Two shows and some sock monkey pictures later, the owners of Bizzarro World, a new house venue in Como, have built a community.

The second-ever Bizzarro World show was on Saturday with sophomores Jack Olson and Sebastian Tusa, two of the owners, playing in their own bands, I Am Bent Around Her and The Waterworks respectively. 

Olson and Tusa said they plan to provide a space for freshman bands to gain experience playing in front of a crowd. 

“They don’t get a lot of opportunities to play,” Olson said. “It’s kinda like a job experience. They (established bands) want you to have a live show before you play their live show.”

Tusa said dorms are the best and worst place to form a band. Students live alongside talented people but do not have room for instruments like drums, not to mention the potential noise complaints. 

When Olson, Tusa and two of their roommates who help run the venue, Aidan Eggler and Noah Iovinella, first signed the lease in October 2023, the group floated the idea of hosting a house venue. They have a basement now, and three of them have backgrounds in music. 

Tusa said when they first saw the basement, they realized they could hold a live show there.

When five of them moved into the house (one of the roommates is not involved in Bizarro World) there were pictures of sock monkeys left behind sitting in an empty room on the side of the duplex connected to the basement. They own both sides of the duplex and named that side of the house “Bizzarro World” because of the bizarre encounter, Olson said. 

The basement venue inherited the name. 

They hung up lights, used some egg cartons to soundproof the walls, ran PA tests, put up sock monkey banners and practiced their sound in the basement.

The owners of the venue didn’t have to ask their friends to help with the show. Tusa said they helped clean the house, make hotdogs to sell, create banners and run doors. 

“Labor of love does not begin to describe it,” Tusa said. 

Bizzarro World welcomed around 80 guests for their second show Saturday. Tusa said the doorman, a good friend of theirs, had to turn people away and turn down bribes. 

Fifty people can fit in their basement, and they also have kitchen and living room space for guests to roam. The venue does not allow alcohol, and they wrap caution tape around the sewage pipe in the basement to prevent accidents, Olson said. 

Tusa and Olson consider themselves lucky to have the space to play and record music. They even have a room called Studio Tim where they record their own music, and they both have albums coming out in February. 

Olson said sharing music with others makes these shows special. People expressed gratitude and appreciation for the new venue after the last show. 

“There was a lot of hugging,” Olson said. “Everyone’s like, ‘Thanks for everything you do.’ Everyone’s so friendly.”

Bizzarro World advertises its events on Instagram. During their last show, Tusa taped his phone to the wall to record an Instagram live. 

They plan to host their third show in March. Admission is $10.