By Andria Barrios
The musical talent across Brandon is growing rapidly, especially as three local boys advance and excel with their band The Great Frame. Nearly two years ago, an amateur musical collaboration made of three high school boys was born. Little did they know they would be selling hit demos, performing in front of hundreds and winning contests just a year later.
Andrew Cona and Jordan Cole grew up as best friends living in the same neighborhood, and met the Riverview resident Anders Jensen, at Bloomingdale high school. Soon after, they formed a band called The Great Frame. “The name started because we were having a hard time choosing and Jordan said ‘I wish our name could just be a picture,’ it also has a deeper meaning similar to the phrase ‘the big picture’,” said Cona.
This past summer, in the Gorilla Music Battle of the Bands held in Ybor, Cona, Cole and Jensen were excited to experience their first debut performance. “This was such an awesome experience for us as our first show together. Hearing so many people we didn’t know voting for us was unreal,” says Cole, bass player. Proudly, The Great Frame walked away placing top third and eligible to participate in the next level of competition, the finals. On December 22 at the Orpheum in Ybor, The Great Frame will have the chance to win $500, as well as 20 hours of recording time. “It’s audience reaction voting, so we need as much support as we can get,” Jordan said.
Their next big obstacle is recording their first full-length album, which they plan to release in 2013. The band has a few songs recorded on their site, but Cole encourages residents to attend the live performances because “there’s a lot of our material that isn’t recorded yet that you’ll have to see us live for.”
These graduates of Bloomingdale high continue to enhance the music world by performing and recording songs of the alternative/experimental genre. “We just think there’s not enough good music out there, and we want to deliver that to our fans,” Jensen, the drummer, states.
For more information, call 464-1318, or contact thegreatframe@live.com. Also, see The Great Frame live on Saturday, December 22 at the Orpheum located at 1915 E. Seventh Ave. at 5 p.m. You can purchase tickets on their personal Website for $8.