Amidst the flurry of green beer and St. Patrick’s gear for the weekend, the area’s youth rock scene is carrying out its own shindig alcohol-free at the Bainbridge Island Music Guild.
Five bands will share the stage with sounds ranging from sentimental crooning to underage rage with a healthy dose of fun in the middle of it all.
Doors open at 6:45 p.m., March 17 at the IMG — 10598 Valley Road on Bainbridge Island. Tickets are $8.
Local high school bands Somebody Stop Melvin, Hecatonchires and the Nectarines will join Seattle’s Alligators and a headlining band from Bremerton, Ruxton Towers.
A mark their success over the past two years, Ruxton Towers recently played a live on-air set for 107.7 The End.
“That was probably the largest show we’ve played, but without being able to see the audience,” said Chris Matthews Jr., the band’s lead guitarist.
Playing live on The End’s radio stage was an “interesting pleasure,” that was both honoring and humbling, he said.
When thinking of crossing the water back to the Kitsap Peninsula for shows — like the small Western Washington tour of sorts they are involved in (see www.myspace.com/ruxtontowers for details) — Matthews said he feels the scene is in need of connectivity.
“It’s definitely a struggle sometimes to get people to come out to the show, but I think that has to do with awareness more than anything,” he said.
Ray Navarette, age 14, guitarist for Hecatonchires and organizer of the March 13 shows said though the scene is flush with local talent, there are few venues through which it’s allowed to flow. It’s nice, he added, that the IMG is open to outside concerts, set up and promoted by its members.
“We play plain rock music in general,” Navarette said of the Hecatonchires. “Sometimes punk and sometimes some other stuff, but usually we just like to play.”
“Anybody would like it because of the show feature,” said Beau Breakey, 16, lead singer for Somebody Stop Melvin said of the March 17 show. “Strictly musically, (the bill) ranges from pop punk to borderline hardcore … but it’s so not condensed. It’ll be a tasteful blend of musical genres.”
From the classic rock influenced, guitar effects treated sensitively true music of Somebody Stop Melvin to Ruxton Towers’ spacey and artistic illustration of the brink between youth and maturity, March 17 is set to be a showcase underage spark.
