First String Players

Aliza Abarbanel and Adie DinolfoSpecial Report Editor and Sports EditorSamo’s campus is a flagship for student-led music groups. It doesn’t take long to discover everything from barbershop quartets to indie-rock groups with a penchant for witty lyrics. Because music is such a prominent factor of day-to-day life on campus, it is inevitable that students would seek opportunities to express their creativity outside of the classroom.Funky Reggae PartyAt heart, Funky Reggae Party is a brotherhood of musicians as equally intent on crafting groovy melodies as chasing the elusive “vibe”. Their conversations weave and duck like a melody line eclipsing and building on itself only to erupt in bursts of laughter, “Rasta names” and inside jokes.Composed of seniors Luke Bencivengo, Aziz Yehia, Adam Davison and Greg Boehm, the band’s funky beats and interconnected melodies are the result of their incredible closeness and shared ideals. Each member believes their music should parallel their positive life experiences.“The Funky Reggae Party is an open invitation, everyone is welcome,” Yehia said. “You don’t need 5 dollars at the door to enter. It’s all in the attitude — it’s not about competition, it’s not about the race to be the best. Once you hear the music, the people making the music and the people listening to the music, we all get caught in the same vibe, the cycle.”It would be far too easy to simply label each member as drummer or guitar player. Switching around instruments is a normal routine. The instruments they use can range from a drum set to a didgeridoo.“The point of The Funky Reggae Party is not to make people all punked up, it’s more to sit them down, give them a cold beverage and show them what’s good. We aim to give people a new life, a new perspective,” Bencivengo said.The Funky Reggae Party will make their school-wide debut on Nov. 18 at Samo’s Viking Showcase, and band members hope their performance will make a difference to Samo students.“Our goal is to make beautiful music for a sad world,” said Bencivengo.In a classic Funky Reggae move,  the mention of the goal of their music sparks another wave of conversation.“Basically,” Yehia said, “Reggae, in our modern rushed society, is the shade under the banana tree.”So when academic stress has you waiting to scream, head over to a Funky Reggae Party jam session. They’ll be waiting for you, a drumstick in one hand and a didgeridoo in the other, under the shade of  a banana tree.Half-diminishedAlthough young and relatively new to the band scene, Half-diminished, composed of five Samohi freshmen, have made an impressive start to their career as a group. Driven by a common passion for jazz and  inspired by friendship and enthusiasm, the group utilizes a multitude of musical talents to create a group both unique, youthful, and refreshing.After playing together on the jazz band at Jams, the boys were encouraged by their instructor, Russ Mullen, to stay together and form a group. The five freshmen possess an evident collaborative talent in addition to being closely knit friends. With Andres Orrelana on saxophone, Zachary Gotler on drums, Julian Actor on guitar, Elias Valladares on piano, and Otis Escobedo on base, the band, already equipped with a wide range of skill, has potential to attract fans from many different genres.“The type of music we play is mainly jazz, but we also play latin, and even some funk,” Orrelana said.Having been together since June, the group is just getting accustomed to finding gigs. Their first major gig was at the Talking Stick Coffee Lounge over the Summer.At this stage on their musical journey, Half Diminished is focusing on developing as a group and getting more publicity.“My goals for the band are pretty basic,” Escobodo said, “I don’t really care about getting to be famous, or anything like that. As long as we’re having fun, I’m fine.”Orellana agrees with this point.“We just want to keep playing music, wherever that takes us.”However, “wherever that takes us” is vague, to say the least, in the music world. All members of Half-diminished have always had a natural talent and inclination toward music, so the possibility of taking it to a professional level sometime in the future is never out of the question.“All of us are still sort of kids,” Valladares admits. “We hope to be big and play professionally one day, like other musicians have inspired us to play. I hope it’s useful.”As the band progresses, their experience exceeds “useful.” Auto PilotThe blend of guitar, drums, base and vocals in the beloved rock band will always be a treasured part of the youth music movement. Auto Pilot, formed four years ago by seniors Christen Tomita, Tai LeGanoux  and Aziz Yehia, is a prime example of a creative compilation of music.The band is experiencing a creative metamorphosis over the years, and their style is still in a state of flux.“We were all into anything rock and roll; the driving beat and the emotions that fly when playing rock is crazy and absolutely exhilarating,” guitarist and lead singer Christen Tomita said. “Over the years though it has turned into more funk music and  “lighter” rock music, and to this day we are still writing funky rock music for fans to enjoy."Fans can enjoy the creative chords concocted by Auto Pilot on Oct. 20th, at Samo's first Viking Showcase.With a resume ranging from performances at Downbeat 720 to The Talking Stick to Samo’s own lunchtime showcases, the band is always hard at work compiling melodies and crafting verses uniting the friends in a rush of rhyme and rhythm.aabarbanel@thesamohi.comadinolfo@thesamohi.com