Illini Contraband awkward. horny. unoriginal. fun.

Heyyo, Contraband fans! We’re back now that the school year’s started, and we already have a slew of opportunities for you to see us. A SLEW.

First off, we’re going to be playing this Friday, August 27, at the Iron Post at 9pm. For those of you who don’t know where that is, the address is: 120 South Race Street, Urbana, IL. Our particular version of Contraband has never played there before, so we’re excited. We’ll probably be there for around an hour, and we really hope to see you there! If we bring a lot of people in, we might play there again… and again…

But if you miss us at the Iron Post, we’ll be playing the next day at Delta Sigma Phi fraternity (302 East Gregory Drive, Champaign, IL). We play for them a couple times every year, and they are some of the coolest guys you’ll ever meet. It’s free as far as we know, so come rock out with us. It’ll be a great time– we promise. AND, if that promise isn’t enough, it’s our very own Scott Rubin’s birthday on Saturday, and he’s turning the big 2-1.

We’ve got a facebook event here.

Finally, we’re having auditions next week on September 1 and 2 (Wednesday and Thursday). We’re specifically looking for a bass, trombone, saxophone, or trumpet — and if those instruments come with people who know how to play them, that’s even better. Contact Ken at knaylor2@illinois.edu if you missed us at Quad Day, and we’ll set you up.

Speaking of Quad Day, what a rush! We didn’t get to perform this year, but we got over 150 sign-ups… including some requests for lessons. Thanks to everyone who came to our booth and expressed an interest in us. You guys make the sunburns and near heat strokes worth it.

Rock on.

Love, Contraband.

It’s just the nature of Contraband to build itself up every Fall, and then slowly dissipate every Spring. We’re going to be saying goodbye to some great musicians in a few weeks, but we’re not going out without a fight! Next Sunday is not only graduation for all those gettin’ the hell outta this beloved university, but is also GRADFEST, our yearly last-hurrah and tribute to those peacin’ out into the real-world. Where is this “GradFest,” you ask? I’LL TELL YA!

GradFest is going to be next Sunday May 16th, from 11:30am-2:30pm. We’ll be playing that ENTIRE TIME (whew, three hours… this could hurt), but if we can even see your lovely, shining faces for 10 minutes of that we’d be happy campers. It’s at the Alice Campbell Alumni Center located on the West side of Lincoln Avenue just South of Illinois Street. Can’t miss it, it’s got that big random arch-looking thing out front and some kickass fountains you can probably wade through (so bring your swimming trunks!*). And hey, there’s gonna be lots of food there and even gifts for seniors. If you’re graduating on Sunday, come check it out with your family and show them the best g-damn cover band on your campus, and if you’re not graduating, get your ass over here anyways for some free food on a Sunday morning to cure that hangover.

*Contraband will not bail you out of any local or university lock-ups if you are caught trespassing.

But after Sunday, Contraband’s going to be saying farewell to some great musicians who have helped continue the greatness of the premiere U of I campus cover band. Either going to grad-school or into the real-scary-I’m-not-ready-to-go-world are:

Kate Guarna — Bass,     Matt Martuzzo — Trombone

Nick Baier — Alto Sax,     Jon Law — Tenor Sax

Hari Iyer — Trumpet,     Greg Formosa — Trumpet

Just look at those sexy yet sad-about-leaving faces. They’re gonna miss us, we’re gonna miss them, but keep showing up to our gigs next year and you’re bound to see them show up as super-duper-salaried alumni (which means they can now afford a bar tab to buy you drinks!). Please join me in giving them a standing ovation. Do it. I’m waiting.

BUT EVEN THAT WON’T STOP THE MUSIC! Next year we’re kicking things off with our annual Quad-Day spot, where we show the world (or at least the quad…) what we’re made of. We’ll also hold a table as usual, and have signups for our fan mailing list (which will pickup next year more, we promise) and of course, the long-anticipated AUDITIONS SIGN-UPS**… oooooohhhh…ahhhh…

**Auditions are held every every school year in the fall semester and anyone is welcome to try-out… however, we normally only accept a select few instruments/vocals based on openings in the band. Since next year we will be losing a lot of seniors, we are going to have a special need for:
-bass guitarist
-trumpeteers
-saxes of many kinds, including alto, tenor, bari, etc…
-sound technician?
Come and see us on Quad Day next year to sign-up!

That’s all for now, folks. Keep on rockin’ and keep checkin’ us out. We’re here to stay, UIUC.

“Closing time - every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.” -Semisonic

Alright folks, looks like we can give some definite answers about the upcoming gigs for this semester… AND HERE THEY ARE:

1. Second Annual “Mom’s Weekend Gig” @ Joe’s Brewery - April 17, 5-7pm
That’s right, we’re back, baby! We’ll be kickin’ a 2-hour set at Joe’s (on 5th Street) for all those sexy, sexy moms. We play on Saturday, April 17th from 5-7pm, so it’s the perfect time/place for a nice outdoor casual dinner with your mother dearest. Grab a few brews and burgers and we’ll serenade you until it’s time to bar-hop and make your mom reminisce about college-life. Don’t worry, we won’t hit on your mother…that much. Get there early to get a good table outside, we expect a pretty crazy crowd. Facebook event here:
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=events#!/event.php?eid=112148865480173

2. Hundredth Annual “Relay for Life” Gig - April 24, 12:50-2:00am

...but it won't be this costume...probably...

Well, maybe not the 100th annual gig, but we’ve been doing this one for quite some time. “Relay for Life,” a yearly celebration hosted by Colleges Against Cancer for the American Cancer Society, is an all-night fund-raising event that “gives everyone in communities across the globe a chance to celebrate the lives of people who have battled cancer, remember loved ones lost, and fight back against the disease.” It’ll be on Friday April 23rd, and like I said, it’s all night long (no Lionel Ritchie pun intended) and features a lot of school organizations and clubs camping out at the U of I Outdoor Soccer and Track Field. We’ll be playing some rock tunes for the peeps to jog to from 12:50am-2am, so make sure you keep an eye out for us! Who knows, maybe we’ll be in another themed outfit…like previous years…

3. Another annual gig…Triangle Fraternity’s Swampwater - April 24, 9:30-11:00pm
If you don’t feel like staying up to watch us play at Relay from 1-2am, then make sure you get your dose of rock at the Triangle Fraternity House the next night, on April 24th from 9:30 to 11pm. This is Triangle’s annual “last hurrah” party, and we’ll make sure you get that feeling by the epic proportions of rock* we’ll be throwing at you. Should be free and easy to get in, and if you get problems from any frat dudes, come find one of us and we’ll send those brothers to the corner for a time-out. Beer and the classic “Swampwater” juice for the drinkin’. Good times to be had, my friends. PS: Triangle is at the corner of 2nd and Daniel.
*Rock, not rocks. Contraband would never throw rocks at you…intentionally.
Facebook link:
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=events#!/event.php?eid=114786055203842

4. Somewhat-annual, Beta Sigma Psi BBQ – May 1, afternoon/evening
Exact timing is TBA, but as usual Beta Sigma Psi will be throwing a massive pig-roast BBQ on May 1st, sometime in the afternoon/evening. All we know is that we’ll be playing, and the food will be cheap to buy (wristbands probably around $5) and ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT. This is probably our favorite gig for obvious reasons. More to come as we find out when we’re playing. Stop on by 706 W. Ohio (the corner of Ohio & Coler in Urbana) for some good-ass BBQ and outdoor games!

5. Delta Sigma Phi Benefit Gig – May 5, nighttime
The frat we love to play for has brought us back again for the first time this semester, for an end-of-the-year fundraiser! Our generous gifts of rock and ska will be helping to benefit some kind of righteous cause, we’re just not sure what that is. They’re on the corner of Second and Armory, so make sure to check back up in a few weeks when we know more about what’s going on! PS: beer.

6. The annual goodbye-gig…GradFest 2010 - May 16, 11:30am-2:30pm

There will be many people throwing their hands up. We promise.

Once again, like so many years past, we say “goodbye” to our beloved seniors at an epic 3-hour gig at the Alice Campbell Alumni center. GradFest, a “graduation party to celebrate your success!” features free food, outdoor games, and even GIFTS for graduating seniors. We, of course, want to see your shining face, so we don’t care if you’re graduating or not. Come on out and send off the band’s seniors in good-fashion, by head-banging and skanking to some kick-ass tunes. Guarnateed good time to be had by all, students and parents.
Link for more info on the event: http://www.uiaa.org/calendar/event.asp?id=14039

7. Suburbia Graduation Party?? – late May or June??
As might have been hinted by the surplus of questioning marks, we’re not 100% sure about this guy, but we’re probably playing a graduation party in the south side suburbs of Chicago (Oak Lawn) in mid-May or June. More info to come…

So yea, that’s seven badass reasons for you to get off your lazy ass and hear some rock. When’s the last time you got to see Contraband and have a few* brewski’s??
*”A few” can mean many things, from literally “a few” to as much as you can stomach. Hey, we’re not counting, why should you?

That’s all for now. Keep tuned to the website and look for new Facebook events for new gigs! And hey, we’re still open to more gigs if you got ‘em. Let us know!

Peace, love, rock, ska, alternative, yadda yadda…
-Illini Contraband.

Heck yes, spring is almost here! And Illini Contraband also has some awesome gigs lined up just for you.

First up, we’re playing at the Engineering Open House this Saturday, March 13th. We’ll be in the big tent on the Engineering Quad — you won’t be able to miss it, because we’re just that freakin’ loud. Rocking from 11:00am - 12:20pm, you can come hear us play and grab some pizza or whatever it is engineers eat. Supposed to be a nice day, so come out for a nice “Saturday in the Park”* with some good tunes and damn awesome studs/studettes.
*hint hint

Next up, we’ve got a gig after Spring Break on April 9th at Illinites, an Illini Union Board hosted event at…well, the Union. Everything is free, even our love for you. Now, we know we haven’t been to Illinites since Freshman year, but that’s no reason not to come see some badass cover-band rock**. We promise a good time, and hey, if you don’t believe us, just hit up Murphy’s before for a few pitchers.
**we also play ska, oldies, funk, pop, yadda yadda yadda…

Plenty more gigs in the future, including BBQ’s, fundraisers, frat parties, graduation parties, orgies, strip poker tournaments, fishing trips and donkey shows, but mostly parties. Stay tuned, kiddos.

Well, maybe not yet. There’s still some snow on the ground outside. But we’re all rested up from winter break, and ready to rock your socks off once again.

We have some cool things lined up for this semester already. For one, we’re going to try and get some recordings done and posted here, so you can enjoy our magic whenever you want. We’re always up for playing wherever/whenever we can, so remember us if you’re throwing a party, fundraiser, or just want some live music!

This coming Spring, definitely be playing Engineering Open House, Relay for Life, Triangle Fraternity’s “Swampwater,” GradFest 2010, and lots lots more. More to come when we get the times and dates down!

One last thing — we said goodbye to one of our super-sexy female singers last semester, Jill Paruszkiewicz. We wish her the best of luck at her new teaching job in the ‘burbs, and hope that her students appreciate how much of a bad@$$ mofo she really is. Who knows, maybe she’ll show up on campus this semester for some Contra-reunion songs?

That’s all for now folks, stay tuned and keep on rockin’.

Love,
Contraband.

It’s almost HOMECOMING WEEK, guys, and you know Contraband - we’re always where the party’s at. In this case, it’s going to be at Triangle Fraternity on Saturday, October 10th. We’ll start playing around 9pm and won’t break for TWO full hours. We don’t even break for small children or baby seals.

What’s special about this seemingly regular frat party, you ask? We’re party-debuting our newbies (Go Cody! Go Po!), and we also have some new songs! Can Contraband really cover Michael Jackson? Have you ever wanted to mosh out to the Irish Drinking Song? And WHY didn’t we play some RAGE sooner?? You know you want to check out this shiz. And besides, any party we play at is going to be a great time.

For those of you who didn’t see us play at Triangle last year, it’s at 112 E. Daniel St. in Champaign, on the corner of Second and Daniel. As far as we know, it’s an open party, so come! Bring friends! Rock out! See us! We’re sexy as hell and we might just rub some of it off onto you… no innuendo necessary.

And what’s this…a Facebook event?! For all of you hip, young, tech-saavy people out there, check out the event page for more details and such.

That’s about it for now though, folks. After this gig we’ve got a bit of a break (unless of you course YOU change that by hiring us…), so we’ll be bringing in some new songs. So far other than what we’ll play on the 10th, we’ve got some new Chicago, Frankie Valli, and maybe even some Van Halen and Zeppelin lined up… but we want YOUR requests! Hit up the “requests” page and leave a comment with your favorite party tunes, and we’ll do our best to learn them for upcoming gigs!

Don’t stop the rock.

Love,
Contraband

There are a couple of things everyone should know. First, Contraband has welcomed two freshmen into our ranks: Cody Carsella (guitar and vocals), and Keehoon/Andy/Po Yoon (keyboard and vocals). Both have talent out the wazoo, and both are pretty damn awesome. So congrats on making it, guys!

Second, Contraband played last Sunday, 9/13, at the annual Republican Fall Festival at Frasca Fields for the Champaign County Republican party, and you know what? We had a great time rocking their socks off, as well as taking artsy photos next to the airplanes. Pictures will be uploaded soon!

Third, we’ve got some more gigs coming up! In a week and a half on Sunday, September 27th we are playing at SOCCERFEST 2009, a soccer game extravaganza with FREE ADMISSION, FREE FOOD, FREE INFLATABLE GAMES, and of course, FREE ROCK (provided by US)!

The gates open at 11:30am and we’ll be there at noon to rock the fields. Game starts at 1pm, but feel free to come anytime before that to enjoy the food, games, and music. The Illini Women’s Soccer team is facing off against Minnesota, and hopefully they’ll crush those damn Gophers.

Almost 2 weeks after that, on October 10th, the Triangle Fraternity House is having an open party for Homecoming! Starting at about 9pm, we’ll be playing a set of rock and your favorite party songs at the Triangle house on Second and Daniel. The party is glow-in-the-dark themed, so make sure to wear white shirts so we can graffiti your a** with nonsensical gibberish, all with highlighters!

As always, we’re constantly on the lookout for more gigs to play at! We play for anything you want us to play for: parties (be they drinking parties or birthday parties), non-profit events, charities and fundraisers, bars… really anything. Just let us know! Contact Kate Guarna at guarna@illinois.edu for booking details.

Until next time, keep on rocking. In a free world.

Does anybody really know what time it is? Does anybody really care?

Yes. Yes we do… because it’s audition season! Welcome back to campus from a long and less-than-hot summer.  We enjoyed our break more than you can imagine, but now we’re back in the CU to rock your world. So, what exactly is so new and flashy this semester you ask? Let’s see…

Quad day was yesterday, and holy mother of rock, what a turnout. We have close to 50 new groupies and fans on our mailing list and over 100 people signed up for auditions! That being said, there may be a few days of potential auditions and probably some callbacks. If you signed up to audition, kudos to you for showing up on Quad day and coming to our booth; we’ll send out an email explaining when/where/what auditions will be very soon. For those of you who slept in, got lazy, or couldn’t find the quad, WE’RE STILL HERE FOR YOU. If you’d like to audition on guitar, male vocals or keyboard, please email contraband.auditions@gmail.com. Unfortunately due to the band’s size and availability, we are only auditioning for those positions right now. Make sure to check back next year for more band openings like trumpet, trombone, sax, bass and vocals!

Audition dates and times will be sent out soon, but will probably be sometime this week or next week. The audition process will consist of you playing one song/solo/short piece to rock our socks off (about a minute long or so), and then you playing one piece with the band. What that means is you’ll have to learn the piece on your own and then come play it with us during the audition! We’ll send out a list of the potential songs to pick from, so make sure to pick a song that is listed for your instrument.

Aside from auditions, we already have a handful of gigs lined up for September… whoa, right? We may be playing this Saturday around 9pm at the Delta Sigma Phi house on Second and Armory for “Delta Sig Fest,” but’s that’s still TBD. We are definitely playing next Friday, September 4 at an Illini Soccer game from 6-7pm. We’ll play for another soccer game on Sunday, September 27 from 12-1pm. More info to come on where exactly we’ll be playing, but for now just head south near the soccer fields and follow the rock beats.

As always, we are for hire for any type of gig you can throw at us: parties, frats, fundraisers, charity events, university functions, parties, bar nights, serenades, parties, and parties. Email guarna@illinois.edu for booking information!

That’s it for now everybody, don’t forget to be on the lookout for audition emails early this week! And in the words of Ron Zook, “GO ILLINI!”

Come see Gradfest or helicopters and jumping girls will destroy you. Graphic by Alisa Rantanen.

This Saturday, May 16, Illini Contraband will be playing at Gradfest from 12:00pm - 2:00pm, in front of the Alice Campbell Alumni Center. It’s going to be our last time playing this school year, so you definitely don’t want to miss us. We’re going to go balls out (for those of us that have them).

We’ve also got a bunch of graduating seniors - John Crue, master of badassery. AJ Wolfe, tamer of beer-guitars-women-and-Scoots. And Dan Monaco, keyboard/microphone-wielding ninja extraordinaire. We’re sad to see you guys go, but it’s time for you all to take over the world. Ready, ready? Set? GO.

After Gradfest, Contraband unfortunately goes into hibernation for the summer… that is, if we don’t get a summer gig! Keep yourself posted on the website, and if we’re lucky (and so are you), we may get a gig or two during the summer months, probably up in the ‘burbs. After summer though, our first gig is at Quad Day here at UIUC, on August 23rd. Come check out our table for information on HOW TO AUDITION FOR THE BAND* and how to get on the mailing list… or, if you know you want to audition or get on the mailing list now, e-mail formosa2@illinois.edu!

So anyway… Gradfest. This Saturday. You really don’t want to miss this shiz.

*Auditions are held every every school year in the fall semester and anyone is welcome to try-out… however, we normally only accept a select few instruments/vocals based on openings in the band. Tentatively, next year we will be needing:
-male vocalist
-guitarist
-keyboard-ist
E-mail formosa2@illinois.edu if interested!

If you read our last post, you may have noticed that we have TWO BBQs coming up this weekend! Two! That is a lot of scrumptious food, and a lot of awesome music.

Eat me.

So! The first opportunity you have to hear us play is Friday, May 1, from 4:00pm - 6:00pm at Beta Sigma Psi’s BBQ. It’s going to be at their house, which is located on 706 W. Ohio (the corner of Ohio on Coler) in Urbana. And this first one isn’t just a BBQ… it’s also a fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity! $5, all you can eat, AND it’s for charity. This is a freakin’ sweet deal.

If you absolutely can’t make it, we’re going to be at Triangle’s BBQ the next day, Saturday, May 2. We’ll be playing from 3:00pm - 4:00pm at their house. All the cool people know where that is, because they heard us kick ass at Swampwater. But for the not-so-cool people: 112 E. Daniel Street in Champaign. There are gonna be at least 4 other bands there, so there’ll be loads of music there.

So yeah! Contraband! Food! And not only food — BBQ. Whatchoo waiting for, foo?