The Battle of the Bands lit up the MacVittie College Union Ballroom. The first band, Pit Stop Muffins (pictured above) got the crowd pumped for the rest of night. Crustacean Weekend and Airline Food also received support from the crowd (Xavier DelCid/Photo Editor).
After a cold day marred by wind and snow, Geneseo students flocked together in the Union Ballroom to watch their peers compete in the Battle of the Bands on March 5.
The Battle of the Bands, hosted by Geneseo Campus Activities Board and Geneseo Late Knight, gave three bands the opportunity to perform and compete for a $500 prize. The winner would ultimately be chosen by the audience, who voted online after all the sets were completed. Despite the cash prize, it was clear that everyone involved was invested in watching and supporting our community’s talented musicians.
The first band to perform was the Pit Stop Muffins, a group of students active in Geneseo’s Musical Theatre Club who formed the band as a result of their work in the club. The band performed an impressive set of covers including “Locked Out of Heaven” by Bruno Mars and “Juice” by Lizzo. In addition to great cover music, the band performed an original song, “11:11,” created by band member and music vocal performance major sophomore Evan Panzer.
By this point, members of the audience were already visibly excited by the spectacle they were witnessing. Some students called out the names of their friends on stage while others even brought signs and wore the free t-shirts that were generously given out by GCAB.
After the Pit Stop Muffins played their final song, audiences got to enjoy music from Crustacean Weekend. This rock band played covers of popular songs such as “Money for Nothing” by the Dire Straits, “Ain’t No Sunshine” by Bill Withers and “Crossroads” by Eric Clapton. Audiences were particularly enthralled by several amazing solos played on electric guitar, keyboards and trumpet.
The final band that performed was Airline Food—a band that formed last year and had reformed this year for the Battle of the Bands event. In addition to playing covers like “Panama Red” by New Riders of the Purple Sage and “I Got Loaded” by The Wood Brothers, they also played original songs like “Phish Food,” sharing a name with the famous Ben and Jerry’s ice cream flavor.
The original song was met with great audience enthusiasm, who waved their phone flashlights in the air bringing the feeling of a larger concert onto Geneseo’s campus. The Battle of the Bands ended with a cover of “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” by Bob Dylan, which concluded with a surprise drum solo.
Once all the bands were done with their sets, students began to vote on the final victor of the competition. Audience members utilized a bar code given by GCAB to vote for their favorite band on a Google form and, after a close race, the band that came out on top was Crustacean Weekend.
While only one band was ultimately declared a winner, all the bands were celebrated like victors. In addition to getting to play great music for their peers, the members of the bands also got to know one another.
Mathematics major senior James Canning, drummer for the Pit Stop Muffins, noted that “I had talked with Joe [from Crustacean Weekend], and got to exchange contact info after the show.”
The Battle of the Bands was a phenomenal opportunity for Geneseo students to recognize and enjoy their musically exceptional peers. Every band gave a superb performance, and hopefully this is just one of many shows they will put on this semester and beyond.