UWM student’s band, Envy, wins national competition

by Bradley A. Wooten
UWM Post Writer

Envy (Clockwise, from upper right): Jaek Pachniak, Paul Pachniak, Amanda Tvedt, Dan Flaherty,Nic Fugate.

In search of America's best college band, mtvU, the 24-hour college network, and Universal Records recently named Milwaukee-based rock band Envy the winner of the second annual "mtvU Best Music On Campus" contest.

"We entered it not expecting anything," said Nic Fugate, 20, Envy's percussionist and a sophomore at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee majoring in music performance for percussion. "I wasn't expecting things to move this fast. It's pretty cool."

Little did Fugate know representatives from mtvU and Universal Records would storm his home May 3 in a surprise announcement of the band's victory.

"We had no idea they were going to come here like this," Fugate said. "It's unbelievable."

Envy guitarist Dan Faherty said, "Winning this competition will give us a great deal of exposure." He's right.

The band receives a $25,000 record deal with Universal Records, and $15,000 toward producing a music video that will be aired on mtvU in September, reaching more than 725 colleges and universities across the nation with a combined enrollment of almost 6.5 million students.

In March, Universal Records and mtvU executives announced their top 10 finalists for the competition. Voters from across the nation elected Envy to their top 5 April 25. With more than 2.2 million votes cast online, mtvU and Universal Records executives and celebrity judges Akon and G. Love proclaimed Envy as playing the best music on campuses across the nation.

mtvU pays a surprise call on Envy.

UWM began airing mtvU in March. One and a half months later, UWM's band won one of mtvU's biggest contests.

"I don't know if there's another example of a school doing that," said Stephen Friedman, general manager of mtvU. "We're excited to see other great talent emerge from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee."

Envy fuses straight-up rock with elements of blues, pop and R&B to create a unique and captivating sound.

"We're alternative pop," Fugate said. "We've been described as having 'sonic fury, haunting vocals and driving rhythm.'"

"You won't see Britney on mtvU, and there's a reason," Friedman said. College students are open to various and different kinds of music."

There's no better audience than college students for discovering new, unique and great music, Friedman said. "A band like Envy doesn't fall into an obvious category."

On their own, the band already has released two albums, "Identity Crisis" in 2003 and "Message for Blind" in 2005. Their second album's opener, "Burning Again," is the track that won their national recognition.

Envy, originally based out of Platteville, formed in December 2001. It featured bass guitarist Paul Pachniak, a 20-year-old sophomore at Marquette University studying electrical engineering; rhythm guitarist Jaek Pachniak, a 23-year-old alumnus of UW-Platteville with a degree in mechanical engineering; and vocalist Amanda Tvedt, who is transferring to Waukesha County Technical College this fall from UW-Platteville to study graphic design. Faherty is a fifth-year senior at UW-Platteville studying industrial engineering.

Faherty's first band at UW-Platteville was called Necessary Void. Members of the band abbreviated their name to N.V. After the band broke up, he formed a new band with Jaek Pachniak in which N.V. evolved into “Envy.”

After numerous shifts in the rhythm section, the band solidified itself with bassist Pachniak and percussionist Fugate. With members working and attending school in the city, the band recently relocated to Milwaukee.

"They're incredibly talented," Friedman said. "So much of the great music, art, technology and trends are coming out of colleges, and a big reason for our channel is to discover that and give students a hand in taking it to the next level."

Envy's musical influences include The Doors, Evanescence, Radiohead, No Doubt, Alanis Morissette, Dave Matthews Band, Led Zeppelin and Rush.

For Your Entertainment (FYE), Ford College Student Purchase Program, and Garnier sponsored mtvU's "Best Music On Campus" contest in 2005.

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