For George Washington University students Carolina Carmo and Max Cohen, the DC music scene has been a vital source of community and inspiration. Carmo is the production director for GW’s student-run radio station WRGW, while Cohen is the WRGW blog editor and a member of the band Home Remedies. Together, they’ve put together a new compilation album, Plenty Happening, which will bring together new, unheard tracks from 27 DC acts, including Ekko Astral, Dorinda, and Pretty Bitter.
The compilation, available both digitally and on CD, is out May 9th. That same night, Cohen and Carmo will host a release party at the Black Cat featuring performances from Flowers for the Dead, TORO, Spring Silver, and BRNDA. All proceeds from the project will go to support gender-affirming care at the Whitman-Walker clinic.
The idea for the compilation initially came to Carmo as she was preparing for a WRGW interview with Connor Murray, owner of Pennsylvania label Crafted Sounds. Carmo learned that Murray had made compilations of the Pittsburgh scene while studying in the city and wondered why there wasn’t a similar project for the District—then realized that she and Cohen could make one themselves. They reached out to friends, former collaborators, and favorite inspirations to join in on the compilation. Some artists—including Flowers the for the Dead, Pinky Lemon, Pretty Bitter, Mannequin Fight, and Baltimore Avenue—stopped by the studio to record new tracks with Cohen; others—including Cuni, Aunt Katrina, and Rosslyn Station—sent in unreleased work.
For the duo, the compilation serves as a celebration of DC’s music scene, especially its revitalization following pandemic closures. When they first came to campus, “this community was really recovering from Covid,” says Cohen. “To watch the scene bounce back over the past few years has been just amazing. The comp is our way of carrying the mission of the DIY scene with us.”
There’s a slightly bittersweet note to the project: Cohen and Carmo—both graduating seniors this year—view it as a send-off to the scene, a way of capping off their memories by bringing the larger community together. “It feels like a nice closure,” says Carmo. “It’s a big project that is bringing so many different pieces together and it’s nice to kind of round it all out.”
Some songs speak to the current anxieties of the time: Dundrum, for example, contributed a track in response to the havoc created by Trump 2.0. The compilation’s fundraising for Whitman-Walker clinic is also a crucial part of responding to the moment. For queer “shoegays” band Pinky Lemon, participating was a “no-brainer, especially right now, when we’re seeing health care being stripped away for trans people,” says singer and guitarist Rob Cline.
Ultimately, Carmo and Cohen want Plenty Happening to push others to launch new projects. “I hope people are inspired by the comp to make what they want to see in the scene happen,” says Cohen. “Like, four years ago, I couldn’t have imagined doing something like this.”
