“CLASH!” Alpha Phi Omega’s Battle of the Bands took place Tuesday, April 29. This musical showdown was the first spring fundraising event APO has hosted in a number of years.

“We had a lot of success with the Date Auction in the fall, so we thought it’d be a good idea to add a spring event,” said Brandon Flaata (‘09), APO fundraising co-chair. “The more we can do to be part of campus life, the better, and raising more money helps us make that happen.”

The bands featured in this battle included groups from Luther and from other communities. The Chase, 10:24, Two Guys, a Goat and a Beard Experience, The Eskimo Nudists and Lexikus Theoretical were the Luther bands that took the stage. Fifth Amendment, a high school band from the Postville area, also participated. Another visiting band was Axis of Action, a popular group from Waldorf College in Forest City, Iowa.

The members of Axis of Action were excited about the chance to perform at such an event.

“We perform pretty often at Waldorf,” said Sam Pleggenkuhle, lead guitar and vocals for Axis of Action. “We are trying to get off campus more to get more exposure. We all want to be rockstars.”

One of the band’s most exciting gigs to date was the opportunity to open for Skillet at Waldorf this past fall.

“It was a really cool experience,” said Pleggenkuhle. “It’s awesome to be able to say we opened for a band like Skillet.”

Though they were mainly in it for the stage time, Axis of Action was also drawn to the battle by the grand prize: a $50 gift certificate to Kephart’s Music Center in downtown Decorah.

“Of course we want to win,” said Pleggenkuhle. “But more or less we just want to get out and play shows.”

Contrary to Axis of Action’s interest in the grand prize, the members of The Chase were looking forward to one last chance to take the stage at Luther College before graduation.
Asked if he thought his band had a shot at the grand prize, bass player Steve Hogan (‘08) said, “There are prizes?”

As the bands battled with their music on stage, a battle took place off-stage as well.

APO raised money by organizing a cash-off during the show. As each band performed and worked to gain audience approval, audience members placed money in trays designated for the bands they liked the most.

Though all the money in the trays went to APO, the band that raised the most money by the end of the night won the Kephart’s gift certificate.

This year, the tray totals tilted in Fifth Amement’s favor. The band raised $62 thanks to a great show and excited fans. In total, APO raised approximately $130 through this event.

APO is a co-ed service fraternity that participates in many service projects, both on campus and in the Decorah community. The money raised by the event will help APO be involved in local and national service projects as well as leadership conferences.

“It’s important for us to incorporate fun events on campus with our volunteer work in the community,” said APO President Jenny Reiman (‘09). “This event was a great way for us to do that, and to increase our budget at the same time, so we can make an even bigger difference in the future.”