Dingus is coming up on its one year anniversary. Sometime around July 4th, summer of 2011, I began on a quest to navigate the wide realm of DIY music. The thought originally came when I realized that there were people all over the world doing what I was doing, writing and recording in my bedroom. Bandcamp helped confirm that realization by offering physical proof of the prolific nature. I had hoped that the blog would find a small readership, a few friends to help sustain my desire for critiquing music, but I found so much more. Now, with the help of a committed community of daily readers, the blog is helping bands and producers receive the exposure their hard work deserves by tapping into an international cult community of music fans longing for something more.
It’s truly been incredible. Staff members have come and gone, amazing relationships forged and hardships overcome all in the name of expanding the community. I’d like to thank a few people in particular who have really made a diference, some of the unsung heroes behind the scenes at this tidy little blog. Firstly, Christine Spilka, a fellow musician who was around for the earliest days of the blog helping iron out the theory. My good friend Thomas Miranda has been with me since month four. After seeing me struggle with the workload, Tom took over the daily communications for the blog. Without him, I would have been fed up with this long ago. Next on the list is our web coder, Michael Robison. Dingus has been out of commission for a total of ten minutes this entire year- thank Mike. The third person I’ll mention is our copy editor, Nick Mancusi. As a family friend, Nick was always an intellectual role model, it’s an honor to have his brain on board. Last but certainly not least, Leah Lovecat, the woman who held together Dingus while I took a three week vacation, the only other writer who’s ever matched my enthusiasm, a valuable asset. I’d also like to give a special shout out to the DIY labels that I’ve become so close with, especially my holmies at Mama Coco’s Funky Kitchen and Crash Symbols.
It’s been a crazy year filled with amazing times. To commemorate and usher in round two we will be announcing our anniversary party in the coming week. Stay tuned, friends. @Dingusonmusic
