This Saturday from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. in Hotung Café, five student bands will put politeness and high−frequency hearing aside for a chance at greatness. The winners of this weekend's Battle of the Bands will be granted the unique opportunity to play in front of thousands of their peers on the side−stage at Spring Fling.
Groups will play a 20−minute set to be critiqued by a student from each class year and a member of the Tufts faculty. The judging panel will include freshman Dylan Portelance, sophomore and Jackson Jills member Caroline Wilkes and President of Hip Hop for Social Change Mark Adams, a senior. The junior and faculty judges will be named later. Perhaps the most exciting prospects of the show, however, are the varied backgrounds and entertaining natures of the groups competing.
One of the contesting bands is the rock and R&B group Lori and Andy's 10th Avenue Supergroup, which first began playing as part of a senior project in multimedia studies. Seniors Loretta Allen (vocals and piano) and Andrew Mead (guitar) started the project in September, but the group has since grown to include three backup singers, a bassist, a drummer and a synth player. The band's live shows are a promotion for its upcoming five−song EP. Saturday's performance will see the debut of two original songs as well as songs from the EP and some covers.
The next contestant is rock−and−roll band Action Guaranteed! The group consists of seniors Nick Hellberg, Eric Potkin, Matt Miller, Jake Stern and Josh Zeidel, who is also an Arts editor for the Daily. "Many people don't fully understand our name ... The exclamation point is crucial and oft overlooked," Hellberg, the group's guitarist, said.
Excitement is the key to this band. Veterans of the Tufts music scene, Action Guaranteed! is coming off a packed−house performance last Thursday night at The Burren in Davis Square.
Also in the running is hard pop−rock band The Current Avalanche (TCA). The group consists of seniors Michael Zigismund and Eric Hyman, Zach Postle (LA '09), and Berklee College of Music junior Ian Henchy. TCA describes its sound as "the heaviness of Slayer meets the sexiness of 'NSync." The self−proclaimed dark horses of the competition began playing two years ago as mainly a jam project, but have rallied their efforts around original compositions by rhythm guitarist Postle.
The band's original name — Duck Sauce — referred to its ability to be sticky, yet sweet at the same time. According to drummer Henchy, the current moniker pays homage to victims of a devastating avalanche in Switzerland.
A group that embodies the stylistic diversity of this year's field is electronic duo All Out. The group is made up of senior and Beelzebub Matt McCormick and his hometown friend Joe Skutnik. The two see themselves as unique in sound but compare the feel of their music to other electro acts Cobra Starship and 3OH!3. Their live act consists of McCormick on vocals and Skutnik DJ−ing and creating sound design.
The duo has serious aspirations in the music business and played a set at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas earlier this spring. McCormick acknowledged the difficulties involved with getting a Tufts degree while working on a mix tape and booking shows. Ultimately, he sees his education as an advantage.
"I'm a singer; language is how I express myself," he said. "Tufts has been extremely beneficial in that regard."
One of the newest bands competing this weekend is Mellow B, consisting of junior Zach Meyer and freshmen Elie Kommel, John Bello, Andrew Meleney and Sid Richardson. This funk groove band describes its sound as a mix of The New Deal, James Brown, Phish and the Disco Biscuits.
Although made up mostly of freshmen, save junior saxophonist Meyer, Mellow B has already overcome serious struggles at Tufts. Unable to procure practice rooms in the Granoff Music Center, the band settled for playing in Bello's room in Tilton Hall, which has caused alienation among the other residents in the building.
The band is happy to have a place to play this Saturday without fear of being ostracized. The group is confident of its chances at gracing the President's Lawn stage this May.
This Saturday's competition presents the Tufts student body with five completely different, but talented and immensely entertaining options for Spring Fling. There may not be a clear favorite going into Battle of the Bands, but don't be surprised if the winner steals the show come May.
