By Maeve Devine, Features Contributor
Prairie Pavement is an indie band made up of four high school seniors that are due to graduate in a few weeks from Lancaster High School only 20 minutes from Canisius, one of which I played the steel drums with in the Carnival Kids Steel Orchestra when I was in high school. But, for this new band, they swap steel drums for the normal ensemble of instruments comprising a rock band.
Last year, they put out their first self-titled album and have since performed several times at the Music Room in East Aurora, a space where bands of all ages and sizes can come and perform their material. Their standout single, “Circe,” made obvious by the screaming fans and friends that sing along at every performance, is undeniably the song where they find their footing as a band. The song follows the myth of Circe, most likely inspired by the fact that every high schooler has to read at least some portion of “The Odyssey” in Regents English.
The chorus of the song begins with the words, “Circe, gonna be the death of me / And now I know, it’s all your show / So why'd you have to go / Bring me down to a whole new low?” The song is about friendship, or more specifically, the remnants of one, and it has close to 2,000 streams on Spotify. A lyric from their song “Glow Up” sets the tone for the album, singing “If you really wanted to glow up / then maybe baby you should grow up.” It’s funny and steeped in Gen Z vernacular but also says a lot about, well, growing up.
The thing I love most about this band is, of course, that I went to school with them, but also the startling depth to the lead singer’s voice coming from such a small body. It is completely unexpected and the first time I heard his voice it shocked me, sounding like a 50-year-old’s voice in the best way, a rich tone that seems to wash warmly over you.
Prairie Pavement is like if Surf Curse, Dr. Dog and Car Seat Headrest had a child in the form of a high school band born in Lancaster, NY, so if you’re into those bands check them out @prairiepavement on Spotify and Instagram. Also, watch out for their new EP on Spotify, which they just recorded!
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