On Friday night, a rush of music flooded the CUB Auditorium as several local bands proffered guitars, drums and voices in the Acoustic Battle of the Bands. Among the groups that performed were the Shoemaker Brothers, whose energy and talents earned them a first place finish. The victory brought them $200 and an opening gig at Springfest next semester.

The brothers, who formed the band in 2004, said they have come a long way since they began playing together.

“We all started playing as a family when we were little kids,” said Nathanael Shoemaker, a senior music major. “We’d do shows at Christmas parties, churches, weddings together. Then, as the years went by, the four of us started to form our own thing and actually play music that we wrote.” But it wasn’t until the night of their older brother’s wedding that the brothers decided to take their efforts to the next level.

“People really appreciated the song that we played at our brother’s wedding, and we ended up performing that same song at another family member’s wedding,” said Samuel Shoemaker, a junior general studies major. “There, a lady from Warner Bros. told us that we were really good and that we should seriously consider pursuing this together.” After that day, the rest became history.

“The cool thing about our band is that it’s a reflection of our relationships with one another,” Samuel said. “We respect and have confidence in each other, and we know we are going to do this and make it big. In January we’re going to be leaving to perform all over the U.S.” The Shoemaker Brothers’ music, which blends a mix of folk, rock and blues, explores a wide range of issues.

“The inspiration for our music comes from events that we are dealing with right now in our lives, whether it’s having a good time or dealing with more complex issues,” Samuel said.

In the long run, the band has set a few main goals.

“Our focus is to create a beautiful sound that people really can identify with that blends a lot of different genres,” said Daniel Shoemaker, a junior marketing and music major. “We have people call us every day who tell us about their grandma, aunt, or their brother or somebody that logs on to our MySpace page or Web site and listens to our music nonstop.” Next semester, the brothers will take some time off from school to concentrate on their western U.S. tour.

“We’re going to get out there and do it, and it’s going to be pretty cool in a couple of different senses,” Daniel said. “One, because it’s going to give people the opportunity to hear some new music that blends a lot of different sounds together. It’s also going to allow us to improve and push ourselves and discover what our potentials are.”