Phi Mu Alpha’s Battle of the Bands, which took place at the Historic Dawn Theatre last Friday, was the most successful Battle in recent memory, junior and Phi Mu Alpha President Jack Shannon said.
After judges comments and popular voting, Holy Moses walked away victorious.
“From what I’ve heard, everything else pales in comparison,” Shannon said. “This is the most successful event that our seniors have ever seen Phi Mu Alpha put on.”
The Battle is usually performed in the fall, but due to scheduling issues it was pushed into the spring. About a hundred and fifty tickets were sold ahead of time in the student union.
In previous years the battle took place in McNamara Rehearsal Hall in the Howard Music Building. The change, Shannon said, was certainly for the better.
“There’s just no comparison in the level of how much more of a concert venue the Dawn Theater is,” Shannon said. “They have a proper stage, they have lights, they have sound, they have a dance floor, they have seating, they have concessions. It was the real deal at the Dawn.”
Sophomore Andrew Egger noted that the change in venue also boosted turnout for the event.
“There were a lot more people from the city of Hillsdale because it was downtown,” Egger said.
According to Shannon, Phi Mu Alpha made a net profit of eight hundred and eleven dollars.
“It’s basically our only fundraiser event,” Egger said. “So it was really nice that we could bring in a substantial amount of money.”
According to Shannon, Dave Semmler of the Dawn Theatre viewed the event as such a success that he wants to bring back the winning bands to put on a second show later in the year.
“We got a lot of people from the community,” Hann said. “More than I think would’ve come to McNamara. That’s part of Phi Mu Alpha’s creed: advancement of music in America.”