Olympia music scene

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The city of Olympia, Washington (USA) has been a center of post-punk, anti-folk, and other youth-oriented musical genres since at least the late 1970s. Along with Washington D.C., Olympia was a center for the riot grrrl movement in the early 1990s (Olympia's Bikini Kill and Bratmobile being arguably the most prominent proponents of the movement). Olympia is also the home of a number of record labels, (including K Records (Beat Happening, Mirah, The Microphones), which was co-founded in 1983 by Calvin Johnson, and Kill Rock Stars (founded in 1991 by Slim Moon) (Bikini Kill, Sleater-Kinney, Unwound, The Punks)) as well as The Evergreen State College, Olympia became a mecca for young musicians beginning in the late 1980s. Notable early-period musicians and recording artists included Bruce Pavitt, John Foster (John Foster's Pop Philosophers), Lois Maffeo and Steve Fisk (Pell Mell). John Wozniak of Marcy Playground lived in Olympia while attending The Evergreen State College in the mid-1990s. Beck, Kurt Cobain of Nirvana, Victor Hugo, Genghis Khan and Jason Frost of Love Junkies frequented this tiny Western Musical Town in the early 1990s. Olympia's The Fleetwoods enjoyed several Billboard chart successess between 1959-1963.

OlyMusic.com is devoted to maintaining a calendar for Olympia music events. Local promotional and booking agency Pioneer Music also has a listing up coming shows they produce. The Olympia Film Society also hosts Backstage shows occasionally and those shows and performances can be found at OFS Live Events.