We usually think of libraries as places to quietly read or roam through countless aisles of books, but this summer, we can also find local punk bands screaming to fast-paced songs with hard melodies.
In June, the D.C. Public Library’s punk archive will resume its series of summer rooftop shows featuring local bands at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library. The series kicks off with a show from the duo Faunas and Lightmare, a six-person soul punk arrangement.
Michele Casto, librarian and one of the founders of DC Punk Archive, says the fun part of the project is changing how people think of libraries. They should be considered community spaces as opposed to quiet spaces for books only, she says.
“We want to make all kinds of people feel welcomed here and feel represented,” Casto says.
The DC Punk Archive, a project that started in 2014, documents the rise of the region’s legendary music scene, beginning in 1976. The special collection includes photographs, zines, books, records, cassettes, live recordings, DVDs, setlists, posters, tickets, and more items donated by punk musicians and historians.
Soon after the punk collection started, the archivists began programming punk concerts in the basement of the MLK Library. “It was dark and not very appealing for most programs, but to have a punk show play — it was a great space,” Castro says.
After the library closed for renovations, the basement shows turned into rooftop shows on the 3rd floor terrace at Woodridge Library, and the punk collection was temporarily moved to the Georgetown Neighborhood Library’s Peabody Room. Now that everything is back at the renovated MLK Library, punk shows will continue for the first time since 2019.
MLK Library Friends, who are sponsoring the series this summer, will be vending and selling screen prints of DC Punk Archive merch and more. The featured punk bands are also invited to sell band merch.
Casto says the concerts are popular, and just this year more than 60 bands expressed their interest in playing the series.
The full lineup of this summer’s concerts is below:
June 8
Faunas
Lightmare
July 13
Cinema Hearts
Continuals
August 10
Big Cry Country
Prude
