one year of see-saw.fun

One year ago today, I launched see/saw. It was kind of a ramshackle beginning—I didn’t have the logo yet—but it felt like the punk spirit to start it and figure it out as I went along. The first post was a statement of intention: to build a successor to my Pitchfork punk column Shake Appeal and write about the music that most excites me. 

I’d pretty recently been laid off, and looking back, I was in rough shape mentally in see/saw’s first months. My response to upheaval was to run nonstop—start a blog, travel for big shot freelance assignments, launch new projects, and hold myself to an impossible standard of productivity. Equal parts rewarding and avoidant, it’s a complicated time to remember. The highs were unbelievable, but any time I slowed down enough to observe what was happening with me, the lows were significant.

The first days of the site came with a flood of initial subscriptions and support, both from the punk community and the people in my life. That hasn’t stopped. Tyler made my first flyer and established an aesthetic for see/saw that includes the posters above. At some point last year, Badkins encouraged me to start a Discord, which grew into a pretty active and vibrant community space. The McElroys had me stop by the Clubhouse. I’ve been interviewed multiple times about it, which is wild for an independent music journalism operation.

When I think about see/saw’s first year, the writing I’ve done feels secondary to the group efforts—hanging with Nina weekly to make the Punk This Week pod happen, editing and publishing work by friends and heroes, putting together a year-end newsprint broadsheet with John F. Malta, moderating a Cincinnati punk roundtable at Feel It, curating a 40-song benefit compilation for people who lost homes in L.A., doing radio with some exceptional community stations around the U.S., and broadly, connecting with people who love and make this music. I’ve made a lot of new friends.

I’ve been doing better in recent months. I’m not smart enough to know why. It’s probably the combination of family, therapy, friends, and time. If you read this stuff on see/saw or have ever hit me up with an affirmation, that has meant so much.

A few months ago I wrote about how see/saw is an art practice, not a renewed attempt at a music journalism career. At the year one mark, here’s where I’m at: I spend my days with a two-year-old who loves pig racing and those classical music books with buttons and a speaker that plays, like, The Magic Flute. He demands that I draw bears and crabs while sitting my adult-sized ass on a toddler-sized chair. I regularly have to stop him from coloring on the walls. And I have this multifaceted art practice. I’m always busy, but this is what I’m busy doing. At this moment, I’m fulfilled.

I’m typically pretty bad about celebrating accomplishments, but I’m trying to be better about it. I built something, I stuck with it for a year, so booking the kinds of bands I’ve been writing about seemed like the right thing to do. If you’re able, I’d love to see you at these three parties:

• March 29: see/saw presents Punk Rock Pizza Party at Leona’s in Eau Claire. Citric Dummies, Heather the Jerk, American Muscle. Grab tickets.
• April 4: before year 1: a see/saw pre-party at Cloudland Theater in Minneapolis. Feeling Figures, Bermuda Squares, Answering Machines, and Yuasa-Exide. Grab tickets.
• April 5: year 1: a see/saw party at Eagles No. 34 in Minneapolis. Retail Simps, Judy and the Jerks, Neo Neos, Artificial Go, 208, Abi Ooze, and Panel. Grab tickets.

Come out, say hey, have fun seeing some of the best bands going. Thanks for reading, subscribing, and telling your friends about see/saw. Remember to say the hyphen out loud when you say the URL. See hyphen saw dot fun.