From unknown strangers to up-and-coming rock stars, FallBack is a modern rock-style band that is not just your average garage band. CUW students Michael Prasch and Colin McCabe are members of the band, and offer an inside look into the origins, journey, and future goals as musicians.
Prasch, a junior at CUW, noted that the band got its atypical start during the summer following his first year of high school.
“I had taken guitar lessons at this music shop, and they put together a summer rock program,” Prasch said. “They just picked a bunch of people who played different instruments, similar age groups, and threw them in bands.”
This random pairing is where he would meet the other two musicians who, together, would form the three core members of FallBack.
“We pretty much got thrown into a room together, and I only knew one other person,” Prasch said. “But that’s where I met the current lead singer, Jotham Higginbotham, and the other guitarist in the band, Ben Read.”
Several members came and went over the years, but those three remained together through it all. Prasch met McCabe at CUW in 2020 and brought up the idea of him joining FallBack when he learned he was a drummer.
“Our old drummer had just signed off, he had his own band and other commitments,” Prasch said. “When I met Colin, he mentioned that he played drums, so I brought up the idea of the band to him. He thought it over, and after about two practices we threw him into his first show. Now it’s like he’s been with us forever.”
McCabe said that this summer was a major milestone for FallBack. They were heavily committed to performing shows on their tour of Wisconsin:
“We ended up playing about 30 shows this summer, sometimes three in a weekend. We played at the State Fair. We played at a really big music festival in West Bend called Music on Main. For our last gig, we played at a really nice place in Kewaskum called Foundry 45.”
It is clear that FallBack is gaining traction in the music scene.
“A reason why this summer tour was a big milestone for me is because we’re seeing a higher number of returning fans,” McCabe said. “At our most recent gig, we saw a lot of people that first saw us back in June and July.”
Loyal fans aren’t the only ones taking notice of FallBack, but some substantial names from sizable cites are as well.
“We got to work with this guy who is very prominent in the Green Bay music scene, and people from that area are starting to reach out,” said McCabe. “So, we’re working our way into other cities which is a big thing for us.”
FallBack released their first single, “Endlessly,” back in 2020. Since then, the band has released three new singles, which will make up three of the ten original songs on their first album which is set to be released in fall of 2022.
“It’s a concept album that paints a story from start to finish, the message being that it’s lonely at the top,” Prasch said
This album features the musical talents of Michael Prasch, Colin McCabe, Jotham Higginbotham, Ben Read, and Joe Passineau.
“We’re part of something that will never be erased,” McCabe said. “We’re releasing an album; we have songs on streaming platforms. It’s something that not a ton of people get to say they’re a part of.”
FallBack has a positive outlook for the future of themselves and the band. McCabe concluded:
“We’re at the point where we don’t want to settle. We enjoy what we do, we’re thankful for the gifts that we were given and the ability to play music, and where it takes us and will take us. The goal is to keep pushing forward and hopefully make this into a career.”
—Seth Manchester is writer for The Beacon, the official student newspaper of Concordia University Wisconsin. Seth is a Senior Mass Communication major with a minor in Spanish.
This article was originally published on November 1st, 2022.