Founded in 2013 in Columbia, Dismal Niche began as a DIY, artist-operated record label and community arts network committed to promoting and archiving the expression of the more independent, esoteric and experimental accents of the local and regional music and arts community.

Since incorporating as a non-profit in 2015, the activities of the organization have largely revolved around the programming of the annual Columbia Experimental Music Festival and intermittent seasonal concerts. Our programming welcomes artists from across the U.S. and from around the world to Columbia offering local residents rare opportunities to experience world class presentations of innovative and non-conventional music, art and performances that would likely otherwise not occur in Columbia.

Through our programming we aim to facilitate immersive, interactive experiences that are both cognitively and viscerally challenging while also restorative and conducive to the non-didactic freedom of subjective interpretation and enjoyment. We believe that community experiences with adventurous music and art can help stimulate critical and creative thought not only about the ways in which music and art can be seen, heard, felt or performed, but also the ways in which public spaces can be used, transformed or subverted and social relationships expanded and re-imagined.