Moore Media Records Acoustic Competition Awards Free Recording

Moore Media Records held an Acoustic Competition in the Herrig Hall basement at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 19, open to all students. The winner of the competition received a free recording with MMR, which usually costs $20.

President of Moore Media Records and Brighton junior Thibult Ruellan, was extremely proud of the event, calling it the “best one yet.” Ruellan came up with the original idea for the contest, and this is the fourth time MMR has held it.

“It helps out the performers by getting them more recognized,” Ruellan said. “And, it also helps the label out, performers can go tell their friends about the contest and us.”

The Performers

The five performers, one band and four solo acts, all played their original songs. They also came with a variety of instruments – mainly the acoustic guitar, but also drums, tambourines, a harmonica and of course, their voices.

The harmonica playing came from Alpena sophomore Craig Surbrook. Surbrook was the first person to perform Friday night, and started the show off on a high note with his guitar and harmonica.

“I just play for a hobby today,” Surbrook said. “I’ve played in public before, but school got in the way. I’m just here to play and have a good time.”

One of the contestants Tyler Morely, said he wrote one of the songs he performed at 1 a.m. that morning.

There was no sense of tension or competition between the contestants, only community. Each contestant was chatting and congratulating each other between their sets.

 

The Winners

After all the performances were done, the judges decided on a winner. The three judges for this year’s competition were a resident assistant from Herrig and two students from Moore Media Records.

The winners of the contest were the Savage Gentleman, a three-person band. The lead vocalist, Clarkston senior Max Baker was very happy with the result.

“We’ve all been playing together for a year now, and this seemed like a great chance to get out there more,” Baker said. “I’m glad to have been able to have the chance, and look forward to recording!”