Band Showcase Benefits Gulf Coast Disaster Victims

The Band Showcase “Palooza” performed on January 13 in the Wean Theater of Armstrong-Hipkins Center for the Arts to raise funds for reconstruction materials for those living on the Gulf Coast who are still rebuilding their homes and lives after the destruction of Hurricane Katrina. The event featured Standard Deviation, Blair’s own in-house band, plus two bands from Stroudsburg, Pa., Zen Zen and Event Horizon, which recently won a regional Battle of the Bands competition. Suggested minimum donation was $5. The bands raised $687 to be sent with Blair’s delegation of 11 students and four faculty members traveling to Gulfport, Miss, during Spring Break to help with the reconstruction.

Journalism student Christopher Eu ’07 provides concert coverage: This showcase, “Palooza,” had the crowd screaming and shouting, dancing and singing in such a way that even the organizers themselves were pleasantly and happily surprised. It was a good experience for the bands and audience, as well as for the organizers. The opening band, Zen Zen, which features a guitarist who is the son of religion teacher Ms. Crowner, had the crown jumping and laughing. Their high octane covers and originals were a great way to start off the night. Their most well-received song was the jazz influenced cover of hip-hop classic, Ridin. My band, Standard Deviation, was next in the line-up. Our five-song set gave the crowd more energy and persuaded them to dance and sing along. We played some classic rock numbers with lengthy solos. The last band, Event Horizon, shocked us with their face-melting guitar solos and excellent voice work. They had some fun originals as well and definitely got the crowd excited. Money was raised for Katrina victims in the Gulf Coast, which is as good a reason as any to have a concert. The compliments and loud, raucous applause showed that the audience had a great time as well. Some even asked us when the next concert is.

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Updated 1/16/07

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