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Katie Malco needs your help!
Touring is the cornerstone for all independent musicians, so what would you do if your equipment went up in flames?
We were absolutely devastated when we heard the news of the fire that hit independent British indie rock musician Malco's storage and practice building.
Katie shared a practice space in Birmingham with friends, her band members, and all their other bands including Mt. Yonder, To The Wall, S.T Manville, Howard James Kenny, The Broken Oak Duet as well as a professional drummer, James Burgess.
On 17 July the building that contained the lock-up unit with all of their gear inside caught on fire. The smoke could be seen from the M6 and Coventry and caused huge disruptions and an unbelievable amount of damage.
Once the fire was finally under control, a demolition crew had to be dispatched to tear down what was now an unsafe building.
Katie and her bandmates had only a few minutes to salvage a fraction of their beloved instruments from the flooded unit before the building was demolished.
The majority of what could be salvaged is damaged and in need of repair, and sadly a huge number of guitars, amps, pedals, drums and their shared PA system have been severely damaged or destroyed.
As well as the enormous sentimental value of their instruments, their collective financial losses due to the fire total are devastating. They have calculated they need to raise a minimum of £17,000 to replace the basics needed to get back on the road touring again, and importantly to earn a living.
Being an independent musician has always been challenging, so at DMS, we try to support artists in every way possible, especially those facing difficult times. To assist Katie, we have directly contributed to her cause and will be pressing vinyl and CDs free of charge for her tour. We hope these efforts will help her quickly get her music ventures back on track.
If you can help please visit GoFundMe page, to give what you can to help out a group of fantastic independent artists.
We thank you in advance for helping. Big love, Team DMS
