For more than nine years, Dugen has aspired to rock. Hard.

Formed during the mid-1990s explosion of local alterna-bands, Dugen began playing out at Heavy’s, a dingy, smoky all-ages club in Old Town which served as a sort of mecca for ear-splitting teenage rock kicks despite being shut down, reopened and renamed on a seemingly weekly basis. (The place is now long since totally defunct.)

Since those early days, Dugen has outlived most, if not all, of the other local bands from that time. Along the way, the group has morphed from mere grunge knockoff to a more focused band that blends rock riffage, punk fervor and pop hooks into its original songs.

And the years spent persevering and polishing their sound have paid off for the boys of Dugen – Chris Gagnon, vocals-guitar, Josh Heikkinen, bass, Shawn Labelle, lead guitar, and Gabe Cyr, drums. The band has snagged airplay on such local rock radio stations as WKIT and WTOS, as well as on campus radio stations WMEB and WHSN. And in 2001, Dugen won first place at the Down East Maine Battle of the Bands.

Most recently, Dugen has taken its rock ‘n’ roll fantasy to another level by securing a slot at the New York City Music Festival, an annual event held at Madison Square Garden where unsigned artists perform and compete for the grand prize of a major label recording contract. The festival runs from April 22 to May 2 and coincides with the New York Independent Film Festival. It’s also the best chance for musicians to meet, greet and shop their demos to record label reps in the hopes of striking their own deals.

“Out of 300 bands, there’s got to be a lot of pretty stiff competition, so we’re not expecting to take first prize,” says Gagnon. “Of course, we’re gonna try like hell.”

But going to the Big Apple, staying there and getting back will take some cash for this band of local boys with day jobs. So on March 16, Benjamin’s in downtown Bangor will host “Send Dugen to New York Night,” a fund-raising concert to help the band raise the money it needs to make the trip. You can also catch Dugen the following night as the opening act for Soil at Ushuaia in Orono.

George Bragdon can be reached at gbragdon@bangordailynews.net. For more on Dugen, log onto www.dugen.com. For more about the New York City Music Festival, visit www.newyorkmusicfest.com.