Athens, Georgia’s punk and underground music scene has been lacking a consistent and safe event space for years after the closing of the Caledonia Lounge. However, a group of local college students is attempting to change that situation. These skateboarders and musicians, known as Blunderbuss, have begun gaining recognition for their concerts hosted at their house.

Blunderbuss  began as skateboarders who made videos and music together, but has recently grown to incorporate booking bands to play at local venues. The original intention behind this was to raise enough money to build a skateboarding ramp, but raising three thousand dollars is not a very easy task. The group intuitively began to raise this money by hosting parties and concerts.

These concerts started in early 2020 but recently, the group’s shows have begun attracting some larger bands around the southeast and wider Georgia scene such as Upchuck and Nihilist Cheerleader. The attraction comes from the energy these parties have. Blunderbuss provides an inclusive, safe space to see live music and interact with people. Along with the stage for the music, there is also a half pipe that the crowd can use to skate at their own risk.

The concerts typically host around 50-100 people, with some parties even hosting upwards of 200 people. You can find people dancing, skating, and enjoying the company of others. The main goal of the group’s parties is to provide a safe and welcoming environment for people to listen to live music.

Group member Parker Allen said, “We have group members always present and ready to act as security. We also announce over the microphone multiple times a night who to talk to if they see something, and that we are always willing to listen and handle any misconduct by people in our space.”

Noise complaint issues have been a problem in the past. Thankfully though these shows are in Athens, and college students make up most of the demographic of surrounding neighbors. The group has also taken measures to ensure that they are within noise ordinance so that if the cops do come, no illegal action has taken place. When asked about the precautions in place, group member and UGA student Brian Hall said, “The local noise ordinance is 300 feet from your property, before 12 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. So, if you can’t hear us outside of a 300-ft. radius before midnight, we have not done anything illegal. We also like being nice and consult these events with our neighbors in advance to avoid inconvenience for them, and now always end by midnight.”

“We’re just a group of friends who share a common interest in skating and music. We started throwing parties to accomplish a goal and ended up really enjoying it along the way. We haven’t built something substantial yet in our eyes but are working towards creating something that will last.” – Brian Hall