strawberryJAM

Virginia Albert
Alpha Phi

On Jan. 26, five bands gathered together at the music club Antone’s in order to compete for a chance to play at the Wakarusa music festival this June. Wakarusa is one of the many music festivals this summer, drawing acts such as Pretty Lights, the Avett Brothers, Slightly Stoopid, Girl Talk and Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes. One of the bands competing for a coveted spot to play at Wakarusa goes by the name of strawberryJAM.

strawberryJAM began as a jam session in the spring of 2008 in College Station, Texas.  Several friends decided it would be fun to jam together and create improvisational music, and they soon began recruiting members and friends to jam with them. In the beginning, there wasn’t much structure; strawberryJAM consisted of a few kids who loved to play music.

In 2009, strawberryJAM started composing more structured material which helped them market themselves to the Greek communities at Texas A & M and The University of Texas. They also began playing cover songs, which helped them increase their popularity. The revenue from the fraternity and sorority shows allowed them to save up enough money to release their first album in the spring of 2011.

Although they began in College Station, the band decided to move to Austin in the summer of 2010, where they currently reside. Because Austin has a reputation for being the live music capital of the world, strawberryJAM has seen greater success since moving to Austin. In the past, they have shared the bill with Girl Talk, Bob Schneider and  other notable acts.

strawberryJAM has successfully integrated themselves into the Greek community at UT. Last spring, they opened at Pike during Round Up weekend for Josh Abbott Band. They have also played at Delta Tau Delta on several occasions and played at Delta Delta Delta’s cocktail party last fall. Last bid day, they also played on Alpha Phi’s barge! They’re always open to playing for different fraternities and sororities.

I had the pleasure of being able to see strawberryJAM at Antone’s as they competed in the Wakarusa Winter classic. The festival Wakarusa goes to 20 different cities in the Midwest during the late winter in order to add 20 more musicians to the lineup. Whoever had the most votes and guests won the chance to be able to play at Wakarusa. Unfortunately, strawberryJAM came in second place for the third year in a row, but the show had everyone dancing.

Singer and guitarist Andrew Bennett’s playful vocals and energy make him a great front man for the band. Guitarist James Bobal rips on the guitar during jams, and his passion shines through in his solos. Derik Kendall's violin proves to be a nice contrast to the wailing guitar of Bobal. Zack Morgan on piano is a talented musician, and his punchy melodies make the show entertaining. His wailing saxophone gets everyone dancing. Logan Dance's bass adds funk to the performance, and Matt Bongirno’s drums are awesome. 

This summer, they are releasing their second full-length album. Personally, I can’t wait to see what the band has in store for their latest album. You can listen to their first album on Spotify and iTunes. You should check out their website, www.strawberryjamsforyou.com, where you can learn more about the band and also listen to their music. If you wish to contact them for booking, they’re available via email at booking@strawberryjamsforyou.com.

Virginia is a sophomore studying advertising. You may contact her at virginia.albert@comcast.net.