Wander through the Campustown equivalent of most college towns – nearby Minneapolis and Iowa City included – any night of the week and you’ll find a lot going on – people going to concerts, shopping, drinking (both alcohol and coffee) or just having civilized conversations – reflecting the typical college culture of freedom and expression.

Ames is not one of these towns. Here, Campustown culture is far different.

“I can’t walk down Welch without being called a fag,” said Jordan Mayland, vocalist and keyboardist of Ames’ Keepers of the Carpet. “[Campustown has] kind of a scary energy. It’s really negative and hateful and . drunk.”

It’s tough to be someone like Mayland, whose band has a new album coming out in a few months. Despite being played on local radio station Channel Q (105.1 FM) and their album selling out at Hastings Books Music & Video, 620 Lincoln Way, The Keepers don’t draw very well in Ames – frequently playing to larger crowds on tour.

“Honestly, it does kind of piss you off – how many people are around here, and how empty the venues are,” Mayland said.

This situation is not uncommon. Bands frequently play shows to only a handful of people while the Welch Avenue bars are packed. And this town has talent that should be drawing people in.

“I can never remember, in my 10 years in Ames, this many great bands. Not good bands – great bands,” said Pat Blair, whose experience in the Ames scene is rather broad. In addition to playing in The Lone Strangers, he is a sound technician and booking manager at Bali Satay House, 2424 Lincoln Way.

“If you enjoy listening to music, there are at least three local bands whose shows you should be going to,” Blair said.

But people aren’t. And with so many self-professed music fans around, with so many people listening to their iPods all the time, why is this?

Blair thinks this very culture may be a cause of the lack of interest in local music.

“We’re under such constant sensory bombardment. I wonder if that’s why people don’t go to shows – because they’re already listening to music 24-7,” Blair said.

Pat Fleming, vocalist and guitarist for Poison Control Center, believes that the recent emphasis on bands’ Net presence via MySpace and iTunes may be contributing to the fall of local interest in Ames. A veteran of the Ames scene since 1999, he’s seen many other, better locales – and he’s seen this one in better shape.

“When I moved here in 1999, there were more venues – you could see live music any night of the week,” Fleming said.

Fleming attributes the lack of interest in local music to the fact that many students are from small towns.

“Most people who live in Iowa aren’t from Des Moines or Ames or Iowa City, or some bigger community. [They] aren’t exposed to anything but what’s on their radio or what’s on MTV,” he said. “They don’t end up going to live shows – it’s just not part of their life in rural Iowa.”

Having come from a small town himself, Fleming acquired his passion for music from his older siblings, leading him to explore the then-strong scene in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Ames’ reputation also serves to keep passionate music fans away. While touring, Fleming has seen many strong local scenes, including Athens, Ga., home of the University of Georgia.

“If you have the choice between going to, say, the University of Georgia and Iowa State, and you’re a music fan – that’s gonna be an avid part of your life – you’ll probably go to Georgia because there’s multiple venues, there’s touring bands coming through there all the time, there’s independent record stores, there’s a good college radio station,” Fleming said.

Becca Smith, keyboardist, vocalist and co-songwriter of General Sherman and junior in music, realized some of her frustrations with Ames’ crowds after spending the summer in Seattle.

“The contrast is black and white,” Smith said, speaking of the levels of crowd involvement in the two cities. “It’s almost more disappointing, realizing I haven’t experienced that here, than being able to enjoy and be involved with the show.”

Though General Sherman draws some solid crowds in Ames and Des Moines, the lack of enthusiasm bothers her.

“The musicians are the ones tapping their foot or even comfortable standing in front of the stage,” she said. “How sheltered we are in the music scene really shows.”

Perhaps a simple lack of exposure is the reason. Bands advertise their shows online and through fliers, and a lot of shows at Bali Satay House and the Maintenance Shop are advertised in local media, but there aren’t any massive efforts made to get names out.

“There are some pretty good bands around here, but I can understand why people don’t know about them,” said Ben Shin, frontman of Saint Radar and junior in sociology. “The typical college kid isn’t gonna look for music – they’d rather have it presented to them.”

Keith Rollins, a singer-songwriter, frontman of Jade Lea, senior in art and design and English education, has been in the scene for five years, and thinks things are starting to look up.

“People in this town complain that there’s nothing to do – and there kind of isn’t because the scene isn’t heavily advertised,” Rollins said. “Anyone who’s involved with the scene can see what the problem is.”

Brandi Power is one person who’s trying to help build up some name recognition and get the scene started. Power is a DJ at Channel Q radio, and runs a Sunday night show, “The Garage,” that highlights local bands.

“I grew up loving local music,” Power said. “I want to bring local music to the forefront of the scene.”

Power thinks the quality of talent in Ames needs more exposure, but she admits that the lack of interest is still surprising.

“It’s so hit and miss – these shows should be packed,” she said.

Another outlet for local musicians is Hastings. The store sells locally produced albums on consignment and hosts acoustic shows in its cafe.

“We want to get as many local bands in here as possible,” said Jeremy Johnson, assistant store manager at Hastings and former drummer for Poison Control Center. “A big problem with the scene is that when people do go to local shows, they just stand around unless they know your music.”

There is hope for the scene, however. Ames has all the ingredients needed to get a scene going – excellent bands, a few good venues and a large younger population. All that’s needed is some sort of spark to get people to start going out to shows and supporting bands.

Hopefully, this is inevitable.

“It’s like a spark in a hay bale – it might take a while to get going, but the spark is there,” Power said. “There’s stuff that people can relate to. I think that people just have to be aware of it.”

It seems that no one really knows what to do besides wait for everything to click.

“I don’t know what it’s gonna take to trigger it. I thought The Envy Corps getting signed would do it,” Blair said. “At some point, something is gonna happen that is gonna get people to start going to shows.”

Fleming is less hopeful. If the scene picks back up, he’ll be delighted, but he’ll keep on regardless.

“It’s up to the people,” he said. “I got no problems if people just don’t give a shit about music – that’s their thing.

“I’m still excited about this scene, and I’m still proud to be a part of it, so I’ll still bring friends’ bands through, and every time I play somewhere else, we’ll still say, ‘We’re the Poison Control Center, and we’re from Ames, Iowa.'”

Ames venues

Bali Satay House

2424 Lincoln Way

The Bali has become a headquarters for local bands, booking all types of acts and hosting mini-festivals and open mic nights. There is usually music four nights a week, and local acts are almost exclusively the focus.

Maintenance Shop

Memorial Union

The M-Shop recently hosted a local night, featuring three area bands, but such events are rare. The M-Shop usually books regional and touring acts.

Papa’s Corner

2430 Lincoln Way

This venue, at the former location of People’s Bar and Grill, has been plagued by delays in bringing the building up to code. Booking manager Mike Proffitt hopes to be open by November, with Afroman as the first show.

Zeke’s

3329 Lincoln Way

This brand-new venue, operated by The Rock, a branch of Stonebrook Community Church, sports a new sound system overseen by Bali Satay House sound technician Pat Blair. The venue, while not being specifically Christian-oriented, will not serve alcohol – the focus is on music.