NATALIA COSTARD / THE DEPAUW
LegendPuncher is the hottest new band to hit the Greencastle music scene, and it’s composed of four DePauw faculty members.
The lead guitarist and vocalist is Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Richard Martoglio; on drums is Professor of Communications and Theatre Jonathan Nichols-Pethick; backup guitarist and vocalist is Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Dan Gurnon; and, last but not least, the Assistant Director of Spirituality, Service, and Social Justice Matthew Cummings is on bass.
The newly-formed band had its second live performance on “First Friday” in downtown Greencastle.
The seeds of the band were sown during an on-campus winter term class co-taught by Martoglio and Nichols-Pethick titled “Rock’n Roll History and Performance” that discussed issues in Rock history. During the class Martoglio and Nichols-Pethick place students in bands, and the students prepared a performance for the end of the course, which was offered for the first time in 2015. LegendPuncher was formed last year after both professors realized how much they liked playing together, and they invited Cummings to start the band with them.
LegendPuncher made its debut at the Fluttering Duck in January 2016, and it so happened that Gurnon was there to witness it. If it weren’t for him, the band’s debut might have also been the final concert because they didn’t have anywhere to practice. “Someone made a comment saying, ‘It’d be cool to keep doing this, but we don’t have a place to get together.’ It so happens that I have a barn,” Gurnon said, “I let them practice there with one condition: ‘You need to let me into the band.’”
Nichols-Pethick has been in his fair share of music experiments, but finds this experience to be one of his favorites. “I will say this: I’ve been in a lot of bands, they can be fun, they can be awful. This band, I think because we’ve all been friends for a long time, is just more fun than anything,” Nichols-Pethick said.
The band has great chemistry, and they play well together. “What I really enjoy about being part of this band is, A.) How fun it is to play with these guys and, B.) How quickly we can learn a song and play it well,” said Nichols-Pethick.
In addition to having fun, all four members have very similar taste in music. “We all coalesce around 90s alternative rock. We are loud, but melodic,” Nichols-Pethick said, “(but) above all, loud.” The bands they cover include artists like: X, Dinosaur Jr., Wilco, The Clash, Weezer, Lemonhead and The Replacements.
Due to their many commitments, it’s challenging for the LegendPunchers to get an opportunity to practice. “We only practice once a week for about an hour. It’s hard. We are all pretty busy people, and sometimes when we’re trying to practice my four-year-old son will come up to us in the barn, and say, ‘it’s my turn to sing.’ I’ll tell him, ‘No! You’re not in the band!’” Gurnon said jokingly.
LegendPuncher credits a lot of their success to the Greencastle community. Over the summer, they had the opportunity to play in “Parkfest” at Robe Ann Park.
“It’s such a supporting community, and we want to contribute and support all the local businesses here in Greencastle,” said Martoglio, who reflected on his time in the band so far, “Besides, our gigs are very cheap; we’re free. We don’t charge for our performances and it also happens to be a great way to bring people together.”
Sparknotes: keep an eye out for Greencastle’s up-and-coming cover band, LegendPuncher; they just might knock you out!