ArtsEtc.

Bands to sling axes in benefit battle

Three local bands will be fighting for a cause tomorrow night as the University of Wisconsin chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota launches its first annual Battle of the Bands to benefit Gilda’s Club Madison Wisconsin.

According to Alyssa Butch, editor of the SAI music fraternity and a senior studying choral and general music education, choosing to create a battle of the bands was an easy decision for everyone involved. But even easier was the choice to donate all proceeds of the event to Gilda’s Club Madison Wisconsin.

“Gilda Radner being a comedienne… Sigma Alpha Iota wants to support women in the arts,” Butch said.

Gilda’s Club Madison Wisconsin, which will officially open its “red” doors in October, is a support organization for those suffering with cancer, named after late “Saturday Night Light” alum Gilda Radner, who died in 1989 of ovarian cancer. Before she passed away, Radner had hopes that anyone who suffered from cancer received the same care and support she received during her struggle.

And this wish has become the mission of Gilda’s Club and Gilda’s Club Madison Wisconsin, a goal junior and head of the Battle of the Bands Angela Pfeister says is equally important to searching for cancer’s treatment.

“So much time is spent on finding a cure rather than focusing on the here and now,” Pfeister said.

University of Wisconsin students and Madison residents can do just that tomorrow night as the Battle of the Bands provides an outlet for socialization and also offers a style of music for any listener.

“We tried to have a group of different sounding bands. … One’s a little bluesy, one’s a little more pop, one’s a little more rock,” Pfeister said.

Although the winning band will be awarded a monetary prize funded solely by SAI, this isn’t the only reason Brett Wisniewski of The Nod — one of the three bands, including Those Left Unread and Bad James, to be selected from a pool of seven applicants — chose to take part.

“It’s a two-way benefit,” said Wisniewski.

Considered the band that’s a “little more rock,” The Nod will incorporate elements of bands from the ’70s and ’90s into their 45-minute set. But the band also takes classic songs such as Dr. Dre’s “Forgot About Dre” and makes them their own.

“We really shake ‘em up and blow ‘em up,” Wisniewski said.

Donations are not mandatory to attend the SAI’s Battle of the Bands, however, members of the music fraternity will be circulating with baskets throughout the bands’ performances to collect money. When it comes to fundraising, Pfeister was optimistic.

“The sky’s the limit,” she said.