The crowd danced and sang along with Dollarbird during their set at Battle of the Bands in the Underground Coffeehouse at Western Washington University on Feb. 19.
Their music ranged from soft guitar ballads to faster-paced indie rock, with a fan-favorite cover of “Peaches” by The Presidents of the United States of America in the middle of their set.
Dollarbird won the round with a majority of votes from the judges and audience. They will move on to the final competition on March 7. There are three qualifying rounds of the competition with each winner advancing to the final showdown.
The third place winner will receive a $50 Guitar Center gift card, second place will receive either a $150 Guitar Center gift card or a one-day studio recording session and first place will receive a $250 check in addition to a performance spot secured at Western’s spring music festival, Lawnstock.
This year’s judges are Flynn Rodriguez from KUGS, Western’s radio station, and Gabe Sodl from the Viking Union tech crew. There will also be a rotating Arts & Music Production (AMP) staff member; Sylvia London judged this show.
For each band, the judges fill out a score sheet and consider crowd reaction, technical ability, creativity and “it” factor.
Ava Gedicks, the AMP concerts coordinator, said one of her favorite parts about the event is seeing new student bands make their debut performance in a welcoming space.
“There's a lot of value in being able to play for the first time to a bunch of people who are just excited to come out and see you,” Gedicks said. “A little friendly competition is always fun.”
August is Loud plays at Battle of the Bands in the Underground Coffeehouse at Western Washington University on Feb. 19, 2025. This performance was their first show as a band since meeting at the beginning of the school year. // Photo by Natalie Jones
August is Loud fits that description perfectly. The show was their first performance together as a band after the five of them met through roommate assignments at the beginning of the school year.
Charles Landschulz, the guitarist and lead vocalist for August is Loud, said he felt great about the performance.
“We’ve only been around for three months, so we’ve been cramming a little bit,” Landschulz said.
Eric Ormseth, Dollarbird’s guitarist and vocalist, said it was great to watch August is Loud and see younger musicians keep the scene alive.
“I want to see more freshmen bands popping up; as we get into this year there will be more cool music from younger people that’s going to really freshen up the scene,” Ormseth said.
Dollarbird performed their EP at the show, and hope to play some of their new songs when they compete in the final round, Ormseth said.
Noah Randazzo, a member of last year’s winning band, Frog Rocket, said the connections he made with the other bands was one of the best parts of competing.
Battle of the Bands was one of Frog Rocket’s first shows together. After competing, venues started reaching out to them to schedule shows. Randazzo said the event was a great way to grow their audience.
“If you're serious about doing the music thing, it's just a good experience to tap into the college market,” Randazzo said. “We got a lot of connections from it.”
Eric Ormseth smiles at Riley McMonigle during Dollarbird’s performance at Battle of the Bands in the Underground Coffeehouse at Western Washington University on Feb. 19, 2025. McMonigle said his favorite part of the performance was making Ormseth laugh. // Photo by Natalie Jones
Joey Clark, a longtime fan of Dollarbird who attended the show, said they appreciate the band’s attention to detail when writing songs.
“All of their instruments sound phenomenal and their lyricism is beautifully written,” Clark said.
They said the most impactful part of Dollarbird’s performance is how the band members connect with each other and the crowd while on stage.
“The way they communicate without verbally communicating is refreshing,” Clark said. “To see such a cool band be so close as friends and get along so well, and get along with the audience, is great.”
Riley McMonigle, Dollarbird’s guitarist, said he enjoys interacting with his bandmates on stage.
“I like looking at Eric while I do something silly, and then watch him laugh,” McMonigle said.
“Yeah, I like that too,” Ormseth added.
The upcoming rounds will take place from 7-9 p.m. on Feb. 26 and March 5 in the Underground Coffeehouse. The final round is on March 7 from 7-9 p.m. in the Viking Union Multi-Purpose Room. More information can be found on the WWU AMP Instagram page.
Natalie Jones (she/they) is a campus life reporter for The Front this quarter. She is a third-year visual journalism major. In their free time, they make collage art & jewelry, take too many photos and direct the treble A Cappella club on campus. You can reach her at nataliejones.thefront@gmail.com.
