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Witness the rise of The Fallen Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi students and friends create metal band
Multicultural Greek Council helps make miracles come true PAGE 6
photo courtesy of The Fallen
(standing) left to right: Islanders Alex Braun, Mark Flores and Clay Thompson along with band member Jorge Morales pose for the camera after Battle of the Bands event hosted by CAB
by TREY SEAL entertainment reporter
G
reat bands often have humble roots formed by a group coming together through their shared passion for music. Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi Battle of The Bands’ runner-up band The Fallen may one day tell a similar story. The Fallen is a metal band composed of Island University students Clay Thompson, Mark Flores, and Alex Braun. Following their success at the Battle of the Bands event, the group talks about their roots, style, and plans for their future. The Fallen drummer Mark Flores said, “ [The greatest influence on my music] without a doubt, I would have to say metal bands such as Tribune, Deo, and Lamb of God.” [The band] started in September of 2011, originally we were a larger group but the whole project fell apart. Alex, my cousin, and I decided to go off on our own and we decided
to call ourselves ‘The Fallen’. Eventually Alex came in and everything came together. As soon as Alex joined we started to create original songs.” Lead guitarist and backup singer, Alex Braun said his inspiration for lyrics comes to him after the beat to a song is formed. Flores said he listens to various tunes on his iPod in order to keep from sounding redundant. “I’ll be messing around with various instruments (primarily guitar/piano) and then I’ll send it to these guys,” lead singer, Clay Thompson said, “and see if we can apply it to a song.” Flores believes that over time, the band’s song structure has grown along with the members who have also grown as musicians. The band has been experimenting with adding more complex styles such as guitar solos to their music. “We want each new song to sound evolved and we do that by pushing ourselves to learning more ways to expand on our skillset,” Flores said.
According to Thompson the journey the band has taken has been quite the adventure. The Fallen started small by playing venues like open-mic at the Executive Surf Club and then moving on to Battle of the Bands at House of Rock. All the small appearances have culminated to what was the most recent second place win at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Battle of the Bands. The Fallen plans to record their own songs themselves on their own equipment and then work towards a record deal. Thompson, Flores and Braun agree if they can turn their music making into a career they would make it happen without hesitation. “Absolutely, music is a passion and being able to do what I love would be an amazing opportunity to have,” Thompson said. To find out more about The Fallen visit their Facebook page by searching “theycallusTheFallen”.
Things to see, do and try in Corpus Christi PAGE 8
A strong case for education
Wendy Davis campaign trail makes stop in Corpus Christi by CONNER TICHOTA news editor
T
he race for Governor of Texas is beginning to pick up steam as the candidates plough through their respective campaign trails. On April 11, candidate Wendy Davis held a pub-
lic rally at Del Mar Community College for her constituents in the Corpus Christi area. At the rally, there were approximately 150 to 200 supporters in attendance. The event was sponsored by the Corpus Christi chapter of the American Federation of Teachers in conjunction with the Davis campaign camp. “I’m so delighted to be with all of you,” said
Davis, “The people who work to nourish, protect, educate, to shape the generation of Texans for the future… and I know, in this state, you have been asked to do more everyday with less. I think it is time to change that…”
Lacrosse vs. Baseball: an opinion piece PAGE 10
see Wendy Davis on pg 3
INDEX EDITORIAL 2 | NEWS 3 | FEATURES 5 | ENTERTAINMENT 7 | SPORTS 10 | VISUALS 12
VOLUME 25, ISSUE 13