Finding community in the mosh pit

How one hardcore band and my cousin’s cancer battle revealed the heart behind the chaos.

From Drain’s Website: Anyone who’s seen Drain live has felt it. The electricity coming off of the stage. The communal energy of the fans singing upfront. The primal thrills of fists flying in the mosh pit. The uninhibited joy emanating from every banging head, screaming lung and airborne foot in that room. There’s nothing like a Drain show. There’s no other hardcore band like Drain. The Santa Cruz band is an institution in their genre and an affable neighbor to their adjacent ones. Punks love Drain. Metalheads love Drain. Haters can’t help but love Drain. Drain is for everyone. Well, venue security guards might not love Drain. But to everyone else: Drain…Is Your Friend.

And what a friend Drain has been to its fans, to its community, but especially to my cousin, Tim Flegal, who is the band’s drummer. He and some friends from UC Santa Cruz started Drain more than 10 years ago by playing gigs in small apartments and backyards to a handful of people. They kept at it year after year and the crowds slowly got bigger and bigger. Finally in 2020 they released their first album, California Cursed, and it was a hit among hardcore fans. They now play to sold out concert venues and will release their third album, Drain . . . Is Your Friend, this fall.

But this story isn’t about a small hardcore band finding success, it's about the heart behind that success.

From Drain’s Instagram

Earlier this year, our drummer Tim Flegal was diagnosed with cancer and he’s been an absolute warrior over the past few months of treatment and surgeries. For the first time in 11 years of Drain, Tim had to sit out a tour and focus on health. He insisted that we didn’t cancel any of our shows this summer and that we get out there with a friend on drums and smash these shows…and that’s exactly what we did.

DRAIN IS TEAM FLEGAL

DRAIN IS YOUR FRIEND ❤️

So, when the band went on tour,  they didn’t leave Timmy behind. They created a “Team Flegal” banner and made two life size cutouts of Tim that traveled around the country with them. They gave shout outs and dedicated “Stealing Happiness from Tomorrow” to Tim. They stayed true to their friend, their bandmate and their community.

And the outpouring of love from fans was overwhelming. From Argentina and Brazil to Italy and the U.S., these hardcore fans showed just how deep that love runs. My cousin's cancer diagnosis brought out the fierce compassion of this hardcore community, a reminder that even the toughest crowds are built on connection, loyalty and belonging.

And Timmy was welcomed back to the stage for Drain’s final summer show at Vans Warped Tour in Long Beach, with fans flooding Instagram to show love: 

• Shout out @timflegal returning!! It took alot of guts and im proud🔥🔥!!

• Loved seeing Tim killin the set!

• So fire🔥🔥🔥 Glad to see @timflegal ripping it once again

Hey Drain, thanks for being our friend, showing your heart and building community across the globe.

p.s. Shout out to @derekfilms for making amazing videos.