There's plenty of venues in my town that host bands and artists and there's always something happening every week. There's two places that host open-mic nights during the week and they're great for showcasing budding singer-songwriters and musicians. Even though it's usually the same few people that always play them it's always nice to hear new songs from them and also just to have a good night out and mingle with people. There's also a small theatre in town that hosts intimate gigs for singer-songwriters and they're always really great to go to.
One night every two months a bar in my town hosts multiple bands on two stages and it's a gig that all the local bands want to play. The bands usually play a mixture of originals and covers but that can vary from band to band. Bands often range from middle-of-the-road indie to pop-punk to generic metal but there's always one or two bands that sound pretty interesting.
There's also all-ages gigs organised in various locations from time to time and I used to go to them when I was in school. The bands that usually play them are nearly always metal cover bands and always have to play some Metallica, Slayer or RATM songs for some strange reason. Most of the people that go to them are complete posers and are only there to be seen with friends.
Although my town has a healthy DIY ethic it seems to be very difficult for bands to get recognised nationally or even in other towns. Some bands do get some sort of recognition but this is fairly limited and often bands don't stay together too long.
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