There are very few things in my life that I enjoy more than attending live shows. They offer a truly unique experience that cannot be easily replicated.
There’s something about coming together with fellow music lovers and celebrating a specific artist or genre that I find really special. There’s a lot to love, whether that be the sense of community, the atmosphere or even just the opportunity to hear your favorite song live.
We generally associate concerts with packed sports stadiums, elaborate stage decorations, costume changes, huge LED screens, armies of backup dancers and just an overall sense of grandeur. While that is true for the shows most of the popular artist hosts, the world of live music is much more diverse.
Those big stadium shows are often reserved for the popular mega stars, such as Taylor Swift and Zach Bryan. Most artists can only dream of pulling off such big and elaborate shows. It’s not uncommon for an artist to spend their musical careers performing at smaller, more traditional venues.
With that being said, where do the really small artists perform? I’m talking about the artists that have less than a thousand monthly listeners on Spotify. Where do the truly indie artists perform?
Literally everywhere.
I would compare being a small artist to pushing a boulder up a hill. If you want to get anywhere, you have to make a constant effort. You have to keep going until you make it to the top.
The amount of time it takes is different for everyone. For example, it took Chappell Roan around seven years for her first big hit. Meanwhile, it only took a single live show in the United States for The Beatles to become household names.
You have to take every opportunity you can get. Such as, playing a 50-minute set in an empty field during one of the hottest days of the year.
If that sounds oddly specific, well, that’s because it is. I am talking about “Good Things Are Happening Fest” which took place in Scranton on Aug. 10.
I attended the festival, knowing nothing about it beforehand. In all honesty, I only went because my one friend didn’t want to go by themselves. I went in completely blind. I didn’t know who was going to be there, what to wear or even where it was at.
We arrived right when the festival started, at noon.
When I said that I knew nothing, I really meant nothing. It turns out that the entire festival was going to be a whopping 12 hours long. I was a little standoffish upon learning this; however, I grew to want it to go on for even longer.
The venue, if you can call it that, was extremely small. The festival took place at Scranton Iron Furnace.
Now I really don’t understand what Iron Furnace is supposed to be. Google maps has it listed as a landmark; however, I’ve also seen it called a museum and park.
Whatever it is, it has a great vibe. It’s a huge, medieval style building located right next to a small creek. It’s definitely not what I would consider conventional, which is actually the main reason why I liked it so much. I was able to experience live music next to a castle.
Such a unique venue requires just as unique performers. A total of 11 groups played. Most of them were local; however, there were a few from neighboring states.
No two songs sounded the same. There was a really great mix of genres. Everything from rock, punk, pop, hardcore, mid-western.
My favorites out of the groups who played had to be Pucker Up and Oldsoul. The latter group actually gave me a signed set list.
As much as I enjoyed the music and venue, what I enjoyed the most was the general vibe of everything. It had such a great atmosphere and sense of community.
It was really moving to see so many “no names” in one place with the sole purpose of supporting each other. There wasn’t a single artist there that had the fame nor budget for a large show. Together, however, they were able to put on a truly great show.
I believe that everyone should go out and celebrate local talent, no matter the size. There’s some truly fantastic talent out there, just waiting to be discovered.