BRATTLEBORO — The youth rock festival Brattrock will return to the Stone Church Saturday, Nov. 18 at with a dynamic lineup of four youth bands/performers.
These in-person performances will showcase three bands - YourArmsAreMyLegs, Godzilla with a Gun, and Ezra Holloway - as well as solo performer Jessica Beck.
Beck describes herself as a "common Greenfield hoodlum" who spends her days playing JRPG (Japanese role-playing games) such as Omori, which has a turn-based battle system with psychological horror elements. She describes her musical inspirations as a mix of the folk punk and anarcho-punk Pat the Bunny and Neutral Milk Hotel, whose music featured a deliberately low-quality sound, influenced by indie rock and psychedelic folk.
The Western Massachusetts–based musicians who comprise YourArmsAreMyLegs tout themselves as a metalcore/post-hardcore band. YourArmsAreMyLegs, formed in 2022, just released its first extended-play album, May Burning Bridges Keep You Warm.
What's scarier than a giant lizard? A giant lizard armed with the realities of America. Godzilla with a Gun mixes the 100-foot-tall lizard-with-a-gun imagery with that of punk rock.
From Brattleboro, this all-genre-encompassing punk group puts on a show that is cathartic, energizing, psychotically loud, sure to please all, and full of passionately and vigorously played music.
The band consists of bassist Miles Ackerman-Hovis, drummer Lucas Majer, keys and rhythm guitarist Kyle Girard, and lead guitarist Lincoln Hurley. They're certain to be loud, powerful, and eye-catching, just as a 100-foot-tall lizard with a gun might be.
Holloway is an up-and-coming musician from Vermont. He released his debut extended-play album, A Moment in Time, in 2023. Known for his catchy melodies, introspective lyrics, and energetic live shows, his music is a mix of rock, pop, punk, and alternative.
A talented songwriter, Ezra Holloway's true passion is performing his music live and surrounds himself with highly talented musicians. He is working on new music and hopes to release new music in early 2024.
Brattrock raises funds for Youth Services with a mission of providing places for youth to gather and a venue for musically minded youth from Vermont and the surrounding region to connect, learn, perform, inspire, and be inspired.
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Brattrock takes place Saturday, Nov. 18 at The Stone Church, 210 Main St., from 7 to 10:30 p.m., with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. All ages are welcome and the cost is $10–$20 on a sliding scale.
For more information, email [email protected] or visit Brattrock.com.
Nanci Leitch is the development director for Youth Services. The Commons' Deeper Dive column gives nonprofits elbow room to write in first person and/or be unabashedly opinionated, passionate, and analytical about their own creative work and events.
This The Arts column was submitted to The Commons.