Glassboro has a lot of hidden gems when it comes to up-and-coming musicians. Catch Paper Planes is one of those hidden gems. A band that only started at the beginning of this academic year has already taken listeners’ hearts. The band is made up of four Rowan University students: Samuel Raughley, who writes and plays the guitar; Dylan McLaughlin, who plays the drums; Daniel Prokoshin, who also plays the guitar; and Cristian Xelhua, who plays the bass.
Raughley first started looking for musicians to start a band when he met McLaughlin through his roommate. From there, they met Xelhua and Prokoshin only a few months later in June, and from there they started their band. Their first show together was at a DIY venue in the surrounding area of Rowan, on Sept. 14 of this year.
“A lot of our main influences consist of post-punk and gothic rock. We mainly perform a lot of covers,” said Raughley.
They take a lot of inspiration from genres like gothic rock and emo rock. The band as a whole, especially their writer Raughley, have a passion to revive the post punk era of music through their music. Their main stages consist of house shows, DIY venues, as previously mentioned, and smaller venues where people can truly appreciate their music.
Although they do not have any originals out as of right now, they plan to release their first EP late next spring. They have been working tirelessly not only to be able to perform around the Rowan area but also to have new music ready as soon as possible for fans to enjoy.
“It’s an interesting dynamic. It’s definitely an individual dynamic of all of us having ideas first and putting the puzzle together rather than sitting in a room and writing for an hour,” said Raughley when asked about the writing dynamic of the band.
A band with that kind of dynamic is so important to have because it allows everyone’s creative voices to be heard. That kind of creative flow is rare to find in bands, especially a band made up of artists that only met a few months before forming the band.
“We all come up with our own individual parts, and although they may not fit at first, are able to collaborate very well and at the end of the day make good music,” said McLaughlin.
The band as a whole is incredibly important to them. The fact that they were able to find such a great connection to make good music shows that they have what it takes to be an incredibly successful band. Without cohesiveness, bands become a mess, and it becomes apparent to listeners that they are not in sync, which can be detrimental to the band’s career. That is not the case with Catch Paper Planes; you can really see how much this band means to them.
“The band means everything to me. Collaboration and creativity is a scarce thing nowadays but we have it,” said Xelhua when asked what the band means to him.
“I was trying to form bands before and it would always be a dead end or fizzle out. I’m so happy that I now have the opportunity to play with three great musicians,” said McLaughlin.
Catch Paper Planes is only getting started, and everyone should be on the lookout for what is next for them. Their new EP in the upcoming spring, will be a testament to all the hard work they have put into their music so far.
For comments/questions about this story DM us on Instagram @thewhitatrowan or email [email protected]
