March 20, 2003

CHS stages band battle

Salmon of the Brook nets first place in musical contest

By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
       From hardcore metal to funky blues to melodic rock, the Battle of the Bands at Central High School had something for everyone.
      Six bands entered the competition and played 15-minutes sets each to an enthusiastic audience. The Battle was sponsored by the school's Student Senate as a fund-raiser for a variety of projects. The participating bands were Unhinged, Ten Year Dynasty, Salmon of the Brook, Menagerie, The Mourning After and Better Left Unsaid.
      By popular vote of the nearly 400 attendees, Salmon of the Brook won first place and a $175 prize; Menagerie won second place and a $75 prize.
      For participating musicians it was a chance to reach a larger audience and also to see what their musical peers were up to.
      "Some people here are very good artists and all these bands are good but different in their own way," said Brett Higgins, a 12th grade student and drummer for The Mourning After. "We've played to a very select crowd of our friends before this."
      Alden Schaub, a member of the school's choir, came to the Battle to enjoy the music and check out the vocals. Sitting on the edge of the stage with friends between sets, he ranked some of the bands.
      "One band, the instrumental was good but the singing was bad," said Schaub, a 12th grade student. "The second band, Ten Year Dynasty, was totally sweet, you could actually hear what he was singing."
      The robust attendance at this year's Battle was a sharp contrast to last year's turnout of five people, who were easily outnumbered by band members. Student Senate members focused on promotion this year and word spread to bring in flocks of listeners.
      "The kids get real excited that are gathered down in front of the stage," noted Peg Townsend, Student Senate Advisor. "Each band has their fans, groupies, cheering for them."
      Student Senate members received a dozen audition tapes, audio and video, and sifted through them to determine the Battle of the Bands line up.
      "We had a panel of judges listen and look at their videos," said Hannah Rodgers, a tenth-grade member of the Student Senate. "It was a difficult choice because a lot of them were really good so we listened to them about 20 times."
      Claire Gibbons, a tenth-grade student who helped organize the event, said the musically varied order of the six bands playing that night just evolved.
      "Some dropped and it just kind of worked out," said Gibbons, a Student Senate member. "We asked them where they wanted to go [in the line up] and they figured it out."
      Blake O'Brien, lead singer of Menagerie, has been singing and putting on shows since elementary school. An 11th grade student, O'Brien's vibrant and engaging stage presence was a crowd pleaser that helped garner the band a second place finish.
      "We've done birthday parties and anniversary parties," said O'Brien. "When we have a gig, we usually practice once a week, otherwise it is every couple of weeks."
      The band won the school talent show last year and strives to improve by listening to their older works.
      "Being in the Battle of the Bands we learned that there are a lot of talented people out there," said Brady Corcoran, lead guitarist for the group.