Picnic on the Moon

Picnic on the Moon is Nick Davis (left), Bobby Wessner, TJ Beil, Alan Ludwig and Sheldon Haywood, all of Owasso High School.
JESSIE TANNER / Satellite Correspondent

Moon walk
By KATIE BIRNIE
Satellite Correspondent
2/23/2007

Picnic on the Moon boasts a tight, cohesive sound
In this world, people value experience. The music industry rarely proves any different.

Musicians in bands often require years of experience to come together and pull off a flawless sound. But this just isn't a factor for the pop-punk band Picnic on the Moon. Having only been together for a few months, Picnic on the Moon already has achieved the sound quality of a band with many years' experience.

This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who has had the pleasure of enjoying Picnic on the Moon. These are guys don't seem to follow the norm.

Picnic on the Moon is one of six bands that will play and compete at Satellite's Battle of the Bands on March 10 at Cain's Ballroom. The five band members are students at Owasso High School and have only recently come together to make music.

Seventeen-year-old senior TJ Beil leads the band with vocals. The rest of the band are 16-year-old sophomores: Alan Ludwig plays lead guitar and does the majority of the songwriting, Sheldon Haywood plays drums, Bobby Wessner plays guitar and Nick Davis finishes the mix with bass guitar.

The three founding members of Picnic on the Moon -- Alan, Nick and Sheldon -- started the band in October. The three-man band competed at Owasso High School's Battle of the Bands. According to Sheldon, "We sucked."

Shortly after that loss, Alan gave his friend TJ a copy of the band's lyrics and demo. Thus, Picnic on the Moon gained another band mate.

A few months after the new addition, Picnic on the Moon completed its sound with another new member, Bobby.

Each of the guys has a different type of musical background, all of which contributes to the complex sound of the band's music.

"I started singing at age 8," explained lead singer TJ. "My mom made me sing in choir."

Since the beginning of his vocal endeavors, TJ has sung in choirs at Claremore Christian School, Verdigris, Claremore High School and is currently involved in the Owasso High School choir.

Lead guitarist Alan can't recall when he started playing the guitar and can't quite explain how he writes his songs.

"I wouldn't know how to explain it," he said. "I just sit down and play my guitar." Fellow guitarist Bobby started playing guitar in the seventh grade.

"I usually just messed around with other friends with guitars," he explained. Bobby started out playing mostly metal music, so his sound fits in perfectly with the varied musical mix.

Drummer Sheldon started taking drum lessons in the fifth grade but eventually stopped playing. He started again a few months ago and currently plays in the First Christian Church of Owasso's youth band.

Bassist Nick also is a member of the First Christian youth band and has been playing the bass guitar for more than a year.

Picnic on the Moon offers a sound very different from that of the typical teenage rock band. Self-classified as pop-punk, Picnic on the Moon has numerous up-beat songs, including "Go," "Boy's Night Out," "Picnic on the Moon" and "Alan's Song."

Picnic on the Moon pulls inspiration from many different aspects of life.

"Friends are what it's all about for me," claimed TJ, "and everything that happens throughout my day."

Musical influences for the band include Blink 182, Green Day, +44 and New Found Glory.

Since the band doesn't seem to need experience for a solid sound, they also don't allow themselves to deal with the usual band problems such as the dreaded artistic differences.

The members of Picnic on the Moon derived the band's name from the song written by lead guitarist, Alan.

"It's very original," explained TJ.

No long stories, no complicated explanation. His answer is very much like the band itself:

Just real guys, good music with a little quirk thrown into the mix.

Katie Birnie 581-8336
Cascia sophomore
satellite@tulsaworld.com