionary.
His vocals reminded me of NIN. Like the kinda breathy angry singing. And he had the juiciest synths. I could chew on them. He had a keyboard, a drum set, and a bunch of peddles. The drums were played with his hands, no sticks, and he would play the keyboard at the same time. It's amazing to me that people with this kind of talent are happy to play for a room full of drunk people in all black with no stage for barely any money. Saints among us.
His set had great visuals too. Sometimes shows here have this beautiful psycodelic visuals in the background that play other footage on top of the technicolor. This guy has Godzilla in the background, with lots of red and yellow oil-spilling together.
We left after his set cause I had to wake up early and drive back to college, but I was happy to leave on a good note. Me and BFF complained about the 2025 Tumblr year in review on the way home. Perfect night. And here's some pics!!!
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07/05/2025
This was a show I went to with a group of my friends. We'd all known each other in High School, but lost contact. We ran into each other at a show a couple weeks before this, and have been show buddies ever since. I'm so happy to have reconnected with these guys after High School and never would've if not for the scene :)So this show was a rave. Me and my BFF had seen like ten minutes of the main act before (we left early lol) and they were pretty good. My brother also knew the sister of a guy in the main act lol. Everyone knows someone's someone when everything is local.
The venue was just a guys basement. We walked past some guys drinking beer/smoking on the porch into some guys in the kitchen also drinking beer. They directed us to the basement. It was an unfinished concrete walls type of place. Beside the stairs there was a giant painting of an unsettling face. Kinda looked like the Aphex Twin guy but with shorter hair lol. We were on time, so early, and nothing had really started yet. We claimed our place next to a water boiler.
Once the music started it was great. The strobes started up, the fog machine turned on, and the basement filled up. The sets were all amazing. It was perfect dancing music, and the sets were electronic so there was no gaps. Everyone just kept dancing till the performer switched to the next one. I honestly can't remember many specific of the night because I was so absorbed in the music. It was so loud, and the crowd was so into it, everything became purely sensory. Like everything was so much you could only exist and not think about existing. Basically I was thrashing about with my eyes closed and when I opened them getting blinded by strobe. Amazing night.
My friends were also having lots of fun. We danced with each other as much as we could, but our spot by the boiler was small. It was getting late, and the friend who has driven us was sitting down cause she was sleepy. We waited for the set we were on to close up, and headed home. Car time before/after a show with friends is always as good as the show itself to me, so I wasn't sad to go.
When I got home I was literally disgusting. The summer heat and the crowd and mainly the dancing had me drenched in sweat. I was so tired though I just crawled into bed and passed out lol. BAD IDEA, cause I woke up at 5 am and felt so gross I couldn't go back to sleep. I ended up showering then and just staying awake cause I had to go work a double at my waitressing job lol. Def worth it. And as always pics. Say hello to Mr. Stair Painting.
09/14/25
This was while I was at college and going through show withdrawl. The town I study in has a much much smaller scene than my hometown. On a good night at home you can hop around to 3 shows in one night. At college, there might be one show a month, MAYBE. It's sad, but the shows that do happen are treasured.I had never been to this show house before, and I was also bringing one of my good friends to a show for the first time. She had always been interested in the scene, but lived somewhere with actually no shows, so it was a big night of firsts. We met up at her dorm before we left. We where messsing around and taking dumb photos, and I was trying to make sure she had all the essentials. I always take ear plugs, water, and a small crossbody to shows. Once we suited up we were ready.
The drive to the show was short but very rural. When we got there we were told that it was best to park at a nearby elementary school parking lot. We didn't really have a choice lol. The parking lot was mostly empty, but on a giant hill. We had to walk down the hill, past this scary ass daycare center, and across a field to get back to the show house. We were laughing the whole time.
When we got there we saw a couple other ppl from our school which was fun. The venue was a small house basement. I could touch the ceiling, and I'm 5'2. The crowd was nice and welcoming though. I could see a really good range of ages, which is always a good sign. There was even an older metalhead guy with his little son. I'll get to him later, but he had giant noise cancelling headphones on. Adorable.
The music started and the set was GOOD. We heard Magus the Giant first. So so so good. The guitars were amazing and you could feel every cord in the small room. A tiny tv hung next to the stage area (no real stage) and showed the band so people in the back could see them too. Lots of lights and fog as is typical as well.
The real highlight was the moshing though. You could tell these are people who are dying to mosh. Everyone was getting in on it as soon as ANY vocals started. I don't know if it's the size of the venue, or if the crowd was just really respectful, but this moshing was perfect. As said before, I'm short. I get pummeled at most mosh pits. I love it, but usually some college dude gets too excited, rams me in the head, and I have to take a break. Say what you will about how intense mosh pits should be, but I prefer it when everyone (not just big dudes) can mosh all night without risking a concussion. This pit had that vibe, and I was so sore at the end of the night I had to take an advil, which is the perfect amount of injured.
The music and exhaustion and vibe and lights were all coming together to make me feel like I was somewhere sacred. Sometimes the music is so good you have to start getting religious. I was swaying back and forth in a trance by the end of the set.
Speaking of that little kid, people had formed a small circle and were letting him "mosh" with them. Basically everyone gently pushed him around the circle. He was having the time of his life, and his dad thanked everyone after. I really mean everyone too, cause pretty much everyone there joined the circle at some point.
Magus the Giant ended, and me and my friend went outside to breathe a debrief. She was having so much fun, and said she wanted to go to more shows, which made me so happy. We went back in as the music for the second band started. I can't remember their name anymore, but I did like them. Great vocals, don't know how that guy could talk after.
We saw I think 2 more artists that night, all hardcore and talented. We kept moshing for hours and talking to the kids from our school. Some fun interactions I had was trying to help a goth girl find her nose ring that flew out, putting my glasses in their vent so they wouldn't break, and talking to a guy from west virginia about the scene there. It's smaller, but very intense, apparently. Me and my friend left a little before the very end. We were worn out and sweaty and needed to shower. You know the show was good when other peoples sweat is covering you too.
We walked back past that scary daycare, across the field, and actually crawled up the hill back to her car. We listened to NIN on the way back and stopped at 7-11 to get some snacks. We both kept yelling cause we were so hyped up. I was so tenderized I was just shaking for no reason. We parted ways after hanging out in her car for a bit. I was happy I got to go with her :)
I went home, showered, raved to my dear roomate, and fell asleep sore.
My pics aren't very good from this night, but you can see the low ceiling lol.
05/23/25
Writing this entry in great sadness, as the venue that I saw this show at is closing down. Apparently it's an illegal gathering place cause it's zoned for storage, and the fire marshall is mad at us cause it's a massive fire hazard. I mean fair, but I'm still sad about it. At least I got to experience this place before it's end though. I'm grateful for that, so here's one of those nights.This was right after I finished my first year of college. I was anxious to get back to the shows, so the first flyer I saw I went to. It was a minimialistic flyer with no real descriptions of the bands. I didn't and don't really care about the genre. If it's live I'm having fun. I roped 2 of my friends into going with me. For one of them, it was her first show at this venue, and she wasn't big into the scene anyways. This'll be relevant later lol. My newbie friend was kind and picked me and my other friend up, and off we went.
When we arrived the venue was sparsely populated. That's to be expected when schools out, as I'm in a college town, and the students are half our population. A band was already on once we got there. It was some sort of electronica that was generated through math equations. The artist was explaining her process, and it went way over my head. She made sure to tell us it WAS NOT AI, which I appreciated. It was something to do with a computer program being given different variables and then randomly generating notes and then making beats or something. It was very beautiful and unique. I wish we would've seen her whole set. The artist was Pathagas if anyone wants to chech her our.
We only caught the tail end of that set, so we went outside while the next act was setting up. We were all messing around outside and for some reason galloping in circles and spinning around with our arms linked. The in between times are just as fun as the music cause you get to see the people who come in fun outfits and generally be silly :) There was also a guy grilling hotdogs that you could buy for like 2 bucks, but we'd already eaten.
The next set started, and this is when the night got memorable. I had an idea that this was an experimental music night and this set confirmed it. The set was MAYBE Elka Bong and Irman I say maybe because there might've been someone else playing with them, and also because this is one of the only link I can find of these artists.This is Elka Bongs bandcamp which I found too. I couldn't find any links to Irman elsewhere though :(.I can't even find the show poster up on instagram anymore, I had to scroll through an abandoned group chat to find it lol.
The actual set started with a man on cello. He started off playing well but erratically. There was another guy on violin, and someone else on an electronic synth thing. They both joined into the noise, and it was very effective. Everytime you caught a semblace of rhythm it disapeared into the mess. It made me feel anxious, which I suppose was the point. The cello guy started to put sticks into the strings of his cello. Like wild sticks from trees. He was hitting and pulling these which made the whole instrument sound pained. He kept playing while putting more and more sticks in, and the feeling of anxiety grew. The guy on the synth was making some crazy droning noises, and the guy on violin was pretty much just hitting it and also putting sticks in its strings. The set progressed when the cellist put some sort of vibrating small metal ball, like smaller than a marble, inside his cello. This made even more distressing noise. At some point in this the guy with the violin abandons the sticks and starts playing the violin with a pine. Like just scratching the strings with a pinecone. The surrealness of what was happening, the music itself, even the venue and how it was half empty made all this feel like a dream. The set made me feel hopeless and trapped, not in an unenjoyable way though. I was def engaged in the art. The sets peak was when the cellist dropped one of the vibrating metal balls on the ground and started talking. He said something along the lines of, "Oh no. The little ball. Is lost. The metal ball. Doesn't know were to go. Oh no." I've described this to other people and they've thought it was corny, but in the moment, with all the noise, this was genuinely moving. It's something you had to be there to feel I guess. The set ended shortly after that, and we went back outside.
My newbie friend was acting traumatized. Me and my other friend were also slightly in shock, but we agreed we enjoyed the show. I think poor newbie was put off the whole event though lol.
We stayed for one more act which was experimental jazz. This was a more traditional band, and I liked their stuff. It was very experimental, but after the last show everything else seemed normal. We left a little after this set as my newbie friend wanted to dip.
I understand the show wasn't for everyone but I really enjoyed it. Seeing some just insane stuff is a perk of the DIY-Scene, not a con. I think it's great to have these experiences that only you and the 20 other people in that building can have. I'm happy to have gone, and I'd go again. This venue shutting down saddens me so much because of shows like this. They would literally let anyone play. I hope my area can find another venue like it, without the fire hazards, so we can keep having experiemental shows that might not be popular enough to book the more proffesional venues. Thanks for reading if you've made it this far. I know this one is longgggggggg I just wanted to capture the night. And as always photographic evidence. This one def needs it lol.
06/15/24
It was a dry-hot end of summer show. The venue was a cidery, but mostly the parking lot of the cidery. The flyer advertised synths, which my bestie was excited for. He lovesssss electronica. He loves most music really. It's a gift. I hadn't been to any other shows since the music festival that got me into DIY. Me and my friend had been looking, but we didn't really know how to find them yet lol. (Follow every emo person on instagram, follow who they follow, and then check everyones' stories)We showed up early, but there was already a nice crowd. This cidery is popular. It would be busy on any nice summer night. The first guy was amazing. It was Origin of Speech. I'm so sad because they don't seem to be active, and their music is only avaible through bandcamp. I'll buy it soon and upload it here. They're an amazing group. The synths were deep and slow and I felt removed by them. The main musician wore a hat with an embroidered eyeball, and I remember I wanted to talk to him and thank him for such an amazing set. A guy infront of us had taken of his shoes and was dancing like he was casting wizard spells.
Between sets me and my friend enjoyed the weather. Their was chalk out, so adults and kids were drawing on the hard top. I weirdly saw my 6th grade english teacher who hated my guts. I said hi, and she did too, but I could still feel the animosity lol. At some point a blow up alien had been added to the crowd, and people were playing with it too. The next set was good. More upbeat and danceable. A guy in a pink shirt was dancing so hard his whole shirt was soaked. He did like cartwheels spinkicks flips and everything. Even when the music honestly did not justify all that. I respected him so much. After the set we got to talking. He was really sweet ontop of being a good dancer. Apparently he was trying to keep the mood high.
After these 2 sets, the music moved indoors. The next group was not super synthy. I remember their name cause it was Dog Turd. The guy was producing and selling a hot sauce of the same name at the merch tables if I remember correctly. It was a folk set basically. I liked it, but can't remember much. The alien had been brought inside to dance around some more.
I left soon after, but I wish I'd stayed. An artist I still really like, Jaguardini, would've been on next. Shame :( But it was a fun fun fun night. Hope you like the pictures!
I'd define the DIY-scene as independant artists, show houses, organizers, end ect. coming together to play live music for the community.
I have been going to DIY shows since highschool, and the creativity and community I have seen here is unmatched. Seeing people come together to create and love and celebrate these independant artists has genuinely given me hope for humanity. And the music is really good. Basically I love DIY-music because I feel DIY-music loves me.
This page aims to catalogue all the shows I have ever been too. The backlog might take awhile, but I want to remember them all. I won't list all the musicians I've heard because I don't always remember their names or stay for the whole show. I'll mention and link the bands that really stood out to me though.
Please enjoy the music player on this page as well! The songs are all of people I have heard live. I bought the music from Bandcamp for every artist I could, and I'll link their personal websites throughout my posts. Please check them out, you won't regret it.
