Dreamspace, a student band which started last February out of a group of WJ students, has emerged as a respectable band with a progressive and experimental approach to rock music.

Guitarists sophomore Kwesi Lee and freshman Austin Loman, sophomore bassist Ross Koby, and sophomore drummer Andrew Allen started playing together last February in an empty bedroom of  Allen’s house.

“The band formed pretty naturally,” said Allen. “Kwesi had signed up for a local Battle of the Bands in February of this year with a couple of friends, including Ross on bass.  They still didn’t have a drummer a week before the show so I offered to help out. I didn’t know if it was going to be [a one time] kind of thing or [not].”

The first show “was horrible,” according to Allen, but they continued to practice, write original songs, and record homemade demos anyway.

“During the summer we practiced five to seven days a week, for about six-plus hours,” said Allen.

When school is in session the band usually meets around four times a week and plays a few shows per month.

Recently, Dreamspace played a show on the National Mall in D.C. alongside other bands ranging from rock to gospel music. The show at the mall did not bring in any money for the band, but Allen was still happy with the event.

“Sometimes giving up money is worth it if you get the exposure,” he said.

The small profit which Dreamspace does makes at many of its shows is still a nice motivation for the band.

“I can probably get by in the summer without getting a ‘real job’ as my parents might put it,” said Allen. “The best thing is getting paid for doing something that you love.”

For the band’s members, their hard work has payed off with more than just money and experience.

“[Although] the band started out as a strictly musical kind of thing, I have become friends with all the members,” said Allen. “I am sure that we would all consider each other best friends in a certain sense. It would be weird not to after all the hundreds of hours we’ve spent practicing and fighting and all that stuff.”