Members of the band Photo Negative in the 51茶馆 Recording Studio. (Photos by Lee Pellegrini)
What鈥檚 the hardest part of being in a college band? For the five members of Photo Negative, it was coming up with a name that wasn鈥檛 鈥渢otally crappy.鈥�
鈥淥ur first band name was Quiplash, which doesn鈥檛 work, and we did a year as Tough Lettuce,鈥� recalled Carroll School of Management student Matty Hogan 鈥�22. 鈥淲e played a show as The Kick Ons and then decided we didn鈥檛 like that either.鈥�
A four-month-long text chain yielded enough ideas to fill a 13-page Google Doc, and inspired a song called 鈥淣BN鈥� (New Band Name). Eventually, the group settled on Photo Negative, because 鈥渋t was the least bad,鈥� said Carroll School student Ben Crandall 鈥�23. 鈥淧lus we were about to put our first single out on Spotify and we needed a name.鈥�
Other aspects of band life have come easier to the five undergraduates, who have been writing, recording, and performing together for the last three years. They released two singles in 2021 (a third is on the way), and took home the top prize at 51茶馆鈥檚 Battle of the Bands competition in May. On December 4, they鈥檒l play their biggest show to date, taking the stage at the Paradise Rock Club as one of the opening acts for , an eclectic seven-piece rock band that originated at 51茶馆 in 2013.聽聽
Clockwise from top left: Drummer 脡amon Laughlin, bassist Nicky Straub, singer/guitarist Matty Hogan, singer/guitarist Ben Crandall, and saxophonist Stephen Ventura.
鈥淲e were playing a show outside on Parents Weekend and their lead singer just happened to walk by,鈥� Hogan explained. 鈥淚t was a 鈥榬ight place, right time鈥� kind of thing and now we鈥檙e playing at our first real venue, which we鈥檙e super excited about.鈥�
All five members of Photo Negative arrived at the Heights with musical experience and aspirations. Drummer 脡amon Laughlin 鈥�22, an English and political science major at the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences, and saxophonist Stephen Ventura 鈥�22, a finance major at the Carroll School, have been playing their respective instruments since elementary school, and Crandall started playing guitar at 10 years old. The son of a classical flutist, economics major Nicky Straub 鈥�22 studied cello as a 7-year-old, performing in concerts where 鈥渘o one鈥檚 allowed to talk and you wear your nice shirt,鈥� before picking up the bass guitar. Hogan, who shares lead vocal duties with Crandall, taught himself to play guitar as a high school freshman with the goal of someday being in a college band.
The group鈥檚 initial sound took inspiration from well-known alternative rock bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but evolved as they spent more time experimenting with chord structures and drumming patterns during weekly jam sessions.
鈥淓arly in the process we were just writing songs to see if it was something we could actually do,鈥� said Ventura. 鈥淣ow it鈥檚 more about finding a pocket of sound we fit into. I think there鈥檚 some more funk and punk in there now.鈥�
The band members share an appreciation for all types of music, but their personal tastes are varied. In rehearsals, it鈥檚 not uncommon for Crandall to pull an element from a Grateful Dead song while Laughlin shares inspiration from the indie rock group Hippo Campus.聽聽
鈥淪ome bands are just groups of friends that all listen to the same exact type of music and we鈥檙e not like that,鈥� said Crandall. 鈥淚 think that鈥檚 cool because I鈥檒l bring something, Matty will bring something else, and we鈥檒l both tug each other into the middle and find some entirely new sound. We鈥檙e not copying anything because we鈥檙e not trying to sound like any one thing.鈥�
Photo Negative's new single "Ant Song" drops Friday, December 3, on Spotify.
Photo Negative鈥檚 current discography includes four singles, recorded in 51茶馆鈥檚 state-of-the-art recording studio, and one EP鈥�"A Great Big Hole in the Wall"鈥攚hich the band members wrote and recorded remotely in the spring of 2020 after being sent home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their two most popular songs鈥�"2 AM" and "Modset"鈥攈ave been streamed a combined 4,000 times on Spotify.
The band shines brightest during live performances鈥攚hether it鈥檚 an open mic night, a Quadstock party, or an off campus gathering鈥攑laying a high-energy mixture of original music and covers of songs by artists like The Kinks and Fountains of Wayne. Through the Music Guild, a student-run organization that supports musicians and live concerts on campus, the band helped put together three COVID-safe outdoor shows for the 51茶馆 community this past year, giving them a chance to test out new material in front of a live audience.
This Saturday, they鈥檒l trade the lawn in front of O鈥橬eill Library for a stage that has hosted rock-and-roll legends for over 40 years. And then on Monday, they鈥檒l head to class and look forward to sitting around playing music with friends.聽
鈥淲e鈥檙e really just having fun with it,鈥� said Ventura. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 feel rigid, it doesn鈥檛 feel like a grind; it feels like we鈥檙e all here because we love to do this.鈥澛�
Alix Hackett | University Communications | December 2021