Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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Ben Gray, junior in electrical engineering, practices bass in the basmentof thehouse he shares with Eck. We sent demos to about 50 indepen- dent labelsal over the nation; wegot a ' mot positive Eck sad. Most labels say to send demos and if they like it then let them knew when you will be in town and they wit The letters said things like, ' Hey, you guys have something go. Ing, but what you have to do is tour, tour tour. ' (PhotobyKelly Glasscock) Practicing for the OPUS competition, vocalist bass player Gray plays in the backgroud as vocalisVguitar player Brandon Eck, junior in fine arts, sings the lead vocals in the basement of their house. We had the cops called on us one night because we were playing too loud, Eck said. Ususally we don ' t do that, usually we don ' t play after 10. We have to repect our (Photo by Kelly Glasscock) fusion defined 9

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and ofikathers Three students come together to find their natural talent in the rock band Three Rivers Kennedy By Alison Vrtiska Pounding the rhythm, Justin Peterson, junior in fine arts, preforms for the OPUS competition. Three Rivers Kennedy was the first band to play in the competition in the Union Plaza Oct. 5. (Photo by Kelly Glasscock) Their name came from a road sign, they originated in a basement and their style came naturally. 1 saw a road sign my freshman year in south Texas on 1-37, Ben Gray, bass and vocals, said. it said Three Rivers Kennedy. ' l thought it had a ring. No meaning but a cool sound. We want to explain our meaning through our music. Gray, junior in electrical engineering; Brandon Eck, junior in fine arts; and Justin Peterson, junior in fine arts formed Three Riven Kennedy in May. A rock band with a punk influence, Three Rivers Kennedy played original works, such as Awake by Wednesday and State Line. Eck, guitar and vocals and Peterson, drums, began playing together in the eighth grade. We have listened to the old recordings and we were like, ' whoa we suck, Eck said. We would drive my family nuts. We would have 15 kids in the basement, and we thought we were cool. The pair came to K-State their freshman year and continued to play in a basement. As freshmen in Marisa Hall, Eck and Peterson had to store drums in a closet. Every Wednesday night, they hauled them down to rehearse. We had to go downstairs to the music room which was just a piano room and everyone was pissed, Eck said. It was the quiet dorm, and we were th e band in the basement. Eck and Peterson met Gray that same year, while looking (or others to start a band. Initially, Eck thought the bass player wasn ' t going to want to play with them. Ben had a beard and I thought he was a lot older than us, Eck said. We didn ' t think he would want to play with freshmen. But he did. The three teamed up with rapper, Kevin Regicr to create, Elemental, a punk rock band with a strong hip- hop influence. Their original song, Scandalous Nature° was on the KSDB- FM 91.9 top five for two weeks. Despite success. Elemental struggled to stay together. They decided to go their separate ways in March 2001. Only a month after Elemental split up Eck. Peterson and Gray decided to try again; this time with a different style. ' e realized that the style of Elemental wasn ' t really us and we were struggling to make it work ' Peterson said. What we are now is really natural. As Thrcc Rivers Kennedy, the group was tighter than ever, Eck said. We rarely fight, but every once in awhile it will be over something stupid and then we wind up saying, ' Hey, I am sorry, 1 didn ' t mean to be that way, ' Eck said. It is really not about band stuff, it is usually about Peterson being late. Gray said he didn ' t remember ever having an argument about the music. The band worked to balance busy schedules but understood the importance of an education. We know that right now we have to go to school and we want to have that to fall back on, so we are making the band as much of a priority as we are allowed, Peterson said. That way, someday it can be the number-one priority. 8 Student Life

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September 11 All times are Central standard Sixteen minutes after takooff, American Airlines Flight 11. a Boeing 767 carrying prapmle.crasehed World sinutedreinnts way to class, unaware of the attack on the WTC. —8:03 a.m. A second hijacked airplane, United Airlines Flight 175, carrying 65 people, slammed into the south tower of the WTC. 8.24 a.m. President George W. Bush visiting a second•grade class in a Sarasota, Fla., school called the plane crashes at the WTC, an apparent terrorist attack on our country. 8:40 a.m. The Federal Aviation Administration halted all flights at U.S. airports. For the first time in U.S. history the nationwide air traffic system was ordered to down 8:43 a.m.. • American Airlines Flight 77 flew into the Pentagon in Washington causing one of the building ' s five sides to collapse. The airliner carried 64 people. 9 a.m. United Airlines Flight 93, carrying 45 people, crashed just north of the Somerset County Airport. Rumors circulated that the plane was headed for either the White louse or the Capitol. I just got back from my 7:30 a.m. class. Matt Diliberto, junior in park management and conservation, said. I walk ed through the door and my roommates were watching in disbelief. I thought it was a movie. 9:05 a.m. The south tower of the WTC collapsed. A massive cloud of dust and debris flooded the surrounding area. 9:28 a.m. The north tower collapsed. 9:30 a.m. Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship leaders met for a pre-scheduled meeting. They made arrangements to hold a prayer service on campus. My hope is that the body of Christ at KSU will respond as one body to the needs of a world that hurts on the East Co ast and Manhattan (Kan.), Brian Elliott, Pastor of Chi Alpha, said. 11:15 a.m. U.S. Customs Service placed all of its personnel on Level 1 Alert. Bureau statements released by the U.S. Customs Service said, Despite our heightened security measures, I want to stress that at no time has the Customs Service closed any of its border operations? 12:04 p.m. At Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, Bush said all appropriate security measures were being taken. Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts. Bush said. 3 p.m. CNN National Security Correspondent David Ensor reported that U.S. officials .aid there were good indications that Saudi militant Usama bin Laden was involved in the attacks, based on new and specific information developed since I the attacks. 3:10 p.m. Building Seven of the WTC, a 47-story complex was reported Ton it e: it collapsed at 4:25 p.m. 7:45 a.m. 10