Home of The Vauxhalls.

Welcome to The Crumper, home of The Vauxhalls.

Tucked away in a crumbling, graffiti-riddled building, The Vauxhalls—Adriano D’Agnillo, Ben Koblmiller, Jacob Lloyd, and Kaja Kolar—a power pop band with a midwest twang, spend their time and cash shaping their sound. Formed in November 2023, the band’s members are all students, some work, some don’t.

Rent is due on the first.

Empty beer cans rattle when the bass kicks, old show posters peel from the walls—a collage of memories. The windows are cracked, the air is stale, and the rent is cheap. This is The Crumper—a DIY practice space and venue founded by Brett Martin and Emma Sharpe. Noise seeps through the walls in a collision of fluorescent hums and nickel-plated strings.

Out back by the train tracks, the ground is littered with cigarette butts and the remnants of last night’s gig. It’s far from perfect, but for The Vauxhalls and countless others, it’s home—one of the last places in the city where music is made for the sake of making it.

Much like the space they inhabit, The Vauxhalls are raw and unpolished. Their sound isn’t about perfection—it’s about the energy that comes from being young, hungry, and willing to pour everything into music. The Crumper offers a refuge for bands like The Vauxhalls. It’s a place where the pressures of the industry don’t exist, and where the only thing required of them is $165 a month and a love of music.

In the Montréal musical canon, playing and practicing in a run-down building is a rite of passage. It’s not about the glitz or glamour of big venues when you're just starting out—it’s about the realness, the intimacy, and the community that forms in spaces like these. There’s no separation between band and audience here. Everyone is part of the same energy, feeding off each other’s enthusiasm. It’s a space where mistakes are forgiven, where experimenting with sound is encouraged, and where every show feels like a secret everyone’s in on.

Beyond the music, The Vauxhalls and The Crumper are a part of a larger underground culture that thrives on collaboration, support, and a shared love for the art. Brett Martin and Emma Sharpe, who co-founded The Crumper, are passionate about preserving these spaces in a city where venues seem to shut down just as fast as new condos pop up. They know that without venues like this, many bands, including The Vauxhalls, would have nowhere.

For The Vauxhalls and others, it’s a precious resource—a place to create, to express, and to grow as artists. As the city around them changes, The Vauxhalls know this won’t last forever, but for now, it remains for anyone with a passion for music to keep the spirit alive.

A small section of the stairwell leading down to the train tracks. Remnants of gigs, music videos, and smoke breaks lay scattered like broken glass—waiting to be added to, never to be cleaned. The Crumper, Mar. 23, 2025, Montréal. (Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

The way up. Before you get to the music, you have to get past the smell. The ground floor is an operating warehouse; the second belongs to creatives. The Crumper, Mar. 23, 2025, Montréal. (Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Three doors past the entrance lies the venue space. The only room with windows is where The Vauxhalls come to take a break from practice. The ceiling is crumbling, and passing trains muffle the music. The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal. (Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

A box of broken drumsticks sits on the communal shelf of The Crumper—a quiet monument to loud nights. Splintered wood, cracked tips, and worn grips. Things break, but the music never stops. 

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

A close-up of Adrian D’Agnillo’s hand playing lap steel with metal finger picks. His guitar hangs from a strap across his body, ready for him to switch between instruments, occasionally adding harmonica into the mix.

The Crumper, Mar. 7, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

The unassuming facade of The Crumper. During daylight hours, it's a functioning warehouse. Surrounded by new condos and clean neighbours, the stained pavement of The Crumper can't help but stand out.

The Crumper, Mar. 7, 2025, Montréal. (Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Beaten and borrowed, the practice space kick drum dons the words:
 COME OUT TO SHOW THEM.
No one remembers who painted it, but every band that plays fulfills the mantra.

The Crumper, Mar. 23, 2025, Montréal. (Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Adrian D'Agnillo, rhythm guitar, lap steel and singer for The Vauxhalls peers around the corner of the hallways on the 3rd floor, the 1st floor is business, the 2nd is pleasure, the 3rd is locked doors.

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

A scorched flyer clings to the doorway leading into The Crumper’s hallway, its edges curled and blackened. The details are gone, but the night not forgotten.

The Crumper, Mar. 7, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Illuminated by a blown out window of the stairwell, Kaja Kolar stands lead to the silhouettes 

of her bandmates. 

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Ben Koblmiller, lead guitar and vocals for The Vauxhalls, posing with his bandmates. Adriano D’Agnillo (back left), Jacob Lloyd (back middle), and Kaja Kolar (back right).

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Kaja Kolar, drummer for The Vauxhalls posing with her bandmates.
Adriano D’Agnillo (back left), Ben Koblmiller (back right), and Jacob Lloyd (back middle).

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Jacob Lloyd, bassist for The Vauxhalls posing with his bandmates.
Adriano D’Agnillo (back left), Ben Koblmiller (back right) and Kaja Kolar (back middle).

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

Each band member placed in their own frame, together they form The Vauxhalls.

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)

The empty frame of the stairwell. Without the band, The Crumper still holds personality in its walls. Crumbling, peeling, charred, loved.

The Crumper, Jan. 28, 2025, Montréal.

(Photo by Aaron Bauman / Concordia University Advanced PJ Class)