(EDITOR’S NOTE — 1120 Press spoke with Carina DeFabbio of Good Things Events about this year’s Punk Rock Prom, which will be held this Friday at Mohawk Place. Good Things is seeking donations of merch from local bands for the event. Check out our talk with Corina below.)
1120 Press: So, this year's Punk Rock Prom is June 2 at Mohawk Place, and it looks like it's going to be a really cool event. Can you tell us a little bit about the bands lined up? Looks like a great bill.
CORINA DeFABBIO: The bands playing the Punk Rock Prom include my dear friend Kaiser Solzie from Rochester, who will be playing master of ceremonies, and playing acoustic solo tunes and have some special guests in between the bands.
We’ll also have The Clockers from the 716, who have been around for more than a few minutes.
Also, Bastard Bastard Bastard, which recently added my dude, Lelan Allen, to their lineup. He also plays in Yellow Sauce, and played for Ritual Walk back in the day. They've been getting some pretty sweet gigs around town and I expect and hope for good things for them.
Closing the night will be Abandoned Trains, who were established during the pandemic, and have a lot to say about what's been going on socio-politically, especially in the 716. It's a refreshing breath of OG punks in the area who are still going hard to entertain and inform. (Can you use the term OG when you talk about punks?)
1120: Aside from the music, what else can people expect at the Punk Prom? What else will be happening?
CORINA: There will be so much more than excellent music at this event. My homeslice at Bad Penny Chop Shop is making a backdrop for us to have photos taken in front of. Photos will be taken by the fabulous Meredith Snow of Snowfall Photography. They will be available on our Facebook event page and we are working on a way to get complimentary photos to everyone who comes to the Punk Rock Prom online. Details will be available when you get your photo taken. There will also be prizes, including a bar tab for the best dressed, punked out king and queen crowns, and for honorable mentions: 6-packs of warm PBR, or Pepsi, if the winner is under 21. This is an 18+ event.
1120: The Prom has reached out for donations for the event. Can you talk about what you’re looking for, and how & where people can donate?
CORINA: Good Things Events is asking for donations from local punk bands of band merch such as t-shirts, patches, pins, or anything else cool that they'd be willing to spare. As I have mentioned on Facebook, I'm open to the idea of barter for "donations." Any band that brings a donation the day of the event, or makes arrangements to get merch to me before the day will get one free ticket, a $10 dollar value, for a member or fan to attend the prom. We want people there, participating and being included. The punk scene, any local music scene in general, in the Buffalo area is very community oriented. We look out for each other and support each other. It's a beautiful thing to see artists lifting each other up. A small donation to our prize pool can help make your band a part of this event. Feel free to email me at corinadef@gmail.com to arrange any contributions.
1120: Anything else you’d like to add?
CORINA: I'd like you all to know that Good Things Events is going to be bringing the
Buffalo area more events, so look out for them. ThinkSoJoE and I love bringing local talent to the spotlight. If you're looking to play the 716, please keep us in mind. We try to put on more than just local shows. We try to put on events that will be memorable. We used to put on events under the handles All WNY, and DeFabulous Productions, and The ThinkSoJoE Show, including broadcasting from the local Korner Stage at Warped Tour in 2018, as well as a lot of shows.
There will also be a Buffalo Musicians Dodgeball Tournament on June 10 put on by a collaboration between FTMP, Riot Squad Media, and Good Things Events. We are looking for teams to sign up. Greg Burt can be reached to sign your band, or posse, up to play.