Zane Borenstein, 19, spent months telling his roommate, Myles Salustro, 19, how badly he wanted a bassist to back him while he played guitar.
Dropping hints like “it’s not even that hard” and “everything would sound better with a bassist,” became the norm until, eventually, Salustro picked up his younger brother’s bass and started to teach himself to play. Borenstein then persuaded Cole Brooks, 21, to lug his drum set from Orlando to Gainesville and called up Grant Schmid, 21, to be the frontman of their new band.
Born from a shared love of classic rock and heavy metal, the band went with the name “Southbound 441” as an ode to a highway running through Gainesville. The members work to expose their friends and those in Greek life to the Gainesville music scene. On a recent February night, they played at High Dive with local bands The Joytraders, Half Gone and Saturn Lights.
“Everyone in the Gainesville music scene is so nice and welcoming,” said Schmid, who works for Swamp Records. “It’s great having that kind of support.”