(Editor’s note: Meet one of the six finalists of the Press Play Songwriter Contest. All six will perform Sept. 16 on the global stage of Arts in the Heart of Augusta)
An impromptu conversation about music with a random group of strangers led to the creation of a band.
“We were in the lunch line at work, talking about music,” said Dan Agnetti, one of the finalists in The Augusta Press’s inaugural Press Play songwriter contest, who will perform at Arts in the Heart of Augusta Friday with his band Mistaken for Strangers.
Most of the members came from that random lunch meeting and the group’s pianist, was discovered by chance at a soccer practice.
“I mentioned that I played piano,” said fellow bandmate, Maricel Gabhard. “[Agnetti] was very pressuring for me to stay.”
After playing together for seven years, band members have no plans of stopping anytime soon and enjoy creating collaborative songs. Agnetti said they often enjoy playing different genres and pulling from different folk inspirations.
Mistaken for Strangers has an untraditionally “folksy” sound, and Neil Young has provided the inspiration for some of its songs.
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“It’s a folk, Americana, rock kind of thing; it falls somewhere in between those genres I think, but not clearly any one or the other,” said band member, Kevin Burke.
Agnetti said he believes “Forget About Me,” the song he entered into the competition, made it to the final round of the contest because people relate to it.
“I’m always writing and digging into my teen angst for stuff, and it’s always there, so it’s just kind of a culmination of things thrown together in that song,” he said. “I think that one is the song that people always liked the most and would talk about which made us feel good.”
Gabhard said she believes the song is one of their best because of the collaborative effort the band poured into it.
“The lyrics and the guitar part I wrote and then they added all the icing on the cake,” said Agnetti. “Everything else added made it a lot better than what it was.”
“I think that song showcases us really well and what we play,” said Gabhard. “I think we’re all very proud of that song, and pride in the band overtook the shyness we have of self.”
After entering into the contest, Agnetti said participating and advancing to further rounds allowed him to connect more with co-workers in unexpected ways.
“The cool thing about it was, you know, I don’t really advertise it too much at work, and it was a cool way to introduce people to the stuff that Stacy (another bandmate) and I are working on because we work in the same office,” said Agnetti, who works as a local intelligence specialist. “Then they get to hear a little more of what we’re about as people and things we like to do, and there’s more to us than hacking’ away on a computer every day.”
Agnetti said his band gets tremendous support from friends, families, and coworkers and is excited to play on stage for Arts in the Hearts of Augusta.
To hear more music from “Mistaken for Strangers” visit: https://soundcloud.com/user-168531964-750846765
For tickets to The Arts in the Hearts of Augusta visit: https://artsintheheartofaugusta.com/tickets/
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Liz Wright is a staff writer covering education and general assignments for The Augusta Press. Reach her at liz@theaugustapress.com
