Belmont’s back-to-school festivities are in full swing with Battle of the Bands kicking off Saturday at Freedom Plaza.
The Pitch Pockets, Platinum Moon, The Sunday Alibi and Lambeaux are gearing up to take their place on stage and welcome students to campus in the first of Belmont’s showcase series. The groups, from modern rock to soulful jazz, are eager to show new students the vibrant musical talent on campus.
Food trucks will kick off at 6:30 and the battle will commence at 8 p.m.
PLATINUM MOON
Originally based in New York, Platinum Moon bandmates Ava Anduze and Ethan Grosman came to Belmont and gathered fellow students to create the Nashville branch of the band.
Lead singer Anduze and drummer Grosman banded together with lead guitarist Colin Hanus, bassist Ryan Parrilli and rhythm guitarist Matthew Wick to make modern rock music with a contagious and energetic stage presence.
Inspired by the sound of rock bands such as Led Zepplin, Måneskin and Greta Van Fleet, the members of Platinum Moon believe they bring a radiant and vibrant energy to the stage when they perform.
“We share an immense love for music, and that helps with a good stage presence,” she says.
The band hopes by playing in the showcase series, it’ll gain support from the Belmont community for both its music and hopes to grow a platform.
“When you perform at a showcase, your name is broadcasted to the school,” says Anduze. “It is an opportunity to show the entire school what you can do, not only with your music but with your stage presence and energy. We know that with Belmont being such a big music community that if they like us, they will share our music.”
Platinum Moon will perform their most recent single “Your Toxins,” their most popular song on Spotify, “Hey Beautiful” and an unreleased song titled “Lockdown Energy.”
THE SUNDAY ALIBI
A sophomore friend group comprised of bassist Sam Comfort, guitarist Aidan San Diego, singer Will Kuzman and drummer Clay Beck formed The Sunday Alibi one year ago in the Maddox Basement.
“You could say that the basement of Maddox was the cauldron that the band was brewed in,” said Comfort.
The band, inspired by alternative rock groups such as Kasabian and The Stooges, is grateful and thrilled to give new students a taste of the musicality Belmont has to offer.
“We are excited to inspire and show the freshman class what Belmont is all about and the move and music that happens here,” said San Diego.
The group doesn’t take the opportunity of playing in a showcase lightly because of how much musical talent campus has to offer. They hope to make the people around them proud and eager to listen.
“It would be such a shame if we got this opportunity and we didn’t do our best,” said Comfort.
They will be performing their most recent single, “Apollo Midtown,” along with two unreleased songs, “Flesh Flowers” and “Hard Respiration.”
THE PITCH POCKETS
The soulful pop band The Pitch Pockets began after a jam-session-turned-backyard-concert at a friend’s house. What began as a casual gathering eventually evolved into an official group.
“We just started booking more and more gigs, and we just love playing with each other,” said Elise Petersen.
The group features senior vocalists Petersen and Corrina Gill, Isaac Mauldin on the bass, Matt Matirano on the drum kit, junior guitarist Connor Fiehler), AJ Huang on the horns and 2022 commercial saxophone alum Jack Warren. Their funky sound is inspired by bands such as Lawrence, The Main Squeeze and Melt.
The band feels honored to play on its biggest stage to date, and it is excited to follow in the footsteps of previous years’ acts.
“Every time we have run into each other this week we have expressed over and over how excited we are,” said Petersen. “We are so honored to play a showcase and share the stage with the other amazing bands this year.”
Their setlist includes their songs “Don’t Wanna Go,” “Woman” and “Out My Mind.”
LAMBEAUX
Junior lead vocalist Elijah Ward, bassist Ben Jones, lead guitarist Evan Fulton, Trent Alexander on drums and senior Jeff Ward on keys were on a car ride back from a concert when someone brought up how each person played a different instrument. From there, Lambeaux was born.
Lambeaux takes genre-spanning inspiration from artists including Harry Styles, Maroon 5 and Chris Stapleton.
After Battle of the Bands, the group hopes to write more original music and explore different genres, drop an EP soon. On Saturday, though, they have just one goal: a great performance.
“Hopefully, this leads to many shows in the future and more opportunities for us to express ourselves through our music,” said Ward.
Through the excitement and nerves, they are honored and humbled to be given this opportunity.
“We hope to do nothing but impress our peers,” said Ward.
They will be performing their songs “Forget It,” “Less Like You” and “Betty.”
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PHOTO: The Pitch Pockets on stage. Courtesy of The Pitch Pockets
This story was written by Lilly Owens.
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