Eight bands rocked the 14th annual JCC high school Battle of the Bands for four hours on Saturday night, January 16 at the Sam Pomeranz Jewish Community Center of Syracuse. The many young, talented musicians in this year’s concert played a rainbow of sounds and musical styles before a crowd of 350 in the JCC Neulander Family Sports & Fitness Center’s Schayes Family Gymnasium. And they did not disappoint. In the end, alternative ska band the Cuddlefish from Onondaga High School walked away the winner.
“We put on another great Battle of the Bands show,” said Mick Hagan, JCC’s director of Children and Teen Services. “More bands this year meant more music to the delight of the audience. We had such an awesome group of young artists play again this year. Many thanks go out to the bands, judges, event sponsors and everyone who came out for a rocking good time.”
In addition to bragging rights, The Cuddlefish received a $200 cash prize, a prize pack from Gorham Brothers Music, eight hours of studio time at More Sound Recording Studio and the opportunity to play in a special upcoming JCC 2016 Spring Showcase concert.
The Cuddlefish are a mostly alternative ska band who blend a lot of different musical styles — from punk rock to jazz to pop. They came in second place in last year’s JCC Battle of the Bands. That was their first gig together. This year they returned with the same lineup and were dressed just as sharply with their bright, colorful dress shirts and ties. The five-piece band sounded tighter and more polished this year. They played some original tunes and covered a few songs from other bands during their winning set, closing with “Come and Get It” by Selena Gomez. They attribute this year’s success to experience.
“This year we got some more originals, and that really helped us out a lot,” said The Cuddlefish’s bassist and lead vocalist Garrit Peck. “We practice all the time. We’ve been playing out at places. We’ve grown as musicians, all of us individually, and being able to gel as a band that’s helped us more than anything.”
The Cuddlefish’s other band members are Ryan Cass, keyboard and vocals; Noah Dardaris, drums; Max Marcy, lead guitar; and Joe Russo, trombone. Marcy, Dardaris and Peck have been playing together for about four or five years. All five band mates are best friends and have known each other since they were little kids.
“Thanks to all the other bands that played — they’re phenomenal,” said Peck. “We met some great people tonight and I got to see some cool people that I haven’t seen in awhile that I actually knew from the other bands. And thanks to the JCC and the judges. You guys hold this thing every year and that takes a lot.”
The other bands that battled it out with The Cuddlefish this year were Sun from Baldwinsville; Posted from Marcellus; Decent from Lafayette; Cosmic Pineapple from Christian Brothers Academy and Jamesville-DeWitt; 5 Head from Henninger, Cazenovia and Jamesville-DeWitt; and Vivid Recall from Christian Brothers Academy, Faith Heritage and Liverpool. Coming in second place was Cosmic Pineapple and tied for third was Posted and Vivid Recall.
The judges for this year’s Battle of the Bands were Ryan Gorham of Gorham Brothers Music, Syracuse; Katrina Tulloch, life and culture reporter for The Post-Standard; Bob Staffa (B.O.B), 95X radio personality; and Sean King and Erica Ylitalo from last year’s winning band Casual Plaid. Staffa was also the event’s emcee again this year. For every high school student admission, the JCC donated $1 to his or her school district’s music department.
Battle of the Bands sponsors were Pepsi, More Sound Recording Studio of Syracuse and Gorham Brothers Music. For more information about the JCC Battle of the Bands, contact Erin Hart at 445-2040, ext. 133, or [email protected].
