Music directory, scene archive, and media project for Bellingham, Washington
Like all great stories begin: once upon a time, I got bored.
Between January and March of 2026, I went to damn near one show a night in Bellingham, Washington. Most of my time was spent at The Shakedown, but I also found myself at Makeshift, Oddfellows, Honeymoon, The Wild Buffalo, and wherever else something loud was happening. A friend had introduced me to The Racket earlier, but The Shakedown was foreign to me. I more or less walked in one day, stayed for the show, and then kept going. Again. And again. And again.
At first, I was literally just following the noise. Then I started recognizing people: regulars, bartenders, artists, door people, photographers, bookers, and friends of friends. I made friends, met friends of friends, and got to know some of the people driving the local music scene.
But I noticed something early: even people “in the know” did not always know what was happening. Unless you are actively checking every venue’s event calendar, it is incredibly easy to miss a show you would have loved. Shows get missed because you never saw the flyer. Bands have real followings but no central profile. Venues have strong lineups scattered across Instagram posts, stories, reposts, calendars, and word of mouth. Local radio, KZAX in particular, fills an important role, but there still is not a strong shared infrastructure for discovering local artists, where they are playing, or what the scene looks like at any given time.
And when I get bored? (Apparently) I build a website about it.
Bellingham Sounds is a local music directory, catalog, and media project built to spotlight the people making music happen in Bellingham. The project is designed to make the scene easier to discover, follow, document, and support. It includes artist and band listings, venue pages, show coverage, weekly emails highlighting shows worth knowing about, and a growing archive of the people, places, and moments that define Bellingham music.
This one is still in its early days. Right now, I’m focused on collecting artist and band submissions so I can list their information, share their stories, and build a useful foundation for the project.
Bellingham has already done the hard work for me. There are local artists and bands, small and large venues hosting all kinds of music, strange little scenes, friends who show up, and people who care. The goal is simple: make it easier for people to find the door to a show they would love.
At the end of the day, I am just a guy who got pulled into the scene because of the loud noises. I stuck around for the good people. Bellingham Sounds is my attempt to make the scene easier to find, follow, and join.
Role: Founder, designer, writer, developer
Built With: Webflow, Google Forms, Figma, lots of time on the dance floor, and some time (like 19 seconds) in the mosh pit
Duration: Ongoing
Impact: TBD