By Hilary Gridley
It’s hard to look at images of the New Jersey shoreline from before Hurricane Sandy knowing how many neighborhoods were washed into the sea. But the four friends who make up the band The Lonely Biscuits have turned their memory of one New Jersey town into a message of hope for all those affected by the storm and an opportunity to raise money for Sandy’s victims.
This past summer, the band, which formed at Belmont University and earned top honors at last year’s national College Battle of the Bands competition, wrote the song “Everybody” and filmed the corresponding video in Normandy Beach, New Jersey. The song is about staying strong through experiences outside our control; when they first penned the lyrics it, they had no idea how meaningful it would become. In fact, they felt so disconnected from the song they never even planned to release it.
This was before Sandy hit. After the storm left Normandy Beach in shambles, they realized how meaningful the song and video were. While the media painted a grim picture of a mid-Atlantic shoreline in shambles and underwater, they knew they had an opportunity to focus instead on their buoyant memories of a town they all loved.
Watch their video below , and download it on their bandcamp page. All proceeds from their digital sales will go directly to Waves for Water, a non-profit focusing its efforts on Hurricane Sandy relief by removing rubble from affected communities, bringing supplies to those in need, and ultimately helping to rebuild the North Eastern seaboard.
Many may not realize how much those affected are still suffering after this tragedy. More importantly, however, many may not realize how strong the hurricane victims remain in the face of all that was lost. The Lonely Biscuits want to change that.
The Lonely Biscuits — “Everybody”