Students that attended Spring Fest were prepared to hear bands with national recognition. However, few may have known before the show that a Buffalo-based band would entertain while the big bands were setting up.
Comprised of drummer Mike Calos, guitarist and singer Dave Calos and bassist Rob Pusateri, the band, Bearhunter, shared the stage with bands known all across the country, such as Brand New and Rise Against.
"It's great...Because they're nationally recognized, hopefully some of their fans will take the time to check us out and come to our shows," Pusateri said.
Bearhunter has been playing together for about three years but has a long history. Mike and Dave Calos are brothers and Pusateri graduated from Lockport High School with Mike.
The group has an indie-rock sound that complemented the other bands performing at Spring Fest.
"Our influences are all over the place... We've been compared to Pavement, The White Stripes and a little bit of Wilco," Pusateri said.
Although the band is only a three piece, they believe their sound still packs a big punch.
"We knew that we were a three piece and that was working against us right from the start, so we kind of geared ourselves to have a bigger sound in the live show," Pusateri said. "We kind of use some different things from the record to give ourselves a bigger sound."
Saturday's show was the biggest concert the band has played yet, but there are still big things to come. This summer, Bearhunter is set to play a show during the Molson Canal Concert Series in Lockport.
Despite the fact that the group may be making more of a name for themselves, they have not forgotten about the venues they started in, like Mohawk Place.
"We've been going to see shows there forever and we've been playing shows there for a long time," Pusateri said. "We know the people down there pretty good and it feels like home when you're doing the show."
