On the verge of fame
By Staff
Band featuring local residents part of national magazine
Tracy B. Cieniewicz, Hartselle Enquirer
When a well-known publication sent out a nationwide call to young women who rock, two Hartselle natives answered and rolled from local stages to newsstands across the country.
Auburn University juniors Lisa Taylor, 21, and Mary-Kate Kennedy, 20, both of Hartselle, are featured in the June/July issue of CosmoGirl! with their band, One Night Stand.
The young rockers are excited about the feature, which hit stands May 25, because they feel it could be a big break for their band.
"Well, CosmoGirl! was doing an article about girls that rock. So they had people from the magazine doing a search for girl bands across the country. They contacted 91.1 WEGL, our local radio station, and asked them for any info on any girl bands in town," Taylor said.
"WEGL gave them our contact information and they emailed us," Kennedy added. "We had to send them a package of pictures and music, and we did a few interviews as well. Shortly after that they contacted us and told us we were chosen for the top five out of hundreds in the country."
Taylor, a radio/television/film major, is the daughter of Lynn and Kim Taylor of Hartselle. Kennedy, a communications disorders major, is the daughter of Richard and Mary Kennedy of Hartselle.
Both said their families have been very supportive of their musical endeavors.
"They love the fact that we are doing something that we really enjoy and at the same time getting recognized for it," Taylor said.
"They all buy our T-shirts and anything we have," Kennedy said. "They have even came to our shows before."
One Night Stand was formed in December 2002 and has four members-Taylor, guitar and lead vocals; Kennedy, guitar and background vocals; Jenna Yates, bass guitar; and John McAdam, drum set.
"We all came up with the idea to start a band together, it was kind of random," Taylor admitted.
"We originally were just going to play one show for fun and we didn't have a band name, Kennedy said. "So we just called ourselves One Night Stand as a joke. Afterwards, people kept asking when we were going to play again. So we just kept the name since everyone knew us by that already."
Taylor, who has played the guitar for seven years, and Kennedy, who has played the guitar for four years, are self-taught musicians. Both credit their vocal training to being active in the chorus at Hartselle Junior High and Hartselle High.
Taylor said she writes all the lyrics and melodies and both she and Kennedy write some of the guitar together.
"Our music is a mix between rock and pop punk because it's fun to rock out to and not too heavy," Kennedy said. "We have originals, but occasionally we will play a cover or two at shows."
One Night Stand plays at local venues near Auburn often and occasionally travels throughout the southeast to perform, playing once or twice a month during the school year. They are currently working on a tour for the end of this summer.
"We hope to keep playing and building a bigger fan base," Taylor said. "We have actually performed live before at 91.1 WEGL. We just love to play! Playing shows is definitely the best part (of being in a band), but meeting new people also rules."
One Night Stand has CDs and T-shirts available for sale on their web site www.onenightstand.tk, as well as concert schedules and information about the band. Taylor designed and maintains the web site.
Taylor and Kennedy said they expect to each buy five or six copies of the magazine feature as personal keepsakes, but they hope it will be more than a scrapbook item for the band.
"We have already been contacted about our CD, so lets just keep our fingers crossed," Kennedy said.
