Odyssey of the Mind fundraiser ‘rocks’ Warwick

Nine local teens participated in the first ever Battle of the Bands fundraiser for the Warwick Odyssey of the Mind program at Mountain Lake Park on Saturday, April 27. The event, organized by Kerin Lijoi and Josephine DiSalvo, offered up a first-place prize of $250 and the top three bands will be performing together this summer at John F. Degnan Square in Middletown.

Memorandum, a Warwick band that plays a mix of genres, won first place. The band consists of: Camden Tracy on lead guitar and vocals, Maddie Lijoi on vocals and guitar, Holden Tracy on drums, Logan Fanizza on bass guitar, and Tommy Maiorana on keys. Memorandum has been playing music together for just over a year and performed at many shows locally.

Parental Lock, also a Warwick band, took second place. “P-Lock” was formed in 2017 as part of The Rock Underground Collective and the current bandmates have been playing together since 2023 with a focus on rock, alternative rock, pop, and jazz/blues. Bandmates include Janessa Serrano on drums, Milad Alaie on keys, Tyler Saladino on rhythm guitar, Lucas Cardona on lead guitar, Dylan Svec on bass guitar, and Alyssa Doughty as lead vocalist. Jacob Creighton filled in as lead guitarist for Cardona. Parental Lock has played at the Warwick Valley Community Center, The Greenwood Lake Elks Lodge, Greenwood Lake Winter Carnival, Greenwood Lake Street Fair and Pine Island Oktoberfest, and has been part of the GWL Waterfront Summer Series concerts on Friday nights.

Coming in third place was The Frozen Peaz, out of Cornwall Middle School. This band consists of Joey Grammerstorf and James Darro on guitar and vocals and Daniel Hayes on drums. These young musicians are influenced by bands like Green Day, Nirvana and the Smashing Pumpkins.

“Our judges had a tough decision as all of the bands performed well,” Lijoi said. “We could not be happier for the kids. We are thankful for such a successful fundraiser for our Warwick Odyssey of the Mind program and for the outpouring of support from the community.”

DiSalvo added: “We’d also like to extend a huge thank you to Mountain Lake Park Director Sam Walter, Warwick Valley Central School District, all the folks involved in making this event happen, and to the bands who participated. Without all of you, there is no Battle of the Bands.”

Odyssey of the Mind is a creative problem-solving program where team members present their solution at a competition to a predefined long-tern problem that takes many months to complete and involves writing, design, construction, and theatrical performance.