Local singer-songwriter and Cincinnati transplant Micah Peterson knows how hard it can be for a band just starting out.

His band, Second Son, has played bars, breweries and restaurants throughout Bend since forming in 2013. The group also managed to land a few gigs at Volcanic Theatre Pub, but none of these shows came easily.

“It is a lot of pressure sometimes, man — like, all right, I’m gonna go ask about a bunch of shows,” Peterson said. “It’s like going to look for a job and people aren’t hiring. ‘Do you have music to give us? Do you have a résumé to give us? No? Then, no.’ It makes you feel bad about yourself, and then you start to question why you’re even doing it.”

Brad Parsons, drummer for local folk rock quartet Wilderness, also experienced some difficulty when he started his own band, Corner Gospel Explosion, late last year. The indie-dance quartet played its first show in January.

“I’d been playing in Wilderness for a couple years at that point when Corner Gospel Explosion started up, but I was used to having Jared (Smith), the lead singer, do all the booking and promotion,” Parsons said. “I would just come out and go to shows sometimes, but I was never involved in the business aspect (of playing music) or what that even entailed. Once I started, I was starting over basically from ground zero with Corner Gospel Explosion, and realized, wow, it’s really hard to get your foot in the door unless you have some connections.”

Thanks to his time in Wilderness, Parsons did have some connections on the local music scene. He approached Derek Sitter, owner of the Volcanic Theatre Pub, early this year with an idea for a monthly showcase for up-and-coming local bands struggling to be heard.

Corner Gospel Explosion played the first trial run showcase in May. The showcases began in earnest with an August show featuring Moon Room, Energy Tribe and Cosmonautical, and continued in September with a bill featuring Stereo Treason, Victory Swig and Zero Static. The series returns Thursday for the October showcase, featuring Second Son, Reginald Zoomer and Dirtnap.

Like the previous showcases, Thursday’s lineup features an eclectic array of genres, from Peterson’s folky musings in the vein of Townes Van Zandt or Gram Parsons, to Dirtnap’s hip-hop, to the spacey jazz rock of Reginald Zoomer. Parsons’ goal is to seek out all styles of music to highlight at the showcases.

“As we continue to be more diversified, we might do a metal night, or so something crazy like metal, hip-hop and folk in the same show,” Parsons said. “It’s dependent on being able to do this for a year, two years, three years, and create something super, super solid. It’s an experiment, and it takes a certain amount of time to figure out all the quirks, what works and what doesn’t.”

Parsons has his work cut out for him in his search for up-and-coming local talent.

“It’s been interesting because I have my own circle of musicians, and the hardest thing is to try to expand that, going out and actually meeting people with other connections in other styles of music,” he said. “I deal in rock music, maybe folk a little bit.”

He said the showcases are open to any local musician or band, but he’s specifically looking for groups that have “been around for about a year, maybe played a show or two and gotten their feet wet, maybe they just played friends’ parties or something, and are looking to kind of take it to the next level.”

Volcanic seemed the perfect venue for Parsons to host the showcases. The venue, which opened in 2012 in the Century Center, is a dedicated performing arts space open only when a show or theatrical performance is going on, unlike many of the local bars and restaurants that host local musicians who are just starting out.

“Just getting to say, ‘Yep, I played at Volcanic Theatre Pub,’ seems to be pretty exciting for these bands that have only been around for three, four months, five months,” Parsons said.

Stereo Treason guitarist Red Rogers formed the five-piece hard rock group with drummer Anthony Wyke after moving to Bend from Las Vegas in 2012. The band played its first gig in October of last year.

As a newcomer, Rogers found the insular music scene in Bend somewhat intimidating. After playing its first gig at M&J Tavern, the band hooked up with local group No Cash Value, opening a few shows at Reed Pub Company. The band moved on to gigs at Third Street Pub and Silver Moon Brewery.

“The one place we wanted to play this entire time was Volcanic, for sure,” Rogers said. “It’s a great venue; what Derek’s doing with that whole thing is pretty cool.”

David von Schlegell, guitarist and vocalist for Cosmonautical, likewise set his sights on Volcanic Theatre Pub when he relocated his band from Manchester, New Hampshire, to Bend last year.

“Going around and seeing local music or whatever music is available — music is sort of an afterthought (at some venues), whereas at Volcanic that’s what it is, it’s a venue,” he said. “I wanted to play there to sound good and put our best foot forward sonically.”

The showcases appear to be paying off for both bands. Cosmonautical landed another show at Volcanic last month, opening for California folk-rockers Taken By Canadians. And Rogers said Stereo Treason is looking forward to playing the venue again soon.

“I was talking to Derek, and he told me, ‘You guys can rest assured knowing you’ll be playing back there again soon,’” he said.

For Peterson, the upcoming showcase is a chance for him to relaunch Second Son as a vehicle for his songwriting. The band has gone through various lineups since forming in 2013.

“It was always real fun, but it just wasn’t quite what I was going for musically,” Peterson said. “I always kind of felt the pressure to play in a pseudo-bluegrass band out here to get more shows and make it a more enjoyable time for people, but it’s not really where my heart’s at musically.”

Peterson hooked up with Jared Smith late last year to begin work on a new Second Son album, “The Heat of Devils,” in Smith’s home studio. During the process of recording, Peterson decided to focus on performing solo under the Second Son name. (Although, Smith and drummer Jim Bigknife, who plays on “The Heat of Devils,” may join him onstage at the showcase.)

While Peterson has played Volcanic before, he said he’s excited to be a part of the local showcase, and by proxy, Bend’s growing music scene.

“It sounds like Brad is just really wanting to bring the community of musicians together,” Peterson said. “I think it’s a budding music scene. It’s small, it’s starting out, but it could be really cool. I think there’s a lot of people kind of sporadically involved, and I think (Parsons is) just trying to bring everybody together and make more of a supportive community, rather than a competitive one.”

— Reporter: 541-617-7814, bmcelhiney@bendbulletin.com