Punk Rock 'N Roll Club growing

Three-band show will kick off spring season

Photo/Sophie Silverstein '11

Students danced to the experimental and indie music of the band, Toro Y Moi on Sept. 24.

The relatively new Punk Rock N' Roll Club (PRRC), which hosts up-and-coming artists in the intimate performance space of Chums coffee lounge on the first floor of the Castle, has been expanding steadily.

This Thursday, Feb. 10, it is hosting three bands to start the Spring 2011 season. The bands are Caspian, Screaming Females and Ryan Power.

Caspian, from Beverly, Massachusetts, is considered a heavyweight band known for their enormous sound. PRRC describes Screaming Females, a band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, as a power trio acclaimed for the intensity of their live shows and pop tunes combining danceable punk and vocals. Ryan Power is a songwriter from Vermont.

PRRC began in Fall 2006 when two separate clubs, Punk Club and Rock 'N Roll Club merged under the auspices of Ethan Feuer '07, who currently is assistant director at Admissions, and Leor Galil ‘08. Feuer and Galil initiated the system of bringing in bands for the Punk Rock N' Roll Club, and are remembered for hosting the DJ Girl Talk in 2006, before he became famous. He later returned to Brandeis for a winter 2009 concert.

The band selection process begins anew each semester. All club members are given the opportunity to invite their favorite bands to perform. Two weeks into the semester, the club hosts a listening party. PRRC has the highest attendance of members at this meeting, around 30 students, where they listen to about 45 seconds of each song from the bands they are interested in, and vote then and there.

All shows are free.

According to Ori Nevo '11, last year's co-president of PRRC, "the club members are very involved in the music world throughout the country, and they hear about bands before they become famous."

Nevo says being in PRRC is an "opportunity to have your favorite band play in a small venue with your friends." Previous bands that PRRC has brought to Brandeis that are now well-known include Future Islands and The Books.

Last spring, PRRC and WBRS co-sponsored the first South by South Brandeis music festival, which was held on the weekend of April 9-11 in Chums. South by South Brandeis came together on a whim with WBRS bringing in the band, Phantogram, while PRRC was hosting Freelance Whales, both on the same weekend. The two clubs worked together and scheduled a weekend of live music by Phantogram, Freelance Whales and Tune-Yards.

In attempt to set a precedent, WBRS and PRRC, possibly with other clubs, are in the process of organizing the second annual South by South Brandeis this spring, although no dates or bands have been finalized. With this event in the works, PRRC is gaining more momentum on campus while sticking to their den in Chums.

This Thursday, Chums' doors open for the performances by Caspian, Screaming Females and Ryan Power at 9 p.m. For a list of upcoming shows this semester, check out PRRC's website.

Categories: Student Life

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