Mayfest announced the lineup for its Battle of the Bands competition today to be held at Nevin's Pub on Thursday, May 10 and Friday, May 11. Bands competing for the winning spot as a Dillo Day opener on May 26 are The Aurelia Trio, Cool Brandon and the Brandons, The Earth is a Man, Fando, Jet Jaguar, Juicy Fruit, Rum Lotus and Tiny Triangle.
For rock trio Rum Lotus, this will be their first time playing Battle of the Bands.
"We're super excited, obviously," said McCormick junior Alec Sampson, bassist for the group. "We've always sort of watched the Dillo Day bands playing like, 'Well, wish that could be us.' It's great that we're getting a chance to play." Sampson described Rum Lotus' sound as "Chili Peppers mixed with Slash mixed with U2."
"We're about rocking out and having fun," he said. "We sort of strive for the higher energy shows."
Cool Brandon and the Brandons, led by Communication junior Brandon Daley (of "The Birds and the Beedrills" fame), hopes to bring a party to the stage with engaging hip-hop.
"We have so much fun when we perform," said Communication junior Breanne Ward, hypeman for the group. "I think our music really supports a really fun, energetic atmosphere."
Ward said there will likely be appearances by guest rappers and other performers during their set. "It's just really good, fun music. Brandon is a phenomenal rapper, and I think we put on one hell of a stage show. There will definitely be free swag for everyone."
Taking a different direction, rock quartet Tiny Triangle hopes to bring something new to the Dillo Day table. Bassist Alex Cohen, a Weinberg senior, describes the quartet's music as "piano-driven alternative indie rock."
"I think we could certainly bring something new that Dillo Day hasn't seen from student bands in the past," Cohen said. "I know there's been sort of a focus on hip-hop-influenced music or even funk music. I think having a good, solid rock band would be a nice change for Northwestern students to see at Dillo Day this year."
Battle of the Bands veterans will also be making another appearance.
"We're happy," said Doug Kaplan (Comm '11), a guitarist for The Earth is a Man. "This is going to be our third time playing in Battle of the Bands, and we are always happy to shred in front of Northwestern students."
Second-time competitor The Aurelio Trio, who tied for second place last year, will also compete again.
"We had a blast doing it last year," said McCormick senior Chirag Gupta, drummer for the group. "We do some Latin stuff, some rock stuff and everybody in the band has influences that are very diverse. I like a lot of hip-hop, Sasha [Bayan, Bienen senior] comes from a Brazilian, flamenco classical guitarist background, our bassist is a super classical bassist, but he grooves in his own way. All of us add something different to the mix, and we found that a lot of different kind of people like the stuff that we do."
Gupta also explained that the falsely-named "Trio" will instead be a large group of eight or nine members performing on stage. "We've always had four or more people playing with the group. There's a lot of people who we jam with and who know our big songs."
Along with yet-to-be confirmed invited judges, Mayfest co-chairs Janna Kaplan and Darrin Bedol, both Communication seniors, will judge the event.
"It was a very tough decision that required quite a bit of deliberation," Communication sophomore Bri Hightower, a member of the Mayfest Promotions committee, wrote in an email. "I think we ended up with a diverse line up that appeals to different segments of the student body and will bring out a well-rounded crowd."
Four bands will perform on each night of Battle of the Bands, starting at 9 p.m. There will be a $5 cover.