Connecticut’s Flourishing DIY Music Scene
DIY music’s increasing popularity in Connecticut
Nowadays, when people think of concerts, they envision thousands of people, dazzling lights, and a musical spectacle to remember for the rest of their life. However, a different scene has gained traction in Connecticut: the DIY music scene.
While DIY music is nothing new, it’s popularity has steadily grown in recent years, arguably due to the unaffordable ticket prices of most concerts nowadays, with ticket prices averaging $135 per the New York Times, with some people paying thousands of dollars to see artists such as Taylor Swift and Beyoncé. Furthermore, many of these acts only play stadiums or large arenas, forcing those who are outside a major city to spend even more money on travel.
However, the DIY scene has started to gain popularity throughout the nation, spanning genres and providing an experience for all. The scene focuses on passion for music and community instead of profit and popularity. Shows are typically played in small, independent venues, VFW’s, houses, and anywhere artists can set up. Tickets for these shows are often cheap, about $15 for a typical 2-3 hour show, and often come at a loss for the venue and promoter. Yet, the community created around the music far outweighs the financial costs.
Certain genres, such as Hardcore Punk, typically remain and thrive in this underground space created by these venues. The genre revolves around a counter-culture and an independent ethos, placing personal values and self-expression over the mainstream. Local venues are critical in providing artists space to play their music due to their low booking costs and ease of access for bands and attendees to allow a place to play their music and meet new people.
Dean Roussell, a promoter in the eastern part of Connecticut, books hardcore bands around the Killingly/Danielson area, typically at the Killingly VFW or Chubby Dog Coffee in Danielson, CT. Roussel grew up in the Killingly area and has been attending shows since he was in high school. His passion for booking started in Worcester, MA, where he and his friends booked shows. However, he moved back to Killingly and started booking here due to “there are kids in this area that were like me, that either didn’t have the means to drive, and so, yeah, that’s how it started,” said Roussell.
On September 27th, I attended a show booked by Rousell at the Killingly VFW, featuring Boston based band Holder as the headliner, and a handful of Connecticut-based bands such as Montclair and Fifty-Fifty Clown. Despite the VFW being far removed from the rest of Killingly, the grass parking lot was full before the show even started. Most attendees were out of their cars, talking amongst themselves and lining up by the makeshift merch table to grab shirts, stickers, vinyl records, and more. The show started at around 7pm and went until about 9:30pm.
The VFW doesn’t have a stage, instead it has an open floor where everyone crowds together. This lack of separation creates a more intimate connection between performers and attendees. When the music started, the room lit up with energy. People moshed, danced, and shouted the lyrics back to the bands, removing the line between audience and performer. The energy was unfiltered and raw. It wasn’t a polished and perfect show, but it was authentic, messy, and alive.
“I don’t care what type of music or what type of art somebody gets into, at the end of the day, it’s about supporting people and their creative outlets so they’re not doing anything destructive to the area to themselves. But as long as they’re supporting their fellow artists, that’s a great thing,” Rousell concluded.
In a time when big concerts are turning into unaffordable luxury experiences, DIY shows are the opposite. All it takes is a room, a band, and a crowd that’s all in.
