Focus on the local scene
Going back to Grade School
By Kelly Vormelker, Staff Writer
May 1, 2008 | noon
If the words "grade school" evoke memories of sticky lunch tables, pencil erasers and that awful puke smell always lingering in the hallways, start re-framing those memories. Grade School is now earning high marks as a young band in Athens.
After about five minutes of shuffling around an unsteady table at Donkey coffee, hot coffee spilling over the boys’ cups too many times to count, the male members of Grade School finally settle down long enough to talk with Speakeasy. It is hard to imagine that there is also a girl, Maddie Brennan, that fits into this group. She survives as the pianist but not without her fair share of bickering. The boys say that they all kind of feel like they are dating her; they fight, but she’s cute, so it's okay.
Surrounding the table are rowdy members Pete Larson (vocals, guitar), Zach Evans (percussion), Jack Laskey (lead guitar, keyboards) and Andy DeVelvis (bass). The four have become the permanent fixtures in this rambunctious band.
Grade School defines itself somewhat jokingly as a rock band with no limits. The band members do not constrain themselves to a specific genre, thus allowing for continued evolution.
The way that Grade School got its name reflects the band’s structure-free attitude toward its music. The name came about through an instant message conversation between Larson and a friend, who suggested the name. When Larson asked why, his friend replied, “Because, who gives a fuck?” Thus, Grade School was named, and the members continue to carry this attitude. To them Grade School is just a name. They produce music simply because they like it and they are not afraid of change or innovation.
Just what does a rock band with no limits sound like? Grade School’s EP features mellow rock. It relies on heavy instrumentation. Brennan’s presence is very strong on the piano along with strong backup vocals from the other members. Larson brings feeling to the hits, crooning softly and at times screamingly. The emotion that he wrote the songs with comes through as he belts them out. The most popular song from this EP is “Weak,” a song about longing that builds as it runs, truly harmonizing as it comes to a smooth finish. This song is very reminiscent of one of the band's constant inspirations, Jimmy Eat World.
Since the band’s conception less than two years ago, Grade School has produced a four-song, self-titled EP. The EP has been popular with fans of Grade School, but when the band puts out a record it will sound much different. They have become bored with the material and assume that fans might have as well. The direction of this record is not entirely clear to the members at this point. However, they do note that it will be more electric and harder than the past soft EP. The staples that Grade School has built upon will still be in place. No instruments will be taken away, though some will possibly be added, and Larson will continue to deliver intense lyrics. “I am starting to play more electric guitar rather than acoustic. Adding more instruments into the mix and changing up the lineup a bit, just for now,” Larson said.
The band’s no limitations mindset comes through in the way it creates new music. Members have jam sessions, and if something that they like comes out, they use it. Anything goes in this effort, and the members noted that something that sounded awesome one day might sound awful the next. The main goal is simply to create a product that everyone in the band loves to play live as well as in studio.
This process has become much more collaborative recently because, finally, all of the band members are residing in the same city. With the relocation of percussionist Evans, Grade School can finally call Athens, or as the members call it, the AC (Athens County) home.
Larson still writes the majority of the lyrics, pulling inspiration from girls, money, girls, alcohol, women and um, Vietnam? “You know how they say like, every 20 years shit repeats, like with clothing? Vietnam is coming back, trust me,” Larson jokes. Plans indicate that one of Grade School’s upcoming songs will bear this title but more as a joke than as a heavy political statement.
Grade School is not heavily focused on promotion. The band members claims to never actually think about spreading their name or becoming famous. “I think we're just appreciating the fact that we get to play these fun shows. I'm glad I finally have the chance to play music that I like to play,” Evans said.
This nontraditional approach to promotion carries through to Grade School’s presentation of media as well. They have MySpace and Facebook pages but are not big fans of them. Evans misses the days before the pervasive nature of MySpace, when it was actually really exciting to discover a new band. Now, most MySpace members have bands begging them to be their online friends. Grade School is not one of those bands.
An eventual tour is one traditional goal that the band has. All of the members would love to be able to do this one day, and they often joke about stealing a bus and just going. A big tour may have to wait until they graduate since school is supposed to be the first priority right now, despite the fact that most of the band would like to just quit school and perform forever.
As far as long term goals go, Grade School mainly wants to continue enjoying playing together, “to actually do something with it rather than just sit around and be apathetic. I don’t think we are going to get anywhere if we don’t put ourselves out there on the edge,” Larson said.
It is clear as Grade School talks about its music that the members are in a band for the simple fact that they love it. Until the eventual dream of a never-ending tour is made real, the band is trying to play as many shows as possible.
First one on the books is this Thursday at the Union, 10 p.m. along with Via Audio, Potential Caskets and Brian Glaze and Night Shift. Check it out and create a new vision of Grade School: no longer a stale elementary school, just a rock band with no limits.
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