When CHS freshman Dominic Anzalone attended Fazio’s Rock Camp the summer before sixth grade, little did he know that his life as a musician would be changed drastically.

The students arrived on Monday and immediately began practicing with their pre-assigned groups. A week of rehearsals followed, and the camp culminated in a concert given to the families of the musicians on Friday afternoon.

Anzalone, a drummer, was placed in a group of four boys, a group that would later lead to the formation of their band, Lunar Levitation.

“We totally forgot that we had to come up with a band name so we went backstage and said, ‘Ok let’s think of a name,’” Anzalone said. “Someone said, ‘Lunar,’ and someone said, ‘Eclipse,’ and someone else said, ‘Levitation.’”

Three years later, Anzalone is the only member of the original group that is still a part of the band.

“It was different members at the beginning, but over time, as it went on, it was mutual friends where someone would know another person that played,” Anzalone said. “It just eventually became the band that it is now.”

Now, the band also consists of Thomas Meyer, who plays lead guitar and sings, James Whalen, who also sings and plays the bass and Riley Adkisson, who is the lead vocalist and also plays guitar.

“At the beginning it was just kind of for fun, but over time it’s become more mature and more serious,” Anzalone said.

Anzalone, the founder of the band, has been taking private drum lessons since he was 5-years-old.

“I got my first drumset when I was seven, so I would always play around with that,” Anzalone said. “I wasn’t too serious when I was younger, but I definitely played around a lot. I didn’t really get serious about it until sixth grade.”

Meyer, a senior at Westminster, has been playing electric guitar for six years. He joined the band in February of 2014. Before Lunar Levitation, Meyer played with Adkisson in the chapel band at Westminster, among other groups.

“[Adkisson] originally told me that they were looking for a guitar player, and I played with them one time,” Meyer said. “I just wanted to play music. I’ve played in different bands in the past, and I liked the guys and their style of music.”

Next year, Meyer will be attending the University of Alabama where he will be studying chemical engineering.

“I’ll definitely start a band in college. I’ll keep playing music for the rest of my life,” Meyer said.

However, music is more than just a hobby for Meyer.

“Music is the universal language,” Meyer said. “I used to go to a lot of open mic nights and you sing with three people you’ve never met before and it’s like, ‘Okay, we’re playing a blues in A,’ and everyone knows what to do without even knowing each other’s names.”

Riley Adkisson, a senior at Westminster, has been singing and playing guitar for five years. He joined Lunar Levitation in June of 2013 and also plays in his solo band, Riley Shane.

“Music is a huge deal to me,” Adkisson said. “I freaking breathe music.”

Adkisson plans on attending community college next fall and hopes to continue working in the music industry as a career.

James Whalen, a sophomore at Vianney, joined Lunar Levitation in January of 2013.

“When I first joined the band, it was through my friend Henry who was playing with them,” Whalen said. “He was like, ‘Hey, we need a bass player,’ and I was kind of playing at the time, but I got serious after learning the songs. It really helped me grow into the musician I am now.”

Lunar Levitation performs around St. Louis one to three times per month. Some of their past venues have been the St. Louis Arch, the zoo, and Syberg’s.

“We love Syberg’s, even though we play there a lot,” Anzalone said. “We’ll hang out, get some food, just chill. We have to see each other before the gigs and after, but we’ll hang out before, just talk and maybe polish and make sure the set list is all good.”

Generally, weekly rehearsals take place at Whalen’s house and last about two hours.

“A lot of practice and planning goes into it,” Whalen said. “It definitely does take a lot of time, but it’s definitely worth it.”

“We practice when something comes up,” Meyer said. “It’s not a huge deal, but music is a huge part of my life.”

Lunar Levitation plays a wide variety of music, which contributes to their varied fanbase.

“We have a lot of teens and adults, and since a lot of the girls like good looking men, Riley and James are some of the favorites,” Anzalone said. “A lot of the adults like us, too, because we do newer stuff and we do older stuff and we mash it up. We like to be different.”

Lunar Levitation is managed by Anzalone’s mom, Dana Anzalone, known as the “momager” to the bandmates.

“As their manager, I am pretty much equivalent to their biggest fan,” Dana said. “My biggest responsibility would be in promoting the band and getting them shows. In the very beginning, the band would play just about anywhere, but now the boys pretty much decide what type of shows they want to play.”

One of the biggest motivators for Dana’s involvement is getting to see the band perform and interact.

“They have each other’s back and when they do get together, whether it’s jamming or performing, they clearly enjoy playing together,” Dana said. “All of the boys have an extreme passion for music. There’s nothing better than when [Lunar Levitation] takes the stage.”

Lunar Levitation has had a great influence on Dana.

“I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” Dana said. “The boys are such great people and have taught me a lot.”

Since the founding of the band at an educational band camp, the focus of the band has been on gaining experience as musicians, rather than on monetary goals.

“I think if we thought, ‘Oh, let’s make money, let’s get famous,’ it wouldn’t be as fun, but we’re doing this more as a fun learning experience, and getting to know other musicians better and also improving our skills,” Anzalone said.