MIDNIGHT RIOT COMPETES TO WIN
Alternative rock band Midnight Riot competed in the Emo's Battle of the Bands on March 27.
Leading the band is ACC Round Rock Campus student Amanda Kirkpatrick, whose fiery vocals bring a dimension to the band and often draws comparisons to another alternative-rock front woman Hayley Williams from Paramore.
"I look up to Hayley Williams, but I also look up to other vocalists that aren't exactly in our genre. For instance, Florence And The Machine, I love her energy and how she can change a simple song and make it unique just from her vocals," said Amanda Kirkpatrick.
(ALTERNATIVE - Lead singer Amanda Kirkpatrick of the Midnight Riot played a showcase at the Express Stage during SXSW- Erica Bean - Staff Photographer)
This isn't the first time the band has competed against other bands. The band recently won the "My Band Rocks Fox" contest which named them the best under-21 band in Austin
They also competed in the College Battle of the Bands presented by Chegg, an online textbook rental service, on March 20.
"Thanks to these competitions so many doors have opened for us. We are going to be working in the studio with a pretty sweet producer, CJ Eriksson, who has worked with other bands like U2. So a lot of good opportunities have come out of these experiences," said Austin Canary, Midnight Riot's guitarist.
Battle of the bands can be seen as a strange concept at its core. Bands are directly competing against each other for the shot at a record deal, but you can't deny the effectiveness.
It's not every day a band gets to present their best stuff in front of record labels.
Midnight Riot's music blends several genres that makes it accessible to anyone that is in into indie, alternative, and pop.
"We attract people from a wide range of genres due to our diversity in sound. Our more poppy songs attract people who, for instance, like Paramour. People who like My Chemical Romance are going to like our darker, alternative stuff," said Zak Kirkpatrick, drummer for Midnight Riot.
What also separates the band from other young groups is that their set is filled with original songs written by the band themselves.
"People are surprised to hear that these are our own songs and that we can play music at the level we can at a relatively young age," said bassist Dylan Samuel.
Midnight Riot presented their sound to those in attendance during South by Southwest music festival performing at a show sponsored by the record label BMI and another one presented by EXPRESS which included other up-and-coming bands like Neon Trees.
Now that SXSW is over, the band is looking to make themselves a regular in the Austin music scene.
"Right now we want to play at the bigger venues the Antone's and Stubb's and be one of the more well-known local bands," said Canary.
If their recent accomplishment are any indication, the band close to achieving those goals.
Staff Writer
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