The complete updated guide to the 2021 Electric City Music Conference in Scranton
The eighth annual Electric City Music Conference will feature performances by nearly 100 bands in seven venues throughout Scranton, the Steamtown Music Awards with awards in 27 different categories and special performances of its own, and free panel discussions for local musicians, professionals, and music fans. It’s a great opportunity to see everything that the Northeastern Pennsylvania music scene has to offer, but it can be overwhelming when packed into three days, so NEPA Scene has organized a handy guide to the conference with dates, times, locations, prices, and links for everything taking place on Thursday, Nov. 18 through Saturday, Nov. 20. Any last-minute changes will be updated here.
This packed weekend of music begins with the Steamtown Music Awards at The V-Spot (906 Providence Rd., Scranton) on Thursday starting at 5:30 p.m.; it is free to all nominees and $10 at the door for the public.
All shows on Friday and Saturday are $5 at the door, or a daily hopper pass for all venues is $10. Tickets and passes can be purchased via Eventbrite or at all participating venues – Backyard Ale House, The Bog, Noir Dark Spirits, Peculiar Kitchen, The Railyard, Stage West, and The V-Spot.
Special events this year include the conference’s first-ever film premiere, the XIXX: 25 Years and Counting show organized by photographer Keith Perks, and a reunion of local death metal band Putrefied Flesh.
Venues are arranged alphabetically below with links leading to the individual Facebook event pages for more info. For easy reference, this guide can be accessed anytime at nepascene.com/ecmc.
2021 Electric City Music Conference schedule
Thursday, Nov. 18
The V-Spot
(906 Providence Rd., Scranton)
Cover: $10, free for nominees
5:30 p.m.-7 p.m.: Red carpet interviews
6:15 p.m.-11 p.m.: DJ Hersh and live performances by Ellie Rosentel; Jay Trinity; Ripped Away; Mack Mulla; Room 108; Royal Hell; So Much Hope, Buried; and Blind Choice
6:50 p.m.-11 p.m.: Award presentations
Friday, Nov. 19
Backyard Ale House
(523 Linden St., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
7 p.m.: Corner Pocket Blues
8 p.m.: Spud
9 p.m.: The Sorters
10 p.m.: James Barrett
11:15 p.m.: Modern Ties
The Bog
(341 Adams Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
7 p.m.: Wife Swamp
8 p.m.: Stay Loud
9 p.m.: The Mesos
10 p.m.: The Robinsonade
11 p.m.: Cardinal Arms
Midnight: American Buffalo Ghost
Noir Dark Spirits
(244 Penn Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
8 p.m.: Walau-Eh
9 p.m.: Kali Ma and the Garland of Arms
10 p.m.: Alex Embler
11 p.m.: Tiny Moon
Midnight: Bluhtii
1 a.m.: Durty Loose
Peculiar Kitchen
(307 Penn Ave., Scranton)
Cover: Free
5:30 p.m.: Skylar Love
6:30 p.m.: A Day Without Love
7:30 p.m.: Bryan Brophy
The Railyard
(119 Jefferson Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
8 p.m.: The MDG Crew
9 p.m.: New Moon Rising
10 p.m.: Meet Me on Marcie
11:30 p.m.: DJ Middle Name
12:30 a.m.: Corporate Thugz
Stage West
(301 N. Main Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $10, includes hopper pass
5 p.m.-5:45 p.m.: Zhach Kelsch panel discussion – How to make a sustainable living as a musician
Zhach Kelsch has made a living being a drummer for the last 20+ years of his life. He’ll discuss the journey, process, and sacrifices that it took to get to where he is today. He’ll outline his path to turning his passion into a sustainable career.
“Hometown Boys” short film premiere
6 p.m.: Film reception, meet and greet
6:30 p.m.: Change
7 p.m.: Off Gaurd
7:45 p.m.: Skylar Love
8:30 p.m.-9:45 p.m: “Hometown Boys” film screening and Q&A session
This is the Scranton premiere of the short film “Hometown Boys,” which follows “four idiots on a heist, a shit-ton of neon-colored lube, and a gimp in a quaint Scranton, Pennsylvania porn store” and asks, “What could go wrong?” Scranton native and local music scene veteran Jamie Sutor wrote and directed the short, so he and star Grant Terzakis will host a question and answer session following the screening.
10 p.m.: Lucas Hex
10:30 p.m.: Illegal Seigal
11 p.m.: CJ Suprxme and P!THXN
11:30 p.m.: Gus the Savage
Midnight: FlipSwitch B2B Cryptic
The V-Spot
(906 Providence Rd., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
6 p.m.: UltraViolent
6:45 p.m.: Lives Lost
7:30 p.m.: From a Nightmare
8:30 p.m.: War Ballad
9:30 p.m.: So Much Hope, Buried
10:30 p.m.: The Boastfuls
11:30 p.m.: Stereotytans
12:30 a.m.: Traverse the Abyss
Saturday, Nov. 20
Stage West
(301 N. Main Ave., Scranton)
Cover: Free
10 a.m.: Bar opens, free breakfast
11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m.: Joe Caviston panel discussion – How to actually get people to come out to your show
Learn how to utilize marketing tips to grow your bands, pack venues, sell out shows, and become the band that talent buyers want to book (and pay) to perform. Caviston currently sells between 350-800 tickets monthly for his Emo Night events. Learn his secrets to packing rooms.
12:30 p.m.-1:45 p.m.: Carl Canedy panel discussion – Picking the correct producer and the ins and outs of an indie record deal
Seasoned music industry veteran Carl Canedy will discuss how important it is to pick the correct producer and walk the audience through the ins and outs of everything that goes into an indie record deal. Canedy has produced bands like Anthrax, Exciter, Overkill, and Attila. Playing with The Rods and Manowar, he is credited as one of the founders of thrash metal.
2 p.m.-3:30 p.m.: Josh Balz, Aaron Bruch, John Phillips, and Kristopher Jones panel discussion – The importance of building a brand
The stacked panel includes Josh Balz (Motionless In White, The Strange and Unusual, Noir Dark Spirits), Aaron Bruch (Breaking Benjamin), John Phillips (900 Management, MCR Productions, Snoop Dogg, Body Count), and Kristopher B. Jones (Special Guest App, Pepperjam), who have all recently launched Parlor Beverages together. This team is single-handedly making root beer fun again. They’ve all built multiple brands, so the group will walk musicians, bands, and businesses alike through the importance of brand building and what it can do for your career.
Backyard Ale House
(523 Linden St., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
8 p.m.: Channel 65
9 p.m.: Room 108
10 p.m.: The Boastfuls
Midnight: DJ Middle Name
The Bog
(341 Adams Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
7 p.m.: 20 SomeThing
8 p.m.: Powder Keg Culture
9 p.m.: The In Between
10 p.m.: Send Request
11 p.m.: Brendan Brisk Band
Midnight: All Systems Go
1 a.m.: Tedd Hazard
Noir Dark Spirits
(244 Penn Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
8 p.m.: Cardinal Arms
9 p.m.: The After Hours
10 p.m.: Skylar Love
11 p.m.: TySoul and Maine the Medicine
Midnight: Stompa
1 a.m.: Akuryo
Peculiar Kitchen
(307 Penn Ave., Scranton)
Cover: Free
5:30 p.m.: Kailin of Earth
6:30 p.m.: Bombz
7:30 p.m.: Your Pal Frank
The Railyard
(119 Jefferson Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
8 p.m.: Franklin House
9 p.m.: Down by 5
10 p.m.: The Taxmen
11 p.m.: Tori V & The Karma
12:35 a.m.: SLOKEY
Stage West
(301 N. Main Ave., Scranton)
Cover: $10 for general admission, $15 for hopper pass
6 p.m.: Joe Lombardo (acoustic set)
6:30 p.m.: Mercy Gang
7:15 p.m.: American Buffalo Ghost
8 p.m.: Moral Code
8:45 p.m.: Sleeplore
9:40 p.m.: Esta Coda
10:25 p.m.: Lucas Hex
11 p.m.: Screaming Infidelities: Emo Night
The V-Spot
(906 Providence Rd., Scranton)
Cover: $5 or $10 for hopper pass
5:30 p.m.: Fatal Misconception
6:30 p.m.: Abhorid
7:30 p.m.: Black Horizon
8:30 p.m.: Threatpoint
9:30 p.m.: The Aegean
10:30 p.m.: Putrefied Flesh (reunion show)
11:30 p.m.: Royal Hell
12:30 a.m.: 5-7-Zero
