Unorthodox spaces. Pay what you can. DIY. All-ages. Showcase local artists. These five ideas were established as the core principles of No Comply when the organization was founded. Three events later, No Comply has grown from a wild notion of “what if we threw a show in a skate bowl” to the biggest music festival held in a skate park in the world. Taking its name and philosophy from the skateboarding trick, No Comply as an event seeks to combine elements of counterculture that often are inexplicably separate (initially focused on merging the worlds of skaters and punk musicians), as well as defy what can or should be done when it comes to live music events.

 

The first No Comply, held within the bowl of Dave Armstrong Extreme Park in September 2021, was a veritable celebration of the Louisville music scene’s emergence from the pandemic. The bill was built of bands who had either managed to survive fifteen months in a city devoid of live music (Shark Sandwich, Belushi Speed Ball), or were brand new, borne out of creative impulses sparked during the shutdown (Terminal Axon, Nerve House, Sunshine, Sriracha Manhunt).What began as a wild idea, a gas generator in a skate bowl to power equipment, and a handful of flyers on telephone poles was an event that drew in roughly 300 attendees.  Within a short span of time, the notoriety of this first show grew, and as a result, so too did its audience, increasing to over 1,300 attendees for the second. 

 

The second No Comply, held in July 2022, was regarded by the team as an opportunity to help elevate Louisville bands now that the attention of so many had begun to look at the brazen ingenuity taking place around the event. The six bands selected were all staples to the Louisville scene, and all those the team viewed as undersung, with the hope that No Comply 2 would help launch them into wider recognition (The Histrionics, Zerg Rush, Shitfire, Mr. Clit and the Pink Cigarettes, Thee Tabs, Anemic Royalty, and return guest Belushi Speed Ball). The team also added a skate competition to the event, sponsored by Louisville staple Home Skateboarding Shop. The impact of No Comply 2 compounded exponentially around the Louisville music scene, inspiring multiple, and equally audacious DIY pop-up shows across the city over the following months, as well as a level of attention that led to bands across the country messaging the team asking: “How can we get on your next bill?”

 

No Comply 3 (October 2023) then became an opportunity for the team to stretch its potential further, resulting in a lineup that combined multiple divisions in Louisville’s music scene. Only one band (Deady) was stylistically punk as all previous bands had been, with the rest of the bill turning its attention towards combining different audiences in the skate bowl over their common love for live music, with Pharmacy Girl (EDM), Surfaced (hardcore), Horace Gaither, Nise the Nymph and Shy! (hip-hop) and White Reaper (Louisville legends and world wide touring act). The skate competition grew in size as well, with Thrasher Magazine (the first publication to use the skateboarding term from which No Comply draws its name) agreeing to sponsor the event. Now as the momentum of No Comply continues to grow, the team looks to ways to connect the creatives of the city even further.