Area bands play to raise money for food pantry
The University Board will put on a show featuring So Long Forgotten and Good Morning Midnight at 6 p.m. tonight in the 7th Street Underground.
The idea for the show came when University Board’s Mainstage Coordinator Lauren Phillips spoke with the bands that were looking for a venue to play.
Phillips said one of the main reasons for the two bands coming to Eastern was their large fan base.
“Both bands have a pretty big fan base around the area,” Phillips said. “It’s always good to have bands that are more well-known in the area, and when I spoke with the bands they were really excited to come show the EIU crowd their musical talents.”
Good Morning Midnight will be performing first with So Long Forgotten concluding the evening.
Good Morning Midnight formed in Marshall, Ill.
Their musical influences include Brand New, Bayside and Emery.
Kyle Swalls, guitarist and vocalist for Good Morning Midnight, believes that the band’s sound reflects more than its musical influences might suggest.
“Each member of the band has a lot of different influences, and it reflects in their individual playing,” Swalls said. “I try to tell people they have to come to the shows to decide what we sound like, but I guess in the end we have more of a street rock sound.”
The rest of Good Morning Midnight includes guitarist and vocalist Elgin Combs, drummer Woody Woodring and bassist Chad Barton.
Each band member began playing their instruments at an early age.
When the band formed they experimented with different members of the band playing alternate instruments.
Good Morning Midnight also currently have a Myspace page where their self-titled album can be heard.
This will be Good Morning Midnight’s first time playing in Charleston.
Swalls said that the band would be looking to get the Eastern crowd involved early and often.
“We really hope we can pack the 7th Street Underground and get the crowd moving around a little bit,” Swalls said.
The second musical performance of the evening will be So Long Forgotten.
So Long Forgotten is a five-piece band hailing from a combination of Champaign and Chicago.
Drummer P.J. Pence described the band as having an alternative sound that is influenced by bands such as Radiohead and As Cities Burn.
Pence said that So Long Forgotten is constantly trying to improve its music by not settling for a sound that they couldn’t call their own.
Members of the band include Pence, guitarist Dustin Hoke, singer Micah Boyce, bassist Joe Brown and guitarist Cameron Yergler.
So Long Forgotten has made two albums, “Beneath our Noble Heads” and their latest album, “Baptism.”
Both can be purchased on iTunes or viewed at their MySpace page.
So Long Forgotten has played in Charleston before, and are once again expecting a good time from the area.
“We play a lot of shows outside of Illinois, so to come back to a familiar area is always a good time,” Pence said. “We expect a good turnout for the show and hopefully will see a few familiar faces.”
Area bands play to raise money for food pantry
So Long Forgotten and Good Morning Midnight will be playing at 6 p.m. tonight in the 7th Street Underground. Students who attend will pay $1 or give a canned food item to benefit the food pantry.