Yale rock promoters turn up the volume

BY ELIZA TRIGGS

After the frenzy of Rush Week, it might be nice to hear music that has, well, instruments. Turn It Up's inaugural concert takes place this Fri., Sept. 28, and could be the perfect antidote for ears starved for live music with drums, guitar, and vocals that do not come in three-part harmony. The three featured bands—Milo, Tish I'm Tea, and The Khalidwe Sensation—promise an energized, if unconventional, night.

COURTESY SKIN THE GOAT Well, dude, at least we look good.

All-Yale band Milo has built up a significant student following after headlining several successful shows for Turn It Up (TIU), as well as taking second place in last year's Battle of the Bands and opening for Ben Harper. They are primarily a jam-rock band, covering classic rock songs in a variety of ways.

Andrew Roach, DC '04, the bass player and one of the vocalists for Milo, said, "We've been incredibly happy with the response on campus. For whatever reason, people just seem to have a good time at our shows, which, as a performer, makes it a blast to play live." Friday's set will see both old and new material, which the band is excited to play in front of a live audience. "More than anything," Roach said, "we want people to have fun at our shows."

Tish I'm Tea is comprised of both Yalies and non-Yalies. Dominic Matar, SY '02, is the band's bassist, while guitarist Olivier Bernard attends college in Boston and drummer Eric Hagermann attends Columbia. The majority of the group's shows are in New York, and this will be their first performance at Yale.

While their influences range from classical music to classic rock, Tish I'm Tea hasrecently been moving towards a '70s punk sound. Their live performances, Matar said, can be "more of a party than a concert," and have been described as "insane." Though the group has recently been adopting a more "organized" sound, their past shows have featured lots of improvisation, high energy, and a willingness to take risks.

Mike Murphy, PC '03, of The Khalidwe Sensation, is the first to say that his band's style is hard to classify. When pressed, though, he describes it as "energized rock."

"We rock hard—every song, every time," Murphy said, citing varied influences such as The Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Yanni, AC/DC, and Aretha Frank-lin. Made up of two guitarists and a bass player (all of whom share singing duties), their style of experimental and somewhat unorthodox music, sans drums, has attracted a cult following among music fans looking for viable, non-commercial rock.

Friday's show is a visible manifestation of the work TIU is doing to improve the music scene at Yale and in the New Haven area. Formed to help institute a forum for musicians of diverse musical backgrounds to come together and be heard, TIU has met with considerable success.

Last year, TIU put on five successful shows, including a two-night festival featuring eight different bands, half of which came from outside of Yale. Simeon Papacostas, BK '02, co-President of TIU, says, "One of our biggest accomplishments has been to institute a greater connection with the off-campus music scene."

All of the musicians playing at Friday's show are equally appreciative of the opportunities TIU has provided them, both in terms of performance space and a musical community that would-n't otherwise exist at Yale.

Though he bemoans the larger New Haven rock scene's lack of cohesiveness, Roach said, "Turn It Up has done an amazing job of helping build the local scene. Bands have been able to get to know each other and now have an outlet to perform live, and they can get their names out there. TIU provides something of a community for these groups."

Murphy added that it is often difficult to get booked at New Haven venues like Toad's Place or The Tune Inn without a large following. "It's hard to build a fan base when you have to convince strangers to pay eight bucks to come see you."

Matar called this the cycle of death: "To get shows you need a following, and to get a following you need to play shows," he said. TIU has come a long way in alleviating this problem by organizing shows and providing heavy promotion and free admission—regardless of a band's fan base or of its sound.

"Contrary to popular belief, we have a very wide range of styles at our shows," Papacostas said. "The goal of the group is to promote the Yale music scene, and in doing so, we always strive to maintain a diverse showcase."

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