The Organizers: Chad Clibborn & Kevin Sur

Ages: 35
Hometown: Mercer Island, Wash; Foster City, Calif.
Current Neighborhood: Ballard
Favorite place in Seattle: Anywhere on the water fishing; the $3 record bins at Fremont Vintage Mall

Used to be that indie record labels were the channel through which underground bands reached attentive audiences. Now it’s indie music concerts.

In 2008, Chad Clibborn joined with Doe Bay Resort owner Joe Brotherton to create one of the most effective channels for Pacific Northwest bands to reach a new, eager audience. After performing at the inaugural edition of the boutique, Orcas Island-bound gathering, Kevin Sur joined Clibborn and Brotherton as a co-organizer. Since, the festival has hosted career-launching performances by the Lonely Forest, the Head and the Heart and Pickwick, and refreshed veterans like Damien Jurado, John Vanderslice and the Maldives. Building on their success, Clibborn and Sur began organizing more events. Working under the Artist Home banner, the duo inaugurated the Summer Bonfire series in 2011, putting acoustic bands in the sand at Golden Gardens, and revived the once-beloved, beer-fueled hoedown known as Slack Fest. With a guiding principle of “creating awesome music experiences,” the two former musicians know how to please artists and fans alike, rendering passé the overproduced, oversold corporate festival.

“Two of the hardest working guys I know—and they have kids!” says Maldives frontman Jason Dodson. “These guys are more mothers than fathers—they nurture art and artists alike.”

In February, Artist Home launches a monthly rock ‘n’ roll matinee for families. Summer will see another Doe Bay Fest (which will sell out at 800 tickets), plus Slack Fest and more free bonfire shows.

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Photography by Kyle Johnson at Melrose Market Studios.