As Utah becomes a bigger and bigger destination for concerts and music festivals, you may find yourself wanting to join in the festivities without spending hundreds of dollars. An incredible alternative that is not only cheap, but exceptionally cool, is going to local shows!

How To Become The Coolest Person In Any Room, Guaranteed

There’s nothing more egotistically satisfying than saying you knew a band before they were cool, except perhaps bragging about the minor wounds you sustained in a mosh pit. Both of these laurels, and plenty of bragging rights, can be obtained while regularly supporting local artists. The way you’ll start complaining about neck pain and saying there’s no real moshing at a Taylor Swift concert will make your friends think you’re annoying. However, you will be annoying in the same way people who studied abroad in that country you’ve always wanted to be in are annoying. You know you wish that was you. 

So, Where’s the Pit?

So, you’ve decided to become a full on crust punk and stop washing your clothes or wearing deodorant (we do notice). But, you don’t know anyone in the scene and the goth girl who works at your local cafe scares you too much to ask her. Since small bands are, by definition, small, with a cult following and limited reach, how do you find local artists to support in the first place? Since small venues are not quite as organized and good at advertising as monopolies like Ticketmaster, it can be hard for people who regularly attend shows to get their fix.

The best method I have found is Instagram. Once you have a list of bands or venues you follow, you can learn about upcoming shows and gauge who is planning to attend. Aces High Saloon, Black Lung Society, The Beehive and International are great venues to look out for.

There have been so many times my favorite bands posted nothing about an upcoming show and I heard about it instead through third-party social media accounts. SLC MOSHPIT and Happy Valley Rockers are two accounts dedicated to informing fans and increasing the reach of local artists. Both these pages are wonderful and my music friends and I use them regularly. Olifer Rock is a punk clothing store on State Street whose Instagram can be a great resource as well.

SLUG Magazine’s “Localized” is a monthly concert highlighting local bands. Because of the high recognition SLUG has across Salt Lake City, and the dozens of posters displayed around town, the shows have great turnouts and introduce a lot of new people to musicians and community events they may never have even heard about otherwise. The best part — it’s only $5!

Show Up For Local Artists

I’ve been to too many incredible concerts with pitiful turnout all because people simply don’t know about the shows or don’t know what they’re missing. Support local artists, meet cool people, headbang so hard you call out of work the next day (don’t ask) and go to local shows!

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