Parker Musgrave, Jacob Hamilton, Garrett Sides and Ben Browning perform as Halfway Down at Vector Brewing in August.
During the school day, sophomores Parker Musgrave, Jacob Hamilton, Garrett Sides and Ben Browning can be found strolling down the halls of Lake Highlands High or clacking the keys of their Chromebooks in class. Their transformation begins when the sun starts to dip, and they become Halfway Down — the neighborhood’s newest rock band.
Halfway Down officially began as garage band last September, and over the last year they’ve played gigs at block parties, crawfish boils and backyard birthdays. They’ll perform at LHHS’ Varsity Revue for Homecoming, and they’ve booked a return engagement at Vector Brewing Saturday, Sept. 13 after appearing there in August.
Browning is the lead guitarist, and he first picked up the instrument during the pandemic when he was about 10. He took lessons at Lake Highlands School of Music for a time, but now he learns songs on his own. He’s also the lead guitarist for LHHS’ pop vocal group, Espree.
“I love playing guitar,” he says. “I oftentimes find myself picking up my guitar and just playing around on it — just losing track of time for hours sometimes. I love music with a passion. I love all sorts of music — love listening to it, love playing it — and I feel like I can appreciate music and musicianship.”
Sides received a guitar for Christmas in 2019, but the pandemic put a stop to his weekly lessons. He began again last year because he wanted to play the music he was listening to.
“Whenever I’m stressed, I can pick the guitar up, and it’s like all my problems go away. Even though I love playing, it can be frustrating when I’m learning a new song or skill, and I just can’t seem to get it right.” Practice makes perfect, he says.
Parker Musgrave is the drummer and second vocalist for the band, and he credits his dad for his interest in music.
“When I was little, we would always play Guitar Hero and listen to 90s rock — that really started it all. I got a keyboard when I was in kindergarten, and I did lessons all the way through 7th grade. I started trombone in the school band, and I picked up drums last September. Now, I am focusing on sound engineering with online classes in hopes to do that as my career.”
Jacob Hamilton is the lead vocalist and bass player, and his hobby began when his Pawpaw gifted him a six-string acoustic guitar for his 13th birthday. He’s watched hours of YouTube videos to learn the bass, and he, too, has had additional music instruction playing trombone in the LHHS marching band.
“We first started doing covers of popular grunge and rock songs in Parker’s bedroom, and we would post videos on Instagram and do backyard shows for close friends. This caught the attention of people in our neighborhood and around the Lake Highlands area. Getting our first gigs was an experience that came out of nowhere.”
When I asked the guys about the band’s name, it wasn’t easy to get a clear answer.
“I’m sure it’s just AI-generated,” joked Browning.
Musgrave, though, had better recall.
“Garrett and I were talking one day, and I said I thought ‘System of a Down’ was a very creative name. We started thinking of stuff with ‘down’ in the name.’”
And Halfway Down was born.
“Our first real gig was at the Spring Branch Buzz Party on the first day of summer,” Musgrave remembers. “From there, we really took off and got our first gig at Vector Brewing. That was surreal for us, just seeing everyone filling the entire patio there to watch us. Vector reached out to see if we wanted to play some more there, so we now have gigs lined up all through November and even Vector’s own Oktoberfest on October 11. If you love good music all the way from the 70s to now stretching from grunge to classic rock, come see us.”
You can catch Halfway Down at Vector Brewing from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 13.
LH neighbors Craig and Veronica Bradley own Vector Brewing, located at 9850 Walnut Hill in Lakeridge Village.
