Not many Arizonans would willingly brave 45 degree weather. However, for the women of local band 76th Street, the chance to share their music is more than incentive enough.
On Jan. 16, they played a two hour set at Desert Ridge Marketplace in Phoenix. Through original songs and covers of everything from Radiohead to Darius Rucker, the duo drew people out in the cold to stop and stay a while.
76th Street, made up of film production and communications sophomore Haley Gold on piano and vocals, as well as business communications sophomore Spencer Bryant on guitar and vocals, is ultimately driven by the love of music that Gold and Bryant have shared from an early age.
The two met in the fifth grade at Grayhawk Elementary School in Scottsdale and participated in many musicals together as children. According to Gold, the idea to form a duo didn't come until a performance at Red Owl in Tempe at age 10.
"We always sang together just for fun, but never decided to make anything serious of it," Gold said. "So we had a show, and we didn't know too many songs together so we were like 'Why don't you do a couple and then I do a couple?' And then we did this one song together ('Poison and Wine' by The Civil Wars), and it was that one song together that just changed everything."
From that point on, Gold and Bryant committed themselves to writing and playing music as a duo. But while a lot of hard work may be involved, it's their passion that ultimately drives them.
"Music for us isn't just a job," Gold said. "We'll sit and play for eight hours straight, doing nothing productive, just playing music."
Bryant continued this thought, saying, "It's amazing how something that we love and something that's our passion is so well-reciprocated by the people in our lives. Like, having a show and (seeing people) love and enjoy our music is pretty amazing. Just being able to do what we love and have people enjoy it as much as they do is really cool."
A few years ago, 76th Street gained a supporter in Lisa Pauling, owner of Be You Jewelry, through its enchanting performance at Scottsdale Artisan Market.
"I must have been busy with customers, but then all of a sudden I was brought to a halt by this angelic sound that I was hearing," Pauling wrote in an email. "I was blown away by pretty much everything. Their voices, their songs, their vulnerability, their innocence and their conviction. I am no expert of music, believe me, but these girls are special."
Gold and Bryant also left an impression on Jenny Kelber, former owner of Songbird's Nest, a now-closed restaurant in Cave Creek. Kelber met Bryant when she was 14 as her songwriting teacher, and met Gold through her.
"When you have a connection like they do, it's special," Kelber said. "There's just an energy when they sing together."
The two began studying at ASU in 2014, and were roommates their freshman year before ultimately deciding to move back home. In doing so they have more space and time to focus on music in addition to their studies.
"It was really difficult because obviously, on campus, there are a lot of distractions so this year we actually moved home so we could focus more on music," Bryant said. "That was a big sacrifice for us, leaving ASU (campus), but we know it was better for us in the long run."
The duo's commitment and talent carried them as far as the third round of "The Voice," right before the blind auditions, in 2014. While they may not have made it on to the live show, Gold said the experience was still extremely valuable due to the incredible people they were able to meet and receive advice from.
Bryant now advises other student musicians to seriously pursue their passion, instead of losing track of what's important to the distractions of college.
"Stay focused," Bryant said. "As much as you want to go to that party and do whatever you want, those are the times when you need to buckle down and say 'We need to get this done.' But also just to not forget the passion for it. Haley and I don't think of it as work or anything like that, we just love it so much. So just never forget the love for it."
76th Street has an EP and a new single, "You and I," available on iTunes and Spotify, and various covers can be found on their Soundcloud page. They will be playing as part of the Alive @ 5 concert series on the Starlight Terrace outside the Engrained Cafe at the Memorial Union on Feb. 17.
Related Links:
Local band Bear State creates toe-tapping lullabies
TUF Talk: Best of Music Venues & Local Bands
Reach the reporter at ezentner@asu.edu or follow @emilymzentner on Twitter.
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