RIP MATTRESS FORT

BY DJ/ DX

Squeeze your way up the the sagging back porch, past the flannel-clad bodies and PBRs, through the cloudy sliding-glass door, and into the living room. The walls are lined with mattresses, and music blares from amps and a single broken PA balanced on a precarious side table.

Where are you? You’re at Mattress Fort, one of Raleigh’s most substantial house show venues.

Prior to Mattress Fort, house shows in Raleigh were sporadic and dominated by metal and hardcore artists. Catie Yerkes, at the time only a twenty-year-old college student, decided to create a space for people to enjoy great music in an intimate setting that was by donation and available for all ages. In doing so, not only did she manage to bring incredible bands to the area like Radiator Hospital, Krill and Modern Baseball, but she was also responsible for creating an inclusive community of music enthusiasts and musicians in the Triangle. These shows were attracting people that cared about the music and creating an environment and a network for these people to interact. It encouraged the DIY mentality, and was the birthplace of many local favorites, including the bands

Celebrity Jeopardy, GHOSTT BLLONDE and Naked Naps. The house went out with a bang this past July with Cuddle Fest, a two-night farewell show featuring 11 Mattress Fort alumnus bands. Catie and her roommates have since moved out, but the DIY legacy of Mattress Fort lives on in the community it cultivated. So what was Mattress Fort? Ask a punk.