REVIEW: Rocktober: The Impact of Community
WRITTEN BY: Chloe Brown
Twisting down a flight of narrow, stone steps, past the ticket booth, and into the dim basement of the First Unitarian Church, you could feel the room shake before the music even started. Crowds of Temple students packed themselves shoulder-to-shoulder into a monumental landmark in both music history and Philly history, one that has hosted names like Mumford & Sons, Arcade Fire, The xx, and tons of local artists.
This year, on Wednesday, Nov. 12th, 2025, Temple’s very own radio station, WHIP Radio, hosted an annual battle of the bands, coined as, “Rocktober.” After months of marketing, narrowing down the bands each week with a voting form, three bands came to the stage, chomping at the bit to fight for their chance to win an on air interview with WHIP; a feature on WHIP’s website; a spotlight in WHIP’s spring zine; and a free studio session with Bell Tower Music, Temple’s student-run record label, complete with marketing support, equipment, and engineers. The three bands who emerged on the scene and earned their spot at Rocktober were Strangeness in Proportion, Cortiella, and Mount Cloud Collective.
Standing in the room, before the bands went on was an experience in and of itself. It wasn’t just anticipation for the show, it was something deeper than that pre-show excitement we all tend to feel before the music starts. The way strangers introduced themselves with no hesitation, students greeting familiar faces and striking up new conversations as people crowded in, there was an undeniable feeling – people were craving community, and this was the place to be.
Emma Booth, WHIP Radio’s Entertainment Director, highlighted the event, “Activities like Rocktober are encouraging people to go outside – talk to people, hang out with people, like-minded people, people who like live music – and it’s awesome.” One student from Temple, Jake Kelly, took a different stance when asked if Philly residents are craving community, explaining, “I feel like Philly is in less dire need of community than in other places. Like a lot of people – whether you grew up in Philly or you moved here as an adult or you’re here for college – chances are you’re from some other place you don’t like as much, you know? And just, like, talking to your neighbors, going outside and saying good morning to them – there’s a lot of cities or towns in America that aren’t like that. There’s a lot of community to be found in this city.”
Timothy McCloud, a member of Mount Cloud Collective, the winning band of Rocktober, said it himself when he explained, “I’ve been playing music my whole life and it wasn’t until I moved out here to Philly that I really found a community, or as much of a community as this.” It seemed like a perfect balance of both within this event. While people gathered into this space they were not just looking for connection, but hoping to celebrate the one they already feel in Philadelphia.
Beyond this advantage of gaining connection and community, there are so many benefits to be had with an event like Rocktober. Booth gave light to why events like this are so important for the community, “I feel like a lot of Temple students tend to stay on campus… Students don’t always have the opportunity to do things in the city as much… Plus it gives us the opportunity to collaborate with schools from other places in Philadelphia, like Drexel or UPenn that are really close to us, and I think it encourages them to come to the event as well.”
At Rocktober this year, booths were set up right when you walked into the room, with WKDU’s radio station set up, as well as a depop booth, joined by Temple’s Fashion Business Club, allowing students to easily network with other organizations, even outside of Temple. Music events like this are a great way for rising artists and bands to showcase their talent; as Logan Troeger, the drummer of Mount Cloud Collective, points out, “There’s just a surplus of amazing music in the Philadelphia DIY scene. And to be able to be a part of this, it’s great local exposure for all sorts of people in the DIY scene.”
But besides the booths, the networking opportunities, the collaboration, and the chance to dive deeper into Philly’s creative scene, the heart of Rocktober has always been the music. And this year, it was Mount Cloud Collective who rose to the top and walked away with a win. After the show, I sat down with them to talk about their journey, their sound, their motivations, and what it’s like to become an up-and-coming band in Philly’s DIY scene.
Tommy, the band’s guitarist and singer, points out that in the DIY scene, Philly shines brighter than other cities, “The music scene in Philly is awesome, it’s the city of brotherly love for a reason… Playing these gigs every weekend, you meet so many amazing people who are so nice to you and so supportive and it’s really nice to kind of just support each other. It’s like, hell yeah, we all love music, it brings us together… I don’t think every city is like this, I think Philadelphia is really special in the DIY scene.”
When asked about the community they’ve experienced in this grassroots, underground Philly community, Tim mentioned, “We’ve made so many amazing friends through this… We have the best support system and we love these people to death. We’ve found such a home here… Shout out to all the bands that have shown us so much love when we were first starting out. Without the community, our friends, and all the people we love that got us to where we are, we wouldn’t be here.”
And really, that’s the meaning of Rocktober. This year, it wasn’t just a concert, it was a reminder that Philly thrives because of the people that pack rooms like these, cheering each other on, and showing up for one other. A huge thank you to WHIP Radio for bringing a community like this together.
