There are few things as awesome as seeing a student band perform here on campus. Just recently I attended a concert in Club Rendezvous, the space next to our underground pizza place, The Cellar. Puget Sound’s Campus Music Network invited four student bands to perform, each with their own unique style of music.
First up was Young Ones, a four-man group who call their music influenced by Bloc Party, Death Cab for Cutie, and Two Door Cinema Club. They were followed by Pilot Light, a 5 piece progressive post-rock band with songs as long as 10 minutes. Next in the set was Sun Eater, a trio that shook the crowd with some psychedelic rock. The final band of the evening was the one I was most excited to see: Harshmellow.
Bassist Michael Mulay ceremoniously ties on his bandanna in prep for the show.
Harshmellow is a four piece student band features senior Derek Humphrey on lead vocals and guitar, junior Michael Denman on percussion, sophomore Michael Mulay on the bass, and senior Isaac Olson on the drums. The band classifies themselves as “Second-wave Thugfolk.” So what type of music is that? Visiting their Facebook page won’t give you many answers. According to their fan page, they’ve been around since 1939, are currently residing on the moon, and are interested in “keepin’ it real” and “curing cancer with love.” But while their sense of humor is great, it’s their music that’s earned the band its student fan-base.
Derek Humphrey wailing on the guitar and singing his heart out.
I stuck around through the whole set, snapping pictures as people from the audience grabbed partners and danced right in front of the stage. Of course, they had to make way for the band members to jump off and perform some crazy solos in the crowd. Needless to say, the show was a pretty fantastic experience and I can’t wait to attend as many concerts as I can here at Puget Sound. In the meantime, I’ll be kickin’ it with the band members–keepin’ it real and, of course, curing cancer with love and some sweet music.
Wanna hear Harshmellow jam? Here’s a sample of their most popular song: C is for Cookies
Michael Denman poses for the camera.