In a cafe by a quiet neighborhood, a group of musicians and gig goers hang out while talking about various topics. They’re volunteers for Indievided Records, a community-driven collective of artists, musicians, and enthusiasts in Dumaguete City. The collective regularly organizes events where creators can share their original art with the local community.
During hangouts, they usually talk about their interests and hobbies, and sometimes, they casually discuss plans for organizing the next gig. As a new volunteer myself, I can attest to how easy-going it is to be part of the collective. There is no divide among the gig goers, the volunteers, and the heads of Indievided.
The music scene in Dumaguete is tightly knit. According to Andy Alvarez, a long-time event organizer, the city’s music scene is a vibrant “hodgepodge of different versions and different genres” from reggae, heavy metal, hip-hop, and many more.
But more than a decade ago, the music scene wasn’t this close, nor was it as diverse. Before it became a record label, Indievided was founded in 2011 as an organizing collective, to help smaller and less established artists who struggled to find platforms where they could share their original pieces.
Cole Geconcillo, Indievided’s founder, said, “Instead of waiting and hoping for gigs, we made an effort to set up our own shows, so that we could play.” What started as a simple solution transformed into a movement that’s still going strong after more than a decade.
In its early days, the collective found support from others in the city, such as the Belltower Project (BTP) and Purok Gahi. These collectives not only inspired Indievided, but also offered partnerships and opportunities.
“At the time, Indievided relied on Belltower’s partnerships and opportunities. We were still starting out, and the founders of the BTP collective were kind enough to collaborate with us, essentially showing us the ropes.” Geconcillo recalled. Artists who were tied to Indievided to were able to perform at other events, and vice-versa.
Aside from events, Indievided-tied artists and other local musicians had their original songs included in albums produced by the BTP. Belltower Project Tres, an album released in 2016, included songs from local reggae act Willfreedo and local indie pop act Modern Cassette. The two groups also participated in Rock Against Youth Apathy (RAYA), Indievided’s annual battle of the bands.
From then on, Indievided rapidly broadened their scope. “It started with songs, and eventually it expanded to spoken word, photography, and art in general,” said Kenanaiah Jo, Indievided’s Creative Head.
The collective has organized events such as Balak, a poetry get-together that started in 2016, and Techne, where students showcased their fashion pieces during the event’s second run in 2018.
Despite its rapid growth and large number of volunteers, Indievided went into a hiatus during the pandemic. Even after the quarantine was lifted, the former heads and volunteers were unable to organize events as they either moved onto other things or left the city. In 2023, Geconcillo approached Jo to be the Creatives Head along with Mirgo Gramatica as Logistics Head and Rizdee Mier as Marketing Head. The three were tasked to spearhead Indievided’s revival.
But Indievided’s revival was extremely challenging. “We didn’t have any experience,” Jo shared. Jo and Gramatica had been going to gigs since 2016, but they did not have experience as organizers.
“We didn’t know how to put on a show. I guess we kind of [knew] a little bit of tech, a little bit of logistics, pero dili gyud, kanang, kami ang heads ana nga binuhatan. [but it wasn’t that we were in charge of those duties.]”
Their lack of experience wasn’t the only challenge in reviving Indievided. For Palingenesis, their first gig in November 2023, they struggled with finances and manpower. They only had a few volunteers and a small media team as most of the new generation did not know what the collective was. Regardless, it was their motivation and desire to improve after every show that helped get them through it all.
Other people eventually joined them. Since Palingenesis, they have been able to recruit more than 50 volunteer gig goers and musicians who are just as dedicated to helping the local music scene. “It’s mostly [been] a domino effect within volunteers, and crowd, and gig goers,” Dy said. “When they see how we produce the events, they [notice that] people are driven to work and to play for Indievided and ask themselves, ‘What can I do to help?’”
Other volunteers and I can attest to how the trio overcame their struggles inspired us to do more for Indievided. It’s not easy juggling academics, work, and volunteering, and it can get overwhelming. But it is fulfilling to see the audience and artists enjoy the shows that we organize. Lanz Gabor, Indievided’s secretariat head, shared, “[Indievided is] constantly uplifting the local scene to experience the power of art first-hand, I think that’s [a] beautiful enough reason to stay for.”
In 2024, after years of organizing events, the collective officially became Indievided Records, a subsidiary label under Melt Records from Cebu City. “[In] all those years of producing shows, that’s always been one of the goals,” Jo said. “To become a label to better distribute or give a platform [for] original art [from] Dumaguete City.”
Through Indievided Records’ partnership with Melt Records, they can distribute their artists’ releases to a broader audience, amplifying Dumaguete’s scene.
Some of Indievided’s signed bands include Boylosers, an indie rock and garage punk band, and The Lomboys, a blues act. The record label plans to sign more Dumaguete musicians and bands, as they are given the opportunity to have their music recorded and mixed for free by volunteers.
Ruthi Marcojos, singer and guitarist of Boylosers, said that Indievided has pushed her to care more about her craft and that it can become better when it’s given a little love. “For a really long time, I thought I was mediocre,” she shared. “But they were so patient with me all throughout and it made me feel comfortable with being a beginner.”
As Dumaguete is a small town where artists rarely get national recognition, Indievided gives something more valuable than fame – a sense of belonging that comes with a loving community.
Apart from organizing events in Dumaguete and signing more local artists, the collective hopes to strengthen ties with music scenes in Cebu, Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, and more. “What we want here is a tight-knit relationship with the scenes from Visayas and Mindanao,” Jo shared.
Despite all the challenges, the collective turned record label has stayed true to its goal of uplifting local talent through the support of a community of committed volunteers, and now, Melt Records. It hopes to continue to foster creativity for years to come, leaving an impact on the local art and music scene.
Indievided is more than a collective and a record label. It’s a movement and a community, and also a testament to how collaboration and passion can transform the community itself. Heads, volunteers, artists, and gig goers can only be excited and hopeful for the collective’s future plans as it has more in store for the community.
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