The Long History of Lost Cross
September 17, 2019
Residents of the Lost Cross house Morgan Hughes, left, of Marion, and Grant Kentala, right, of Chicago, pose for a portrait on Monday, Sept. 2019, inside the Lost Cross house basement. As the next owners of the punk house, Kentala says it’s as if they have been passed the torch from previous generations.
The black house that sits on the corner of Elm and Beveridge is called the Lost Cross House and has been home to punk rockers, students and Carbondale residents since 1986. It is known for its basement rock concerts.
The Lost Cross House was first opened up for music in 1986. It is one of the oldest punk houses in America.
Grant Kentala, a resident of Lost Cross, said Mikey Snot and Chris Cross were the original roommates and founders of Lost Cross. It was going to be the name of their band but decided to name the house Lost Cross instead.
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Morgan Hues, a current resident at Lost Cross said, “We don’t sell beer, or charge at the door, we don’t want to give the police any reason to come knocking.”
After 36 years, there aren’t any secrets about what’s going on here, it’s an unspoken agreement with the police, said Hues.
The concerts are BYOB and instead of charging at the door, the house has a donation box to pay for the bands that travelled to play, or new sound equipment.
Both Hues and Kentala are the residents, but they also act as managers for the concert hall. They book shows, clean after concerts and collect donations. There are also bands that use the basement as a place to practice.
“I said to myself never in a million years would I live there,” Hues said. The current resident is now one of the two living there.
“If you are a freshman, or haven’t found a place to fit in, Lost Cross might be the place,” Kentala said. He said they are always looking for new bands and musicians, people who want to play in front of crowds but don’t know where to start.
The first concert of the semester was Aug. 29, but they plan on having five to 10 concerts by the end of the year. Anyone is welcome to come by, whether they are students or local residents.
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There are a lot of rock bands passing in and out of Carbondale and one part of being a Lost Cross resident is allowing passing bands to crash at the house, Kentala said.
The house has seen some damage over the years, Hues said as he pointed out where the ceiling in the basement had to be lifted up because it was barely 6 feet high.
The walls are entirely covered in posters, stickers, graffiti and random knick knacks from over the years. The ceilings are spray painted, and painted plywood in front of some windows.
This is the character of Lost Cross — the punk design along with the notorious history has created a famous house in the Carbondale area.
Staff reporter Mitch Brown can be reached at [email protected].
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