On Friday, Nov. 11, six student bands will compete in Battle of the Bands, an annual event organized by musical fraternity Phi Mu Alpha.

This year’s event, hosted at 55 Below, will feature the following bands: Sean Connery Jr., Diet of Worms, James Bulleit & The Dirty Blondes, Schizmatics, The Drunk Uncles, and Half House. 

Junior Avery Miller, president of Phi Mu Alpha, said he has high hopes for this year’s competition.

“We had a great turnout last year, and everyone seemed to be having a ton of fun,” Miller said. “Each year, I look forward to hearing all the different student bands because every year they change, and they seem to be getting more and more entertaining as the years go on.”

Miller said he hopes to see a few hundred students attend the event.

The competition is judged by a panel of three faculty members and a popularity vote that gives students the opportunity to rank each band.

This year, the faculty panel includes Professor of Economics Ivan Pongracic, Associate Professor of Theology Jordan Wales, and counselor Dustin Flores.

“This event is very different from anything you will experience on campus, so I encourage everyone to come and have fun with some live music,” Miller said. 

Sophomore Stephen Berntson, lead singer of The Drunk Uncles, said he looks forward to the competition, which will be his band’s first big event.

“I attended Battle of the Bands last year, and it was one of my favorite nights of the semester,“ Berntson said. “I’m super excited to participate this year because it seems like there’s going to be a good turnout, and we have great bands on the lineup.”

Berntson said that the event is a great opportunity for new bands. 

“I’m excited to see new people contributing to Battle of the Bands, especially freshmen. You need to have new bands every year because that’s how they get their name out,” Berntson said.

The event starts at 8 p.m., and each band will play for 40 minutes. 

Tickets are $3 pre-sale and $5 at the door.