Inside an Underground Punk Venue

The Swamp was the place for Bay Area punks to play throughout 2011. After a remodel and lather of green paint, this basement became one of the Bay Area’s key underground venues.

Most DIY spots get shut down relatively quick, but The Swamp has been able to remain active for the last two years. Ali, who runs The Swamp with the help of her roommates, says the longevity of the venue was one of her main goals. She takes many precautions to increase the chances of the venue staying open. She regulates how late the shows go, makes the venue somewhat discrete to foot traffic, and tries to make it a “safe” place.

“I don’t mean Gilman safe, where there is a list at the door of everything you can’t do.” But, Ali explained the venue does have some basic unwritten rules. “Respect the people at the venue, respect our house and respect our neighbors/neighborhood. We couldn’t do shows without their cooperation. And no hard drugs.”

The housemates at The Swamp let the bands keep most the door money, allowing touring bands to make The Swamp a profitable and desirable stop on tour. If none of the P.A. equipment breaks, the house only keeps $40, an idea they got from Burnt Ramen.

The first show at The Swamp was in October of 2009 and featured Austin’s Total Abuse, Zero Progress and Migraine. Since then the venue has been home to many different touring and local bands. Although many lineups and dates seem to blur together, most punks can recall a couple extraordinary sets they saw this year.

Boo Boo, 32, vocalist for the local band Hunting Party, who have played The Swamp, said “Noah from Stressors’ birthday show was one of my favorite shows for sure. Permanent Ruin, Stressors, Zero Progress, and No Statik all killed it.” Boo Boo, who is originally from Boston and played in Toxic Narcotic, mentioned Lotus Fucker, Brown Sugar, Adelitas and Human Plague as some of his favorite touring bands he saw at The Swamp this year. He said DIY spots like The Swamp are “absolutely crucial” and that “Gilman, Eli’s, and the Metro will not be seeing my bands or my money until they make some fundamental changes to how they treat bands, show goers and staff.”

Chase H., 14, who thinks it’s important to have small all ages venues like The Swamp, explained that some of his favorite Swamp memories are extramusical. “DCOI! was great. The rest I can’t remember because I was really intoxicated. But yeah, one time I was wasted at a show and next thing I know I was having relations with a 19 year old – and it was great!”

Ali, the main contact for bookers and bands, said “I think one of the best shows this year was the Coke Bust show with Permanent Ruin, Yadokai, Migraine and Zero Progress.”

But, The Swamp has hit a couple bumps along the way. There was a period of time where it looked like The Swamp might be shutting down, and at least one show was canceled due to conflicts with “taggers”. Ali said, “We have an entire basement that is wall to wall space for tagging the fuck up and it sucks when people aren’t satisfied and have to write on our neighbors’ shit. That pisses me off, not only for the respect issue, but it also can blow up the spot and draw unwanted attention.”

And that unwanted attention could be a death sentence for a “word of mouth” club. According to Maura, who lives at The Swamp, people posting the address online or putting it on flyers is a threat to the well being of the spot.

The reason why they fight to keep it alive can be found within their motives for starting the spot in the first place. When asked about how DIY ethics influenced the creation of The Swamp, this was Ali’s response:

“That’s what it is, DIY. We are punks (and skins), and we created this spot ourselves. We do it all and it is our space for everyone. I’ve been going to shows for so long, and it’s kinda the natural progression as I see it. You start off going to shows and supporting the scene by paying the door guy and buying merch. Then you start a band, book shows, take photos, make zines, get involved, make shit happen. It just seems like the next step to create a new spot for all of that to take place. It gets people together and usually good things come from that.”


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