Redgate Becomes Dazed: New Students Carry on the Legacy of Redgate
When Redgate played its final show this April, the venue left a hole in the center of SU’s DIY scene, but the people behind Dazed have ensured that its absence wouldn’t be felt.
Words by Harry Sutton / Graphic by Michael Loya
Each year, the DIY music scene at Syracuse University bids farewell to iconic house venues as their organizers move on to post-graduation life. But as Newton’s laws of physics would dictate, the scene also welcomes new venues each year, continuing the long-lasting legacy of DIY music at the school. Old names fade into memory – The Harrington, The Garden, Babylon – and new names find meaning on campus – Sagehaus, Crater, The Shipyard.
Beginning in Fall 2022, six students rented a house on Euclid Avenue recognizable for its eight-foot tall, hot-red Japanese Torii gate in the front yard. What started as a side project organized by a handful of music-loving undergrads eventually became Redgate, a name that would make waves across campus and become a pillar of the DIY community. Within months, Redgate expanded past the bounds of its cramped, sweaty basement: hosting Walnutpalooza, an all-day music festival for charity, collaborating on multiple shows at legendary downtown venue The Lost Horizon, and even recruiting NYC band Laundry Day (who opened for Ed Sheeran) for a few gigs.
When the students behind Redgate prepared for graduation in May 2024, the music scene around campus foresaw a scramble to find the next go-to spot for live shows. A nostalgic seven-minute video posted to Redgate’s Instagram compiled some of the many electric moments Redgate had seen over its two years of music, compounding the community’s preemptive longing for the venue.
Then came June 22nd, when Dazed announced its arrival on the scene through a cryptic animation of what one can only assume is the inside of a lava lamp. By the time August rolled around and students returned to campus, the worries of a world without Redgate had been quelled.
Six Syracuse juniors – Ella DeLucia, Megan Halsey, Polly Hoffman, Philip Martins, Kieran Romano, and Samara Vachani – ensured that the search for SU’s new favorite DIY venue wouldn’t last long. Launching Dazed from the very house where Redgate made its name, the students found the lease available online last fall and immediately saw their opportunity to keep the house at the center of SU’s music scene.
“Freshman year, we all went to Redgate all the time. We all loved it. A lot of us became friends or found our friends there,” said Hoffman.
What separates Dazed from many DIY venues that have operated at SU in recent years is that all six of its organizers are simply doing it for the love of music. During their freshman and sophomore years, the Dazed squad spent many weekend nights enjoying the school’s music scene. The goal of Dazed is to give back to the community that so heavily impacted their college experiences, facilitating a way for students to hear great music and make new friends. Although none of them are musicians or performers themselves, the students behind Dazed were motivated by their admiration of previous venues.
“We’ve never performed, but we’re all musically inclined. We just love music,” added Hoffman.
Months since their first show on August 30th, Dazed has quickly become a staple of the DIY scene at Syracuse. Across just their first five shows, they hosted SU-based bands, CNY bands from Binghamton and Buffalo, and a collaboration with Cage Collective for a “Rave Weekend” (which was almost shut down by the police, but that’s a story for another article).
“It’s been awesome. We’re still figuring things out and learning, but we’ve had overall positive feedback,” said Hoffman.
Despite close calls with the police and some growing pains, Dazed has quickly taken its place as Redgate’s successor and one of the most exciting DIY venues around Syracuse. The organizers plan to expand their bookings in future semesters to recruit artists from around the country and collaborate on outdoor shows that escape the confines of the basement.
As Dazed carries the torch that Redgate lit, it’s clear that this new chapter in the DIY music scene is just getting started. With their passion for music and the community, the students behind Dazed are not just filling the void left by Redgate – they’re providing a new way to experience SU’s music scene.