Wirebox prevails as victor of Battle of the Bands for the second year in a row

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Photo courtesy of Haifa Abumineh

Wirebox drummer and junior Enad Abumineh rocks out on stage during the band’s performance.

Wirebox took first place against four other bands in Battle of the Bands on Feb. 13 with a spectacular performance that made the crowd go wild.

Battle of the Bands is an event hosted by YAT every year. This year, juniors Shiva Verma, Enad Abunimeh and Prithvi Jana performed and won the competition through their band, Wirebox, while senior Lanszen Chang performed with his band Tella Keller.

According to Steve Knollmiller, the adviser of the organization, the goal of the event is to give students the opportunity to be creative and allow them to act on their talents. The event encourages participation by not having strict requirements for performers, and the performers are not required to attend auditions.

Wirebox surpassed this minimum requirement. According to Abunimeh, Wirebox’s drummer, the band not only won Battle of the Bands last year, but also performed at various other large events throughout the year.

The band started off its competition set with a cover of “Black Skinhead” by Kanye West followed by five original songs: “In Cold Blood,” “The Ghost Inside,” “Funky Song,” “Just To Let You Know” and “I Feel”

“Wirebox is amazing,” junior and YAT member Anam Chaudhary said. “They were really good, and the entire crowd ran up, and they were really jamming out.”

There were amatuer bands as well. Wingdings, a recently-formed band from Northwood High, said that Battle of the Bands was its first live performance.

“It was great seeing the crowd,” Wingdings bassist Bradley Arca said. “It was very nerve racking at the beginning… but we pulled through.”

Hard Candy, a band featuring a female vocalist, came in second place. The band also won Crowd’s Choice for bringing the most people.

“It’s amazing; [performing is the] best feeling in the world,” Abunimeh said. “The crowd was great; [it was] one of the best crowds we’ve played for.”

Battle of the Bands was a great way for many students to relieve stress after finals, as junior and audience member Eden Jacnuk pointed out. The next Battle of the Bands is on March 27. The top two bands who win this competition will then compete against Wirebox and Hard Candy on May 29 in Battle of the Best.

“The atmosphere was good … I had a great time, [and it was a] great show,” junior Evan Duran said.