Rock Around The Clock Saturday’s Battle Of The Bands At Riverfront Park Will Feature Area’s Top Eight Teen Groups
Twenty-eight teen bands vied for eight coveted spots to compete at the annual KidsWeek Battle of the Bands competition.
Here’s a look at the lucky ones chosen to play.
The competition begins at 3 p.m. Saturday at Riverfront Park. Music by last year’s winner, Aunt Sophie’s Disease, followed by the local band Flourish, kicks off at noon.
The teen bands will compete for first, second and third place titles as well as Best Guitarist and People’s Choice awards. Prizes include a handmade guitar and public venues to perform.
ANOTHER DAY
Members: Kaysee Carl, 18, vocals/guitar/songwriter and Matt Ebel, 18, keyboards.
Both are Mead High School graduates. Type of Music: “Melodic-based mystical”
Carl is no stranger to the music scene. He was once the youngest member of the Spokane band Scattered Skies, which produced two CDs and was featured several times on air. When that band fizzled, Carl joined a friend he met in choir class to create Java Gun, which recently changed its name to Another Day.
“Our music style is kind of hard to describe, but it’s based around the melody, and it has kind of a mystical feel to it. It’s kind of mellow,” Carl said.
He added that writing and producing music is an emotional release for him. “Everything I feel or do goes on paper, and I love performing,” he said.
Carl hopes to “go someplace big” with his music, but knows that becoming famous is difficult in an unstable music business. For now, they hope to gain exposure from Saturday’s competition.
SMASH VELVET
Members: Matt Beers, 18; guitar/vocal; Matt Williams, 19, drums; Jean Gregor, 18, lead guitar; and Chris Arger, 18, bass. All graduated from Central Valley High.
Type of Music: Undefined
This is the first year this group of musicians will be playing as Smash Velvet, though they have participated in previous battle of the bands contests under different names.
The group writes its own songs. “It’s pretty hard to describe (our music),” Beers said. “I guess you just have to hear it.”
The members of Smash Velvet met through school and first joined as a band for their ninth grade talent show. The group has stayed together, practicing in members’ basements.
“The hardest part of being a band is working around everyone’s schedules,” Beers said.
Smash Velvet has played at their school and a few local gigs. They hope to someday liven up the Spokane music scene.
They get their chance at this year’s competition, where they are looking forward to seeing the other groups perform.
KNOGAHYDE
Members: Stewart Campbell, 17, bass/vocals; Wes Weddell, 16, guitar/vocals; Darren Harris, 17, drums. All attend Pullman High School.
Type of Music: Classic rock
The members of this band first came together to accompany their freshman choir a few years back. Since then, with the help of their choir director, they have recorded their own album, titled “Knogahyde,” featuring eight original songs. They also have played concerts at the Pullman Garden Fair, and school dances and parties.
“Our choir director was, and is, an inspiration to us. He helped us record our album using the school’s equipment, and he came to some of our concerts. He really has helped us get started,” said Campbell.
Knogahyde competed in last year’s Battle of the Bands and won a paid gig at Spokane’s annual Pig Out in the Park.
“Last year we didn’t really know too much about what was going on,” said Stewart. “This year we’re really looking forward to playing on the big stage. This year we have some experience, and I really think we’re gonna do well.”
SIROCCO
Members: Dan Delaney, 16, vocals/guitar; Andrew Senna, 17, vocals/guitar; Eric Norton, 17, drums; Ryan Leeds, 17, bass/guitar. All attend Ferris High School.
Type of music: Mellow rock/blues/jazz
The band, formerly named Dan and Andy and Eric, has plenty of experience performing in front of an audience. The group has had a steady gig playing its jazzy tunes at a Spokane coffee house and have performed at their school.
“We were just hangin’ out with our guitars one day, and thought about having a band,” said Delaney. After Norton was drafted for percussion and Leeds for bass, the band just took off.
Some of Sirocco’s original songs include “Out of Spirit,” “This Autumn” and “Only Me.”
“Our songs are not loud or really heavy. We play, like, coffee shop music and jazz, and some blues too,” Norton said.
The members of Sirocco are looking forward to hearing the other bands. Someday, they say, they might pursue a professional music career.
SECTION 8
Members: Jeff Berghammer, 18, drums; Mike Berghammer, 16, bass guitar; Garth Overman, 18, guitar; Grant Shelly, 16, guitar; Eric Ehrhardt, 17, vocals. Mike Berghammer, Shelly and Ehrhardt attend University High School. Jeff Berghammer and Overman have graduated from the school.
Type of music: Classic rock/reggae
This group has written one song, “Movin’ On” specifically for the competition.
Along with their own title, Section 8 will be playing other reggae/punk covers by various artists.
“We’ve been inspired by every piece of music we’ve ever listened to in our entire lives,” said Jeff Berghammer. “I mean, I’ve been playing instruments and making music since fifth grade. Playing and performing is not work. It’s fun and relaxing. It’s a good thing to do.”
Entertaining people is this band’s main goal. “We just like to play for people; that’s the fun. We like to entertain,” Ehrhardt said.
Members agree that they have no plans to pursue music as a career.
“This is as far as it goes for now, we think,” said Jeff Berghammer.
SPORK
Members: Charlie Martyn, 16, guitar; Andy Dawes, 17, bass; Josh Droun, 17, drums; and Justin Ball, 16, guitar. All attend Moscow High School.
Type of Music: Instrumental surf rock/blues
The members of Spork met through school and have been together for about three months. The Battle of the Bands contest is their first performance.
“We’re really just looking forward to getting to perform and express ourselves in front of people. This is our first chance,” Martyn said.
Spork has some original works but also plays a number of cover songs. Their music style is hard to define, they say, but they play some surf rock tunes, some blues and “some stuff in between.”
They hope the competition will give them exposure and help them get some gigs.
Martyn said, “We’re anxious to see how it goes. It’ll be fun.
LITTLE FELIX
Members: Marquis Ashley, 17, Mead High, guitar/vocals; Aaron Breeden, 16, Christian Liberty High, bass/vocals; Jon Pendleton, 18, North Central graduate, drums
Type of Music: Christian punk
The members of Little Felix met at a youth group for Open Bible Church. The idea of forming a band seemed “cool.”
Since then, they have written many songs including “Perfect One” and “Neo Punk Bedtime Story,” which they are practicing for Saturday’s competition. The group rehearses in Breeden’s basement two to three times a week.
“Yeah, his parents get sick of it sometimes, but they pretty much let us do our thing,” Ashley said.
The group plays at drug-free shows and tries to send positive messages to kids.
“It’s hard to make everybody happy with our music, but we really like to use our talent to be positive,” Ashley said.
This is the first time Little Felix will be performing at the Battle of the Bands and members hope it will bring them more exposure.
THE STOICS
Members: Ben Clark, 18, guitar; Ned Sadeley, 17, vocals; Jason Yen, 17, bass; Jason Farley, 18, drums. Yen is in the Running Start Program, Sadeley attends Ferris High School; and Clark and Farley graduated from Ferris.
Type of Music: Garage pop
The idea for a band came up when Clark and Sadeley were running for student offices a few years ago. They played at a talent show to win votes among the student body.
“After that we just kind of stayed together,” Clark said.
The Stoics now have their own house with a stage where they practice and perform songs they write themselves. Two of their titles are: “Baby Boomer World” and “Trailer Park Girl.”
Their stage is decorated with mannequins, plastic Santas and Christmas lights. They dress like Pee Wee Herman and throw stuff to the audience.
Their goal is to be mega rock stars and have their own action figures, Saturday morning cartoon show and roadies to take down their equipment.
The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = story by darcy camden/lewis and clark