Orange Music Group and Subcat Studios will host a Battle of the Bands on Thursday at 8 p.m. in Schine Underground. The concert will feature both experienced and new bands as they fight for six hours of studio time at the Subcat Studios on South West Street. The Daily Orange spoke with the eight bands about their music and why they deserve to win the show.

Pizza Party
Members: Jesse Katzenstein, Will Skalmoski, Will Taggart and Eric Zidar
Genre: Party rock
Pizza Party began at the beginning of the school year. Guitarist Will Taggart described the group’s influences as “a unique blend of old and new music.” “We think we have a shot of winning because of our tenacious goal to be one of the best bands Syracuse has seen and our positive attitude toward the music scene in this town,” said Taggart, a sophomore in the Bandier program.

Harryhausen
Members: Stephen Sbiroli, Sean Dougherty, Zack Schweikert, Justin Patricolo and Kyle Drumheller
Genre: Punk/indie garage rock
Harryhausen formed in the summer of 2014 and has performed at the Westcott Theater alongside another SU band, Pizza Party. “We’re energy, catchy, aggressive, fun and love to interact with the crowd,” lead singer Stephen Sbiroli said. “I think we should win because we like to build our shows around a crowd experience that anyone can have fun with. If we win, everyone wins.”

The New Daze
Members: Jamie Knittel, Max Flansburg and Steve Graf
Genre: Self-described as “heavy jam funk rock with an edge” with “sick harmonies”
The New Daze formed in 2008, and in 2011, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry sophomore environmental science major Jamie Knittel joined. The band has plenty of performance experience, having performed in SU for the past four years. Though the group has performed extensively off campus, The New Daze decided to participate in Battle of the Bands to break into the SU music scene. “We try to put our foot in every style,” bassist and vocalist Knittel said. “We let the crowd in on our jokes. We like to have fun with people in the show, we try to involve people as much as we can.”

These Walls
Members: Benjamin Baker, Shane Crittenden, Alexander DePersia and Billy Hinksmon
Genre: Rock
These Walls formed in September, and Battle of the Bands will be the group’s first performance. The group members decided to participate so they can get their name out and share their music. “I know we’re going up against a lot of jam bands and what we can bring to the table is that we’re going to be familiar to the ears,” said Shane Crittenden, a sophomore music major. “We have our own sound, we have a bunch of great songs we wrote and we have a really solid group dynamic.”

Nails In The Pulpit
Members: Alexandra Myers, Jason Tanner, Tim Brudzinski and Antonio Labbe
Genre: Metal, rock, grunge, punk
Nails In The Pulpit formed in 2012, and sophomore ceramics major Alexandra Myers auditioned and joined the band last semester. Myers said every member of the band is from the area, and that the band hopes to bring its music to a university audience. “We put a lot of time into our music and we really try to be professional with our performing even though it’s really counterculture,” Myers said. “Our music is a lot heavier than a lot of stuff that my generation listens to commonly.”

Futurism
Members: Sean Mowry, Greg Jacks and Jacob Goldfine
Genre: Alternative rock
Futurism formed within the last two months, and Battle of the Bands will be the group’s first performance. Since two of its members are seniors, Futurism sees Battle of the Bands as more of a performance opportunity than a competition. “I thought this would be a really good opportunity for us to play a show,” said Jacob Goldfine, a senior music history and cultures major. “Although it’s a competition, that’s really not what it’s about. It’s really just a chance for us to play and get some really good reception from people.”

The Late Night Jammers
Members: Randolph Herbert, Jannuel Cabrera, Charles Keppler, Ben Taylor, Kristen Heaney and Samuel Bailey
Genre: R&B, fusion
The Late Night Jammers formed in November 2014, and is formed by almost all engineering students. “I think it’s really cool that we’re all really cool people (pursuing) really hard occupations in life, but also have aspirations to be performers,” said Samuel Bailey, a junior electrical engineering major. “We’re fun, we’re exciting and I think people can relate to us.” Bailey also said the members’ educational backgrounds help them experiment in how they make music.

Lee Terrace
Members: Kevin Metzger, Ian Doherty, Mike Sloan and Pj Sweeney
Genre: Progressive rock
Lee Terrace gets its name from the street that guitarist Kevin Metzger and bassist Mike Sloan lived in. Every member grew up in the area and the band has been performing in Syracuse since 2007. “We’re all local guys and we don’t have a lot of money,” said Metzger, a senior musical performance major. “The other guys work full-time jobs and have to pay bills and such, so to be able to get six hours for free from a competition is huge and would help us finish this album.” ​

 

Published on April 9, 2015 at 12:47 am