Five Firsts: Accents

BAND AFFILIATION: Accents
NAME/INSTRUMENT:
Ben Hemingway (Drums/Vocals)
TJ Foster (Vocals/Guitars)
Lauren Alexander (Vocals/Cornet/Keys)
Jordan Stewart (Guitars)
Matt Bent (Bass/Vocals)

1. THE FIRST ALBUM I EVER BOUGHT WAS …
BEN: The “Edward Scissorhands” soundtrack. I’ve always been a huge Danny Elfman fan, even when I was little.
TJ: It was a two-fer at a local HMV (R.I.P.). I bought Limp Bizkit’s Significant Other and the Offspring’s Americana on the same day.
LAUREN: Something probably way too embarrassing to mention! I can almost guarantee it was N’SYNC related.
JORDAN: The first album I ever actually purchased with my own money was Will Smith’s Big Willie Style. What can I say? I just know how to get “jiggy with it”…
MATT: The Offspring’s Smash

2. THE FIRST CONCERT THAT I EVER SAW WAS …
BEN: Stomp. They played the brooms like nobody’s business.
TJ: Papa Roach. Yeah, I was one of those nu-metal kids for a while. I believe Taproot opened the show. Or they were supposed to, at least.
LAUREN: Brooks & Dunn with Reba McEentire. Oh yes, you can blame my parents for that one. The first concert of my choosing… I can almost guarantee it was N’SYNC related.
JORDAN: Deep Blue Something. Oh, ’90s alt rock…
MATT: Something Corporate and 311

3. THE FIRST MUSICAL INSTRUMENT I EVER OWNED OR PLAYED WAS …
BEN: A harmonica. Though to this day, I still can’t really play it.
TJ: An alto saxophone.
LAUREN: Trumpet! School band.
JORDAN: It actually was a guitar.
MATT: A saxophone

4. THE FIRST SONG THAT I EVER PERFORMED IN PUBLIC WAS …
BEN: “The Pink Panther Theme.” I played drums accompanying the junior high school’s orchestra. It was terrifying!
TJ: I have a really terrible memory, so I can’t honestly say for sure. I was in school band from 5th-10th grade though, and took private saxophone lessons for a little while. I think the first song I performed in public by myself was “The Pink Panther Theme.” (Hey Ben, we’re twinsies!) It was my favorite show as a wee one, and so I selected the theme song for this recital my teaching studio put on.
LAUREN: Too many to recall. Elementary chorus was way too long ago.
JORDAN: Hmmmm. Probably “Hot Crossed Buns.” I was in orchestra in school and played the baritone horn.
MATT: “Da Go Fish” (Original). I was in fifth grade.

5. THE FIRST BAND I WAS EVER IN WAS …
BEN: First we were called 99 Evil Beavers, then just Evil Beavers, then after getting a cease and desist letter from an angry alt-rock/grunge duo, we became 3rd Grade Dropout. We played silly pop-punk, and we had a lot of fun.
TJ: We were called Shock Factor, but before that, we had a brief stint under the name Breed Control. We started out trying to play nu-metal songs and then somehow seamlessly transitioned into playing pop-punk/emo after we became obsessed with the first Used and Starting Line records. It was kind of all over the place, but it was a lot of fun.
LAUREN: Accents!
JORDAN: Other than orchestra in school, my first band was a project called the Taco Experience. It was basically my attempt at being Weird Al. I did partially succeed… it was weird.
MATT: Know Objective. Eighth grade.

Accents roll into the Hollow Bar + Kitchen in Albany on Saturday night (July 13), sharing the stage with Foreverinmotion, Aeralyn, Time Travels and 2013 SPAC Battle of the Bands winners Call Security. Doors open at 7pm. Admission is $7.