MACRoCk is an annual celebration of independent music perpetuated by the MACRoCk Committee (a not for profit organization) through an annual conference. By showcasing panels, record labels, and bands, MACRoCk aims to bring DIY culture to the mid-Atlantic region. MACRoCk exists through the help of grass-roots ethics that believe music can thrive without corporate influence.
In 1996, MACRoCk was formed as a branch of WXJM (Harrisonburg and JMU’s college radio station). In 2006, after years of affiliation with the university, MACRoCk transitioned into a separate financial and ideological venture. MACRoCk is run by a small committee of volunteers, with aide from Harrisonburg residents and businesses. With each passing year, the number of bands and attendees grows immensely. Last year, the nationally recognized conference boasted over one hundred bands and fourteen hundred attendees.
Some past bands that have taken part include:
Aloha, An Albatross, Algernon Cadwallader, Anathallo, Animal Collective, The Appleseed Cast, Avail, Best Coast, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Black Mountain, Bouncing Souls, Bowerbirds, Bracewar, Brooke Wagner, Cloak Dagger, Cloud Nothings, Converge, Darkest Hour, Dashboard Confessional, Dillinger Escape Plan, Discount, The Dismemberment Plan, Double Negative, Earthride, Elliott Smith, Eternal Summers, The Faint, Fugazi, Fucked Up, Government Warning, Hot Water Music, Magnolia Electric Co., Magrudergrind, Man Man, Maps and Atlases, Mates of State, Matt Pond PA, Mastodon, Menzingers, Mewithoutyou, Mock Orange, Municipal Waste Obits, Owen, Pattern is Movement, Pg. 99, Prefuse 73, Pygmy Lush, Pulling Teeth, Q and not U, Saves the Day, S. Carey, Screaming Females, Slingshot Dakota, Sufjan Stevens Superchunk, Tim Barry, US Christmas, Video Hippos, The Walkmen, War on Drugs, Wolf Eyes, The Wrens, Young Widows + many, many more.