There are two communities in Northern Ireland: those that lurk and those that post.

When, five years ago, as part of an end of term project at Art College, Roger Herbert set up a website dedicated to the bands then ploughing their way through Belfast’s toilet circuit, little did he know that it would go on to establish itself as not just an invaluable resource for emerging musical hopefuls, but also an endlessly enlightening, often infuriating, platform for hitherto neglected voices.

Since its establishment Fastfude has received almost two million hits – many drawn by its constantly updated gig listings, its links to other like-minded sites and its local gig and demo reviews. But most, probably, come along for a dip into the site’s message board, a space where earnest discussion about the merits of The West Belfast Festival sits next to dismemberments of JJ72. Where the naming and shaming of sociopath doormen rubs up against declarations of love for Juliet Turner.

In its earliest days, the Fastfude message board had a ferocious reputation as a bare-knuckle rhetorical bear-pit, according to Roger, though, while there remain moments when the gloves come off, these days when the blood starts to boil, the tendency is to count slowly to ten.

“I think people are still learning how to deal with the Internet,” he says. “But users are becoming a lot less reluctant to identify themselves now and that’s a positive thing. They’re not just going to the board to rip the shit out of people. I think there’s an appreciation of what the board has to offer and a willingness to get involved positively. There always will be trolls but we’re always trying to remind people that they are actually involved in a community and to treat it with a bit of respect.”

There have been roughly 120,000 posts made during Fastfude’s lifetime, not all have been fair-minded, balanced and contemplative (not all have been particularly sane), but, taken as a whole, they have provided an insight into what it’s like to want to make music (or just go along to see it) in a place where that is becoming increasingly more difficult. Northern Ireland is in danger of turning into a cold house for local music. At a time when Belfast-based acts like Desert Hearts and Olympic Lifts have released albums on international labels – when it’s just a matter of time before Phil Kieran and Kidd Dynamo follow suit – and when, in Bright Star and Slide, local labels are establishing shining reputations overseas, the closing of venues and clubs previously sympathetic to putting on live shows has been as depressing as it has been predictable.

It’s within this context that websites like Fastfude and the countless other DIY boards run by other bands and musicians have, according to Roger, taken on an added significance.

“It’s one of the ironies at the minute that as Belfast is trying to grow culturally, all the venues that for years only survived because they put on music, are ditching their band nights for more lucrative, glossy kind of nights. Fastfude isn’t a substitute but it does provide an opportunity for musicians to come up with ways around this. People from here are very quick to assume the negative. But it’s important to provide some kind of positive message. People forget about all the great things that are happening here.”

Fastfude has recently done its bit by putting on shows in both Belfast and Derry. Events that have not only provided bands with a chance to play with some of their peers but have also allowed some faces to be put to some names.

“They’re a really good chance to meet up with contributors to the site,” says Roger. “And I have to say I’ve yet to meet anyone who’s been a complete twat. Even the really obnoxious posters. At the very worst they’ve been naive teenagers who just mouth off on the messageboard. But there’ve been any number of weird relationships that have sprouted up on the site – people find out they’ve lots in common with someone and go off and record things together or set up gigs with one another.”

“I’ve watched loads of bands form,” he continues. “It’s a really nice thing to see. Amid all the madness and bitterness going on on the site, in one wee corner there’s a couple of people discovering a shared loved of Yo La Tengo and, next thing you know, they’re organising practices and writing songs. That’s what kind of legitimises the site.”

www.fastfude.com