By Sean Coyne / Staff writer

The Students for Peace and Justice organization will host Peace-a-palooza in Campana Chapel at on Wednesday, April 9, at 9 p.m. Peace-a-palooza will feature two local bands, Rising Regina and Black Market Theatre. UPG professors Frank Wilson, Beverly Gaddy and Andy Franz will speak on current events.

“We wanted to host an event that would gather the campus community together just to enjoy some live band music and friends and hopefully energize students to oppose the war,” said Gaddy, faculty adviser for the Students for Peace and Justice.

“Music became a powerful mobilizer of students and other young people against the Vietnam War,” Gaddy said. “Consider the influence on young people’s views towards war of the songs of Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Marvin Gaye, Joan Baez, Peter, Paul and Mary and other music artists of the 1960s.”

While the bands playing at Peace-a-palooza will not be primarily anti-war, Gaddy said there may be one or a few anti-war pieces played.

Although the night is designed to promote the local music scene, Gaddy said she hopes to promote awareness about the war and her organization.

“Dr. Frank Wilson, Andy Franz and I will offer a few words between sets about the war, peace, justice and about Students for Peace and Justice,” she said. “So we also hope to use this event to promote peace and UPG’s own peace and justice student organization.”

Black Market Theatre is a local rock band from Greensburg and features Pitt-Greensburg student Andrew Perrotta on lead guitar. Their sound is ’90s rock mixed with some LSD and Blues Traveler with thrashing guitar riffs and punk rock influences.

Rising Regina is from Kittanning, Pa. Their music is based around harmonies and folk-guitar riffs. A bit of rock influence can also be heard in their music and it’s coupled with bluegrass folky-ness of bands like Nickel Creek and the harmonies of groups such as The Mammas and the Pappas.

More information about Rising Regina can be found at www.myspace.com/risingregina. More information about Peace-a-palooza can be found by keeping an eye out for fliers Tuesday and Wednesday.