Lucas Feather and the Underclassmen return

Six months after their "final gig" at Route 51 Brewing Company in July, Lucas Feather and the Underclassmen are playing in Carbondale once again, at the Hangar 9 on Jan. 4.

This rock, funk and soul groove band of seven students from Carbondale Community High School was formed by Drake Martin (bass), David McEathron (piano, vocals, melodica), Lucas Feather (alto sax) and Berget Borowitz (drums, vocals).

They added Aron Taylor on tenor sax, Jillian Meredith on trumpet and Max Johnson on trumpet and tambourine. They won a high school talent show, played the Hangar 9 and the Varsity, and released an album in June, "Foundations of Modern Funk," which was recorded at Carbondale's Low Key Studio.

Three band members are still in high school, and four have moved on to higher education in different parts of the country. The Jan. 4 gig will reunite everyone but Jillian Meredith.

As Drake Martin says, "In a way, we strive to remind people of a high school pep band. Our gigs are about entertaining people and having fun. That can range from a cover of 'Sweet Child O' Mine' to a six-minute song dedicated to the bass. The most important thing for us is that people have a great night."

Martin credits Shadi Frick for recording their album and Ian Garvey for helping with stage management and filming.

"Now that the band has been able to take a break, there's a serious interest in seeing what we can pull off with the short amount of time we have together," Martin said. "The goal now is to play and record during winter and summer break and do maybe two to three gigs a year."