International Pop Underground Convention

As festival organizer and K Records co-founder Candice Pedersen said, "It was a way to combine music and dancing and fun without all the pseudo-business stuff.... We tried to keep passes as low as possible, thirty-five dollars for five days, just enough to make sure the bands and venues got paid.

[3] Beyond musical performances, the Convention also fostered an eclectic variety of arts-related activities ranging from poetry readings to cakewalk dances and even a Planet of the Apes movie marathon.

[3][5][7][9] The concept for the opening night was designed and promoted by a group of volunteers led by Maffeo, KAOS disc jockey Michelle Noel, and local entrepreneur Margaret Doherty.

This series was a forum for independent and DIY bands, exposing Pacific-Northwest-area favorites like The Softies, Chromatics, and Tiger Trap, while also including divergent musical contributions by Make-Up, Built to Spill, The Rondelles, Thatcher on Acid, Thee Headcoats, and many others.

Produced by veteran Olympia engineer Patrick Maley, the album International Pop Underground Convention includes performances by twenty-one participant bands.

[12][13] While Nirvana was away on tour, Kurt Cobain expressed his deep disappointment over being unable to attend the Convention where many of the bands developed important new friendships and found unexpected inspirations.

[3] The shows were a proving ground for many of the nascent artists of the time, and gave some of them – like Rose Melberg (on the cusp of forming Tiger Trap), Nikki McClure, and Heavens to Betsy's Corin Tucker – the first public appearance of their careers.

[7][14] The IPU Convention and its participating artists figured heavily in A Revolution You Can Dance To: Indie Music in the Northwest, an exhibition (2016–17) at the Washington State History Museum.