Title
The "Akron Sound" Museum
Description
The "Akron Sound" Museum was established in 2015 to celebrate, commemorate and preserve the contributions and musical history of the Akron, Ohio area. The original mission of the museum was solely focused on the era during the 1970s and 1980s when Akron, and along with Kent, were arguably the punk capital of the Midwest. But over time it has grown to celebrate all of the region's musical heritage while still maintaining and celebrating The "Akron Sound" era as it's primary mission.
Whether the music that came out of Akron and Kent is truly punk, as it's often described, is up to opinion. As Buzz Clic, the lead guitarist of the Rubber City Rebels who also ran the They Crypt that became iconic to the local music scene, said "I don't think any of the bands sounded alike but I think the spirit was the same. We were all just sick of being spoon-fed the music of the day and it appeared that the seat assignments were already taken, so when the "punk, new wave" thing came along, well... there was a wide open door and we all just went through it". So unlike others "sounds" that have risen up in different cities over the years, the label thrown on Akron/Kent at the time had more to do with an attitude than an actual style of music. Those a bit more cynical might even say it was simply marketing, but regardless a vibrant music scene existed.
Date Created
3-2018
Publisher
Cleveland Memory Project
What is Cleveland Memory?
The Cleveland Memory Project is a freely searchable online collection of digital photos, texts, oral histories, videos and other local history resources, built by the Michael Schwartz Library at the Cleveland State University in collaboration with a host of community partners around Northeast Ohio.
