Editors Note: Information in this article, originally published Oct. 22, 2023 has been corrected. Outdated information regarding the release date of “Sirens” has been updated.

With a plethora of venues and no shortage of audience, the music scene in Raleigh is flourishing — with aid from some of NC State’s own. 

Meet The Layaways, the band winning the hearts and ears of NC State students. 

Composed of five NC State students — guitarists Mac Boland and Oscar Valadez, fourth-years studying forest management and mechanical engineering, drummer Henry Sasser, a third-year studying business administration, bassist Blake Sullivan, a fourth-year studying mechanical engineering and vocalist Camden Willis, a fourth-year studying mechanical engineering — the band formed in an unorthodox way. 

Sullivan and Valadez went to high school together in Greensboro, where they played in a band. They intended to form a band in college, knowing they were both planning on attending NC State. 

“I came here and was like, ‘I am going to make a band’,” Valadez said.

Willis said the name drew inspiration from his grandmother’s neighbor’s chicken coop. 

“My grandma lives on Harkers Island, and she has this neighbor who has a chicken coop that has a sign that says ‘The Red Hill Layaway’ on it. I remember thinking like five or six years ago that that would be a cool name for a band,” Willis said. “So then, when it came time for this, I suggested it, but it was way too long, so we came up with ‘The Layaways.’”

Sullivan began to piece the band together during his first semester on campus.

“Camden and I met playing Spikeball, so we became friends that way during our first semester here,” Sullivan said. “The first project we ever did as a band was actually a virtual recording of ‘Sweater Weather.’ It was just me, Oscar, Cam and a drummer from Greensboro, but it was pretty cool.”

By the time spring rolled around, the band had a guitarist, a bassist and a vocalist — but it was short a drummer. Valadez was eating lunch at Case Dining Hall with Willis one day when he spotted someone wearing a Led Zeppelin shirt. 

“Henry was wearing a Led Zeppelin shirt and had long hair then, so I was like ‘Oh, he looks like he could be a drummer’,” Valadez said. “So I went up and just asked if he played the drums, and he said ‘Yes.’ I was like, ‘Dang, you’re the first person I’ve asked. Do you wanna be in a band?’ And he said ‘Yes.’”

The Layaways began their journey by making covers of popular songs and then gravitated toward covering songs they were particularly interested in. 

“As we’ve learned and played more, made more covers, we’ve definitely started getting more specific to our taste,” Sasser said.

In terms of music taste, Sullivan said he’d recently been listening to 2000s alt-rock. Boland said he’d been a fan of the Allman Brothers Band for a few years. Sasser said Led Zeppelin, Valadez said The Strokes and Willis expressed interest in Zach Bryan. 

They also drew inspiration from artists ranging from Lana Del Rey and Frank Ocean to Yussef Dayes and Parcels. 

“Miss Grenade,” the band’s first original song, meshes the rock and indie elements that the five enjoy across the board.

Valadez wrote the chords, melody and first few lines of the song over winter break last year, and Willis wrote the rest. As the first original song any of the members had ever released, it proved to be a valuable experience.

“After doing ‘Miss Grenade,’ I realized what we can do now. I have a vision for us,” Valadez said.

The group also noted that the cover art for “Miss Grenade” alludes to their formation. 

“The red phone on the cover is a reference to how Oscar cold-called Henry,” Sullivan said. “We try to keep the rotary phone on stage now when we perform, for a little reference.”

Outside of joking about the goal of playing at Madison Square Garden — “Lemonade Mouth made it in like a year, so we can do it in less,” Boland said — the focus at the moment is to just keep making music and see where things go.

The Layaways have found a home for their music in Raleigh. 

“What’s really good about this city and this school is how many other musicians and bands are around, coming together and supporting each other,” Valadez said. 

The group is currently in the process of recording their next song, titled “Sirens,” which will be released on Dec. 22.

The Layaways’ original music can be found on Spotify and their covers can be found on YouTube. The band will perform at The Pour House on Nov. 9.