Wildcats work hard during the week, but when the weekend rolls around, we know how to rock. A group of Wildcats formed a band that call themselves Erasmus, a name chosen because “it sounds cool.”
Erasmus is comprised of guitarist Jackson Ivy, bassist Gavin Seng, drummer Luke Koball, and singer Azalea Skye and play a mix of hard rock, metal, and classic rock, although ”something that we all agree on is that we want to try a little bit of everything,” says Skye.
Erasmus meets to practice and write their songs twice a week—but those are not the biggest reasons that they enjoy playing with each other. According to Ivy, “It’s the highlight of all our weeks. It’s not just about the music, it’s the friendships.”
Both Seng and Ivy emphasized how good being in the band with friends and making music is for their mental health, and Koball says that “It’s fun, it’s a good way to practice and learn with a group of people that are chill to be around.”
The band draws upon many musical influences, such as Metallica, System of a Down, and Black Sabbath, as well as their own individual idols.
Skye’s father is in a band, which is one of her biggest influences, and he supports her musical career as well.
Ivy told us that he is “really driven by how a song sounds, like licks. That’s what I listen for,” and that he is “profoundly influenced by Blues music.”
For Seng, individual artists Metallica’s Cliff Burton, Iron Maiden’s Steve Ares, and Motorhead’s Lenny Killister are “all huge influences on the way that I play.”
The band has yet to really play any gigs. Ivy said that “we’re still in our infancy, to be honest.” However, the band seems optimistic about their pace moving forwards, and Ivy described what they are doing now as “part of every local band’s journey.”
Seng says that “There are some things that you can put into music that you can’t put into words.”
Together, these four Wildcats have united to express themselves and have a good time. All of them can relate to Skye when she says that “music is such a big part of my life.”
It seems that Erasmus has become something more than anybody expected it to be. It is a band, but in addition to that, it’s become a sanctuary for a group of friends to have a good time and support each other, in addition to sounding amazing.
Erasmus has an official Instagram account, @theofficialerasmus, if you want to check them out or support them.
Note: We were unable to interview all four members of Erasmus. There may be less input from member Luke Koball, because he was unable to make it the day we scheduled the interview–but he is just as important a member as any of the others.
