NEW HAVEN–Who knew that freshman orientation would foster not only a friendship but a band headed for success? University of New Haven junior Graham Hartmann and former student Miguel Alexandro Jones von Schroeder II surely didn’t expect that their experiences at SOAR would lead to bigger things. Now, as their band Diseased Princess looks forward to a string of shows, SOAR has proved to do much more than intended.

When Hartmann (lead vocals/guitar) and von Schroeder (backup vocals/guitar) teamed up with Rob “The Janitor” Trieschmann (backup vocals/bass) and Washington D.C. native Yancey Guthrie (drums), Diseased Princess became complete. Guthrie joined the group after the band’s former drummer dropped out right before a tour by deleting himself from the band’s MySpace and Facebook accounts. Luckily, the switch turned out to be the best move.

“Yancey fits in great and there’s a very good creative energy between us,” Hartmann said.
All four members combine their influences from a wide spectrum from The Ramones and Modest Mouse to folk music and organ music at hockey games. Due to the variety of influences, it is hard to categorize the band’s sound.

“We’ve been changing a lot lately but the core of [our music] is free-form punk,” Hartmann said, “We’re experimenting with a lot of noise.”

Experimenting seems to work for Diseased Princess. The band’s rap song “Asian Girl Tongue Ring” blew up with hits in their MySpace page. They also plan on recording a full-length album, which will have a “dueling realities theme.”

“I want it to feel like the line between fantasy and reality is very thin,” said Hartmann, “like a horror movie.”

Before they think about recording that album, Diseased Princess needs to make it through a busy month of shows. They are performing at The Space in Hamden on Sept. 18 and then they are celebrating Hartmann’s 21st birthday with a show at the Amity Teen Center on Sept. 26. The next day, they are headed to Club 645 in South Windsor to support the Murder Junkies with The AIDS.

“It’s going to be a bang-up of a time,” said Trieschmann.

The band just recently performed in Wallingford, at their “best show ever” and at the 1Loud Street Live Music Festival in Southbridge, Mass. The festival was sponsored by Ground Control, a drunk driving prevention campaign. Diseased Princess was one of over 40 bands that helped support the cause while playing great music.

With such a busy schedule, it’s clear that Diseased Princess is bound to find more great opportunities.

“We want to reach the kids,” said Hartmann.

To learn more about the band, check out their MySpace at www.myspace.com/diseasedprincess.