Rough Patch is a local band consisting of five close friends who love creating music together. Its Feb. 28 debut in the backyard of one of the band members welcomed dozens of attendees and supporters who embraced the band’s first performance with open arms, cheering and jumping around while Rough Patch jammed.
The band came together through Cayden Anthony, a senior studying electrical engineering, and the band's drummer. After Anthony parted ways with a separate band, Less Marbles, at the beginning of the school year, he decided to take the situation as a learning experience and improve his drumming skills, which landed him in a band with his closest friends.
“They weren't bad to me,” Anthony said. “It was just very obvious that they needed a drummer; I was a drummer, and they found a drummer that they preferred. When you're making music, but you're actually just hanging out with your friends, it's a whole different ball game.”
Anthony said he was a very new drummer at the time, having only practiced with a full drum set for a month. His music journey began in fifth grade, when he started playing trumpet, and eventually the xylophone. He started marching band further into middle school, which is when he concluded drumming was “stupid,” only practicing on his kit every two weeks.
“Then, this most recent summer, I'm sitting in a work meeting, scrolling on Facebook marketplace, and I see some dude who lives right next to my mom is offering a ride cymbal, a crash cymbal, a hi-hat, a double pedal and an assortment of drum heads and drumsticks for $120,” Anthony said.
Anthony said the entire kit held a value of $1,000, and he snatched the offer up and began practicing. Anthony said he is close friends with bassist Connor Voltz, a senior studying electrical engineering, and lead guitarist Will Muskopf, a senior studying electrical engineering. After leaving Less Marbles at the beginning of the year, he recruited Voltz and Muskopf to practice with him, and called their original group Exoskeletal.
Muskopf said he did not start to learn guitar until his sophomore year, which is about when Voltz started to learn bass as well. The two said they were excited to play during their debut, even though they tend to focus on their small mishaps.
“We're all self-conscious people about how we're doing,” Muskopf said. “So we are our harshest critics. I guess it went as well as everyone thinks it went.”
During the band’s performance Feb. 28, the crowd was feeling the beat, bobbing their heads and singing along to the band’s catchy covers and originals. The bands Close My Eyes and Donkey Punch also played sets.
Rough Patch played “Mary Jane's Last Dance” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, “Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin, “Mississippi Queen” by Mountain and “Breathe” by Pink Floyd. The two originals they performed were “Pusher Man” and “Coffee Table,” which was a crowd favorite.
After playing together for some time, the band acquired its rhythm guitarist, Dominic Hoiseth, and spent its free time playing in one of the members’ living rooms, gaining the skills and confidence needed for future performances.
“It was convenient for most of us, because we were all in the same classes, so we all kind of knew each other,” Voltz said. “So then we just started playing together. And Dom, the other guitarist, is a roommate of Cayden’s, so we were all just kind of friends. And so we started jamming together. The only problem was we didn't have the singer.”
The vocalist, David Bebout, met Anthony three separate times before he joined band practices, even though the two are neighbors. Anthony said they met over the summer, while he was learning guitar for the first time. Anthony said he would sit on his back porch and strum away, which caught the attention of Bebout. Anthony said he had his gain “cranked to the max,” and began jamming with Bebout while he played his harmonica during their first meeting.
“I would call myself a beginner at this point of guitar, now,” Anthony said. “Back then, I wouldn't even call myself able to play. So I'm just slapping the string, making this giant wave of nasty volumes.”
Over the course of three months, Anthony tried to catch Bebout to pitch his band and offer him the role of lead vocalist. He spotted Bebout wearing a sombrero at a Halloween party while he was dressed as Woody from “Toy Story,” and got his number, which he immediately lost.
Anthony finally recruited Bebout after catching him carrying his groceries into his house and secured the final piece of their band. Anthony said Bebout’s voice and pretty face are what really make them a band, as well as the “back mids” from Hoiseth’s rhythm guitar.
The group enjoys playing with one another and is looking forward to its improvement and future performances. Rough Patch has many original songs in the works, and is excited to eventually share them with Athens.
Rough Patch’s next show is March 20 for Slabfest, named after the hosting house venue, the Slab, in which four other bands will be featured. The band is also toying with the idea of performing during Mill Fest, the first of Ohio University students’ fest season parties, and would call its performance “Metal Near Mill.” Follow the band’s Instagram for more information on upcoming shows.
