Waking the dragon of Vashon’s music scene at Sporty’s

“There is an underbelly to this island … and they love this”

By Alex Bruell • March 5, 2024 8:00 pm

Sporty’s patrons got a taste of rock March 1 during a multi-band concert hosted at the bar.

Rock ‘n’ roll outfit Stray Rails warmed the crowd up with rockabilly tunes, and later in the night, Vashon’s own Gloom Gazer blasted the audience with sludgy, hypnotic waves of metal — accompanied by entranced, head-banging and hard-dancing audience members. Hrungy, heavy-alternative island rockers Tramp Harbor finished out the show.

Gloom Gazer drummer Dexter Casper Excalibur Oakenshield assisted in organizing the concert, which packed Sporty’s with an lively crowd of leather-wearing punks, dancing kids, school-aged youngsters and bar regulars.

“When I grew up here, when I was a teenager, there was an actual thriving punk, alternate, metal scene that existed,” Oakenshield said.

But after leaving the island, and returning in 2017, he came back to find the scene dying out.

So Oakenshield said he started putting on monthly shows at the Eagles club, encouraging people of all ages and genres to perform live music in an effort to breathe life back into the scene.

“There is an underbelly to this island, and it’s the people that serve you drinks, bag your groceries and serve you your weed,” Oakenshield said. “Those people are real people … and they love this s***.”

Oakenshield said the turning point was last summer, when hardcore Seattle punk duo Iron Lung played a show at Sporty’s and “absolutely corked the place.”

Last Friday’s show packed Sporty’s, with a bigger turnout than Oakenshield expected — and he says this summer will continue to rock, powered by the regular people who make up Vashon’s underbelly.

“Vashon has always had this in it,” Oakenshield said. “It’s always been a part of us, and it’s been like a sleeping dragon, and we’re just going to bring it back.”