A new band will be making a first appearance in the State College music scene this Sunday, sharing the stage with a familiar favorite for a Cherry Darling Productions show at the 797 Lounge.
Punk-metal band Pandas and local group The Whatleys will be giving a joint show at 10 p.m. for the 21-and-older crowd this weekend.
Greg Park, guitarist for Pandas, said the band is excited to get out of its usual hangouts of Baltimore, Md. and Lancaster.
"This is a big hotspot of Pa.," he
said. "It's a cool town to spend an evening at."
The band is no stranger to the "college town-type areas," he said. He described their music as "if Black Flag and Crimson Glory had a baby and it was raised by Slayer."
Park called everyone in Pandas "huge music nerds" who like to have a loud and fast time.
"We throw out a lot of stuff and play it as fast as possible," he explained. "I call us punk, other band members say metal and then there are fans that just call us rock. It all depends on your perspective."
Park said that audiences at Sunday's show can expect a good, goofy time on stage -- people often say band members look like they're having the time of their life. He hopes the people of State College think the same thing.
Meredith Rebar, founder of Cherry Darling Productions, said The Whatley's vocalist and bassist Eddie Fraud booked Pandas for the gig. Fraud said he saw the band on Myspace and really liked the group's style. He explained The Whatleys are "straight punk," opposed to Pandas' punk and metal music combination.
He said he thinks this show will be a good opportunity for The Whatleys to "expand their horizons."
"We both have a good time with music," Fraud said, "but aren't overly dramatic."
