By Rory McNelley, Staff Writer

Last Friday, Xavier students participating in the Album Project class through the music program performed Paramore’s “Brand New Eyes” album for an electric crowd. 

This program involves selecting an album and recreating it as close to the original as possible for a live show. 

There are three different roles in the class. The promotion team works on advertising the show by making posters, posting on social media, handling ticket sales and designing merch. The production team does all the sound and lighting for the live performance as well as collecting video and audio during rehearsals to be used by the promotion team. The last group are the performers — the ones on stage who play the album. 

“I’m really excited to support new and upcoming artists. I think it’s important that we pay attention to what our friends are interested in and the hobbies and extracurriculars everyone is involved in,” first-year accounting major Catherine Clemons said about why she attended the concert. 

The band came on stage around 9 p.m. and performed the album at Radio Artifact, a bar and music venue in northside. The band consists of first-years Issac Visser and Will Cracas on drums and guitar, respectively, sophomore Sydnee Smith on vocals, junior Joseph Collino on guitar and senior Mason Cooper on bass. 

“Since it was first introduced, the Album Project has been growing from both the production aspects and the performance aspects. It really is a dream come true for music and non-music majors who have a dream of performing,” Cooper said.

The crowd went crazy for “All I Wanted Was You.” Xavier students turned on their flashlights for the band’s final song. Students were also seen linking arms together in a communal sway to the beat. 

“I’m a music production major, so I don’t perform a lot. It’s really nice to keep that kind of energy alive even though it’s not my career. I just get to have fun with my friends,” Crasas said about his first experience with Album Project.

It was not just the musicians that shone on Friday night. Work from the production and promotion team was clearly seen. The merch, including posters, shirts and more were designed and sold by the class and the atmosphere was created by them as well. Lighting, a fog machine and graphics behind the band all made the experience feel very professional. 

The show ended on a high note as members rushed offstage to greet their supporters in the audience. Countless Xavier students attended the concert in support of the program and their peers. 

“I joined the program because I have always loved music. Not only did I get to play, but I made tons of friends too,” Visser said.