At 12 a.m. Nov. 16, Ithaca College band awdam stood in front of an excited crowd of their supporters. Before they could start to play “Cooper MomDeJeans,” the final song of their set, an excited hand from the front of the audience shot up holding a phone in the air for the room to see. Awdam’s debut extended play “You Win!” lit up the screen. The EP was officially out.
Awdam’s “You Win!” release show was held Nov. 15 at an off-campus house. Junior Avery Larson, awdam’s manager, said that from the beginning, the band knew that they wanted to find a group of IC students to host the show in their house so that the show would feel more like a party.
“I feel like it’s not your typical show,” Larson said. “It’s more of [us asking people to] please come celebrate with us.”
Junior Dan Boush, lead singer and rhythm guitar player for awdam, said that he had been practicing more frequently to prepare for the EP release show.
“It’s one of those shows where, because we’re celebrating, I don’t want to be … lost in what I’m doing, playing the music right, [and] singing the right lyrics,” Boush said. “I just want to have fun with the people who come.”
Awdam was supported by two bands from outside of Ithaca: Dead in the Water from central Massachusetts and Hot Dress from central New Jersey.
Andrew Petrocelli, vocalist and guitar player for Hot Dress, said that a release show like this one brings a different vibe for performers.
“When you’re coming together [to support] a band, or just something that you love, I feel like there’s more care and attentiveness to the show,” Petrocelli said. “Especially when someone’s showing you something that they’re proud of … it’s a lot more communal.”
After spending the last two semesters playing shows in Ithaca, many of the familiar faces at each show have gotten to know awdam’s original songs. During “Snickers Bar,” the opening track on the EP, several voices from the room joined Boush as he sang “can’t stand this f—ing crowd.”
Junior Alex Siegelson, bassist of awdam, said that playing an original song for a crowd that knows the lyrics is one of the best feelings he has gotten from performing.
“They would only ever [be able to] hear us live at that point,” Siegelson said. “And so for them to have learned the lyrics and gone to enough shows just means so much.”
Junior Noah Robinson, an active member of the music scene at IC, said that when an Ithaca band releases music, the community is quick to support and promote them.
“I think the number one way that people support the music scene is by going to shows,” Robinson said. “But being able to listen to the songs that you love to see at those shows at any time … I think that’s so important and that also helps more people get involved in the scene.”
Junior Wade Messier, lead guitarist of awdam, described this EP as a milestone for the band. “You Win!” contains some of the earliest songs that the band wrote and played together. Messier said that two of the tracks were originally demos that he showed junior drummer Sam Nejberger when they were trying to find a sound for the then-unnamed band at the end of Fall 2024.
Awdam recorded “You Win!” in August 2025 at Hidden Fortress Studio in Philadelphia. Siegleson explained that the band recorded their EP with a process called live tracking. This meant that when the band was recording, Boush, Messier, Siegleson and Nejberger were all in the same room, mimicking how they would play and interact during a live performance.
Nejberger said that releasing “You Win!” is an important step within his personal goals.
“Ever since I was younger, I’ve wanted to make music, and just to perform wasn’t enough for me,” Nejberger said. “I want people to listen to what I am producing. And I just want people to be able to enjoy music and support small artists. I’m a big proponent of listening to smaller artists because there’s an infinite amount of music out on streaming services, and you won’t know how good it is until you listen to some of those smaller artists.”
Messier said that he discovered Hot Dress when he was in high school and the band was recommended to him through Spotify’s algorithm. Releasing “You Win!” allows awdam’s music to be in the rotation of songs that are automatically recommended to listeners based on their music taste, expanding awdam’s potential audience.
Nejberger said that the release of “You Win!” gives awdam a way to memorialize the earliest five songs that the band wrote together.
“I think Cooper MomDeJeans is our most ‘awdam’ song,” Nejberger said. “But also since recording this, I’ve noticed our songwriting has gotten a lot less monotonous. Not to say that’s a bad thing, but we’re really expanding our sound. So I would say that this EP works really well together, but I wouldn’t say it’s the epitome of what we have in total and coming in the future.”
