Andy Angelo Press Club experiences art, music in downtown Grand Rapids

The Andy Angelo Press Club attended Art.Downtown on April 11, 2014 and then later that weekend attended the La Dispute concert at the Pyramid Scheme. They got a chance to interview artists at Art.Downtown. and the band at The Pyramid Scheme. Here, some of them write about their experiences.

Edgar, age 11 on Art.Downtown.

On April 11, Press Club went on a field trip to Art.Downtown. The Press Club first saw a group of skateboarders sponsored by Premier. Noe from Press Club said, "They were awesome!” After that, the Press Club went to print some artwork on the shirt of a skateboarder for totally free. The artwork that almost everyone liked was three puzzle pieces put together with three different quotes by artist Loni Platte. The three quotes were "Think Different," "Hope," and "Live With Purpose." Another piece of art that everyone liked was a box of red food coloring mixed with water to show how the food coloring changes with light. The artist of that artwork said he wanted to do something that no one in ArtPrize thought of doing.

Edgar, Noe, and Daniel passed by some dancers and breakdanced with them. The drummers were cheering them on like it was a real performance! Because the three boys danced in front of a small crowd, our teacher, Ms. Steffanie, got them doughnuts. They all said together, "They were really good!"

Daniel, Age 10 on Art.Downtown.

Edgar, age 11 on La Dispute at the Pyramid Scheme

"Ringggggggggggggggg" is what I heard the night I came back from the La Dispute concert on April 13. The concert was at the Pyramid Scheme in Grand Rapids. During the concert, everyone in the crowd kept on moshing and crowd jumping. People got hurt, but they didn't seem to mind and kept on moshing. My legs started to hurt because I had been standing on the side of the stage. It was like my legs were burning, but I was having so much fun. All of the bands had great music, but it was really hard to hear the lyrics.

La Dispute said they have a great connection with each other on stage and they feel like they are connected like a family. The members of La Dispute are Jordan Dreyer the percussionist, Brad Vander Lugt on piano, Kevin Whittemore guitarist, Chad Sterenberg guitarist and Adam Vass guitarist. Press Club interviewed La Dispute and they gave us great answers to our questions. La Dispute gave the Press Club their new album "Rooms Of The House." Also, they gave each one of us a book about their album and a band shirt. There were more bands that played before La Dispute, including Mansions and Pianos Become The Teeth. Pianos Become The Teeth was louder than Mansions. A lot of people kept on crowd jumping and jumping up and down. They would still jump if they have gotten thrown on the ground. Finally, all of us left the Pyramid Scheme. When we left, I could still hear the music of all the bands in my head--very loud, but very clear. Everything was great except the ringing in my ears after the concert.

Antonio, age 13, on La Dispute at the Pyramid Scheme

On April 13, the Andy Angelo Press Club went on an exciting field trip for all its members. We went to see La Dispute, Pianos Become The Teeth, and last but not least, Mansions. This was my first concert, and honestly the best first concert ever.

The first opener was Mansions. They did an exceptional job. The drummer was on beat and the singer was on pitch. The second band was Pianos Become The Teeth. The lead singer did a great job screaming and I had to check them out when they finished their set. Last but not least was La Dispute. Everyone went crazy when they came out. Personally, my favorite song the band played was called "Said The King To The River." Everything about their set was amazing. Jordan Dreyer, the lead singer, was on pitch. The drummer was also on beat and the guitar players did an amazing job. Sadly, one of their lead guitarists was leaving the band. Dreyer, the lead singer, got on his knees and started to talk about how one of his brothers was leaving from the family and a moment of sadness filled up the ambiance of the venue; but the show had to go on. When La Dispute finished their set, I thought to myself “Wow, it's finally over.” When the Andy Angelo Press Club left the venue, all of our ears were ringing. Our legs were tired and our voices were lost in the screams of the concert, but it was a good feeling.