Story by Lexy Howard
Photos by Connor Anderson
Highschool prom: a night of dancing, memories, and teen angst. The fundraising event Punk Prom brought back prom night with an adult twist and plenty of punk music to go around. With performances by the Moscow local cover band Covergirl, Spokane’s The Dilrods, and Moscow’s DJ Dave, the event was an amazing success. Punk Palouse Fest, a local summer punk festival organized by Alica Gladman, Alli Curet, Drew Schuldt and Chris Proctor relies on community fundraising to fund the events of the festival. Concert fundraisers are held in the months leading up to the festival itself.
Last year was the first year of the festival and the committee put on three fundraising events, this year they aim to put on two. Titled “Bloody Valentine- Punk Prom”, the February 14th fundraiser at Johns Alley had a great turn out. Everyone from locals to the punk crowd turned up to support. One concert goer said “these events bring people together from all different backgrounds. Super diverse. It’s kind of like anti everything but also a lot of love.”
The beginning of the night began with the set-up: Curet and Schuldt put together the photobooth, decorations and band set-up, which was directed by Gladman. Everything was black and red themed, with both hearts and skulls present in the decorations. The doors to the event opened at eight, and people began to flow in. The crowd was steady the whole evening; locals, alternative folks, punk crowd and every group in-between were accounted for. All came to gather and enjoy the punk music. “It’s also part of kind of this bigger social movement, which I think is really important to be aligned in this time,” one concert goer said about the necessity of these spaces to come together and share both joy and anger.
Covergirl took the stage, fronted by Alica Gladman, Alex Connors and Bill Tracy on guitar, and Joel Knisely on drums. Covergirl was a collaboration specifically for this night. The band performs pop punk covers such as Teenage Dirtbag and “mainstream” pop punk. Gladman took front wearing their original cream and red tartan prom dress, tucked into their belt. Connors says playing and performing for Punk Palouse fest “…fulfills all my teenage dreams of community and music. It’s great to come together and be around people having a good time”. Covergirl set the high energy for the night with their attitude and musical performance.
Dilrods band members Bobby, Dean and Dusty, began the mosh. The Dilrods write and perform short high energy, original songs, that are a mix of conventional and hardcore punk. “We’re definitely leaning more towards kind of old school punk like Skate Rock, more of the 80s, Orange County punk rock type stuff.” The band brought rock to Johns Alley; the front of the crowd was dedicated to the mosh and full of a diverse array of people. Whether you like to mosh or not, you can’t help but feel the shared joy and power of a mosh pit. To end the night Moscow’s own DJ Dave set up his turn tables and curated an atmosphere for dancing and conversation.
Punk prom was the first fundraiser for Punk Palouse Fest, a passion project that brings an intentional focus of punk music to Moscow. “There was a little bit of a vacuum after a lot of venues closed after or during COVID. There was a reviving energy to make music and put shows on,” says Gladman. Last year, 2024, was the first year of the festival, and had a successful turn out with a diverse array of musicians and bands. The weekend was dynamic, with a celebratory, inclusive atmosphere. This year they’re excited to grow the Fest by adding age inclusive shows and more bands. Over 44 bands applied to be a part of Punk Palouse Fest this year. Last year’s lineup included The Himbos, Lipstick and Ideomotor. This year boasts five shows over two days and a lineup of 20 bands such as Talon, Portal to the God Damn Blood Dimension, Subsummer and the returning Dilrods
Spaces such as Punk Palouse Fest are important to bring the community together with the punk community’s DIY roots, activism and community-oriented focus Moscow is a great place to host a festival such as this one “I do feel like its unique to any town I’ve worked at … “there’s enough happening that like it feels like it’s like a really community oriented scene here.” Gladman says, “everyone comes out to support.”
Musicians and concert goers come together to celebrate art, joy, anger, and most importantly punk music. Punk Palouse Fest offers a wide range of punk music, catering to many tastes. This summer come to party on May 23rd and 24th.
