I never come into contact with a house show when I lived in Los Angeles. I’d seen house shows in movies: The concerts where people are packed into a living room or basement, with heads bobbing in mosh pits. The closest I got to a house show was when I’d frequent small punk venues: The Smell in downtown L.A., or a slew of all-age venues in Hollywood.
There was one band from my high school that would invite people over to hear them play, but it was always just them without any openers, and it never felt big enough to mimic concert vibes. This was really unfortunate for them; they were a band with the right idea in the wrong location.
The truth about the music scene in L.A. is without a house show culture, local bands get the short end of the stick. Starting up on your own is difficult. Until I came to school in Seattle last year, I’d grown up in a context in which house shows are fairly non-existent.
This made my experience with the local music scene in Seattle so much better. I didn’t have to pay $30 or more to see my favorite band; instead they’d be playing at the house four blocks down from me. To be completely honest, I felt like this musical, punk identity I’d been searching for in high school was finally able to find itself through the world of house shows.
I was now part of a community that felt underground, yet also welcoming and historic. There is a wordless understanding that by attending shows, you have become part of the legacy of Seattle music culture. My vision of Seattle as the birthplace of grunge now made sense. At one house show, I might as well have been transported back in time to the late 1980s, watching Kurt Cobain playing a house show in Aberdeen. In an instant I’ve arrived back in the present, watching the punk house shows of 2015.
The freedom to attend shows and learn about new music is easier than ever. It is a two-way street. My taste became increasingly expansive as I learned about new local artists firsthand at their shows, during performances that reached fanbases in a more accessible way.
Although I can’t recall the names of each and every group I’ve ever seen at a house show, I vividly remember each experience as its own. Some artists that stand out to me in this way are The Naked Giants and Hoecakes, both of which I’ve seen many times at shows throughout the U-District.
Reach writer Rebecca Gross at arts@dailyuw.com. Twitter: @becsgross
