Whether you respond to the driving chords of hard rock or the punk rock cry for anarchy, Columbus is the place to jam. The music dynamics in Cowtown are as diverse as its people, but the lean is toward good ‘ole rock ‘n’ roll.

“To some extent, the scene is made up of several, often overlapping, geographic scenes,” said Joel Treadway, founder of www.cringe.com, a Web site focusing on local Columbus music. “The campus area tends to be largely original punk, alternative and pop.”

Jazz and blues, as well as jam bands and cover bands can also be found in the Columbus area.

Jazz and blues tend to be found in the Short North and the Arena District; cover and dance bands are more common in the suburbs and Brewery District; and jam bands tend to be more common in central Columbus, Treadway said.

“There are several hundred bands listed on Cringe, maybe as many as 700 active bands,” Treadway said.

Cringe was founded in 1994 as a poll to make fun of the polls local alternative papers took. Readers of the Live Shows calendar, which focuses on the Ohio State, Short North, Arena District and downtown areas, were asked to create a category and winner of their choice. The first issue was an e-mail, and a few months later the quarterly ‘zine’ moved to the Web.

“The name Cringe is derived from the idea that if ‘grunge’ is the Seattle sound, the Columbus sound must be ‘cringe,’ ” Treadway said. “Yeah, ‘cringe’ is kind of a sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek name.”

Exposure to local music is key to a thriving local music scene. After people are introduced to local music, they are more likely to seek it out on their own through the papers and Web sites like Cringe, Treadway said.

“We get 1,000 to 1,400 visitors who view a total of 12,000 to 17,000 pages every day,” he said.

Columbus’ music fans are as vast and diverse as the music they listen to. However, two distinct crowds exist – the cover band crowd and original band crowd.

Jack DeVoss, the music director of CD101 FM and host of Front Stage 101, said the two crowds never meet.

“They don’t like each other,” he said.

Cover bands tend to play to an after-work audience in search of a party. Jane Powel, the general manager at Ludlow’s bar, tends to book ‘party’ bands.

“Because of the size of our venue, we get bands newer in the market,” Powel said. “Some favorite (bands) have grown and developed a following. These bands we put on a more frequent rotation.”

Weekend cover bands tend to have a larger audience than innovative, local bands, Treadway said.

“Audiences for cover bands are not necessarily attentive, devoted audiences. In other words, the audience isn’t particularly there for the music to begin with.”

Original bands often mix up their sets, playing original songs and covers to keep the audience attentive.

Breaking boundaries within music genres is difficult in Columbus, said Rob Baumann, a member of the experimental group Wallace’s Line and a graduate student in economics.

“I don’t think it is a bad thing to play at least a couple things people are familiar with,” Baumann said. “It’s hard to listen to something you’ve never heard before.”

Columbus’ music fans are not extremely receptive to experimental music, Baumann said. “(Wallace’s Line) is not well received – people are just more into traditional rock ‘n’ roll.”

Prior to Wallace’s Line, Baumann’s more widely-received band played sets of one-third cover songs.

“It is easier to get noticed when playing music like that,” he said.

Although fans who enjoy live, original music do exist, most are not always motivated to go to a show. Columbus fans would rather stay home and watch television than go to a live show, Treadway said.

“Unfortunately, there are probably more after-work weekend warriors in the mix than local music supporters,” Treadway said. “There are some very strong scene supporters, but in a city this large, it can be a bit frustrating that much of the audience is the same few hundred people from year to year.”

Even the small group of music supporters avoid going to hear local music when summer months hit.

“Things slow considerably in the summer, but it is still pretty vibrant,” DeVoss said.

DeVoss said Columbus is an A-list city for national acts to play.

“We get the same shows as New York and Los Angeles. If they’re coming to Chicago, they’re coming here,” he said.

OSU students are a big draw for national acts, as well as the 1.2 million citizens of all shapes, sizes and colors.

“Little Brothers (bar) books a lot of prestigious indie bands,” DeVoss said.

DeVoss’ show, Front Stage 101, promotes local bands and shows to create a larger following of local music. DeVoss features one band on his show, playing two to three songs from that band.

“I choose bands that play out,” DeVoss said. “Or I coordinate with record release parties.”

Columbus has produced nationally recognized bands, such as Howlin’ Maggie and the Lack. Other bands with a large Columbus following have created quite a buzz.

“Pretty Mighty Mighty is one of my long-standing favorites,” Treadway said. “The Means are making a lot of noise and gathering some interest and acclaim. The New Bomb Turks still have a lot of energy and already have some international attention.”

Bands cannot succeed without the support of local fans. In order to keep a vibrant, active local music scene alive, fans must go out and actually pay to get into a show, even if they are on the guest list, DeVoss said.

“It is important to support local clubs. If they go away, the music scene goes away,” DeVoss said.