Students and alumni are working together to create music.
LFNC is a local ska band composed of students and alumni. Ska is a blend of punk, reggae and jazz. LFNC members are:
– Michael Louladakis, vocal performance/music theater senior;
– Cameron Fults, music composition/guitar performance junior;
– Brayden Stonecipher, guitar performance junior;
– Chazz Miceli, guitar performance junior;
– Sam Charlton, trombone performance senior;
– Sam Key, trumpet performance junior; and
– Alumnus Chris Desien.
The band released a new extended play record at a performance on Feb. 10 called “Quiet Beginnings.” EPs are recordings that contain about five songs. This EP contains three new songs.
“For almost a year now, we haven’t really gone out of the way to schedule events because so many people ask us already,” Louladakis said. “We thought making a ska band wouldn’t be popular, but I think our ability to be virtuous in the music has made people be like, ‘holy cow, I don’t care about ska music, this is just some vibrant stuff, man.’”
The band members recorded the EP at the University of Central Oklahoma Jazz Lab in Edmond. Members said they recorded all the music in one day, using money earned from shows, selling merchandise and CDs.
Recording in one day felt rushed, and many of the songs were improvised in the studio, but members said they’re happy with the songs.
“There were definitely some bass lines that I recorded that I had never played before,” Miceli said.
Though the band is ska, members also are influenced by rock music, stemming from members’ interest in metal.
Charlton said he’s been trying to make a ska band since he was in high school. The band’s origins began when Charlton noticed Fults wearing a T-shirt of Streetlight Manifesto, a well-known ska band.
The band was formed by 2015 and experienced a couple lineup changes before the current members came together.
“It was really all the right pieces falling into place,” Charlton said. “From the first rehearsal, we were super pumped.”
The band members said they’re happy to have the support of students, even though scheduling can be difficult with performances for the school.
LFNC has performed on campus at the housing office’s “Spooktacular Halloween” and at Relay For Life.
The origin of the name “LFNC” is unknown, even among members, but Fults said the idea came from a series of letters on a license plate. Band members said it could be “Light the Flame, No one will Change” and “Liquidtight Flexible Non-Metallic Conduit.”
In their first show, members said the “C” stands for Capri Sun.
“It’s really just four letters,” Fults said.
Upcoming shows include a performance with UK-based ska band Chainska Brassika at 7 p.m. March 19 at The Root, 3012 N. Walker Ave. LFNC members credit much of their success to The Big News, another local band on the lineup.
“They’ve helped us out a lot,” Miceli said.
The band has plans to tour, possibly to the west coast.
“We almost tried to play for Drake Bell,” Louladakis said.
Stephanie Nozomi-Krichena, percussion performance sophomore, attended the EP release performance and has known the band since they began.
“A lot of people don’t know what ska music is, and it’s basically a punk band with some concert band instruments like trombone and trumpet,” she said.
Nozomi-Krichena said she got a copy of the EP at the release show, and one particular aspect caught her attention.
“What really got me about the EP is that, on the back, it says that it’s dedicated to Vinnie Franco, who lost his life very recently,” she said. “He was close friends with a lot of the members of LFNC and was a huge fan.”
Franco was a pre-medical/guitar freshman who died Dec. 31. LFNC dedicated their closing song to Franco at their release show.
“It was so sweet of LFNC to do that,” Nozomi-Krichena said. “It was apparent that everybody appreciated that.”
Miceli said Franco was the band’s biggest fan, which is why they dedicated the record to him.
“He told Brayden, when he first started hanging out with us often during our freshman year, that ‘Sam’s Song’ was something he listened to every day,” Miceli said. “It helped him get through things.”
Miceli said Franco’s death was difficult for the band members.
“The feeling of having a brother leave us the way he did was really, really tough at first, and it still crosses our minds every day,” he said.
Miceli said Franco is still an inspiration to the members.
“It was really freaking tough, but the reality is that life comes and goes,” he said. “We just want him to know that we are still thinking of him, and we still love him.”
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