Music can be the heart and soul of a community, and in special cases, the heart and soul of a college dorm. The Third Floor is a student band that has its roots in Capstone House on campus. Humble beginnings to be sure, but a fateful meeting on the third floor of the building would define the Columbia student music scene. The story of playing on the floors of Capstone to opening for COIN consists of a years-long journey and hours of rehearsals that ultimately brought vocalist and guitarist Ryan Pellatt, bassist Neal Goldberg, lead guitarist Carter Vogt, and drummer and vocalist Nick Guzman to the mighty stage of Cockstock.
“We started playing on the third floor of Capstone," said Goldberg. "We all lived on the third floor there, hence the name, our freshman year.”
It wasn't long before the would-be band found its footing in, of all places, a dorm room. “The first night that we met, which was the first night at the dorms, we went to [Guzman's] room and he had his studio set up," said Pellatt. “We started tracking songs and messing around with music, and it started to form from there.”
Pellatt cites Noah Kahan and John Mayer as two of his musical influences, and Goldberg credits The Beatles, Mt. Joy and The Stews. All of these sounds culminate in what Pellatt describes as “indie blues folk rock.” “'Marlboro Blues' is our most popular song on Spotify right now because it’s our most recent release, but it’s a pretty classic blues track, and it’s a blast to play," said Pellatt. "We’ll get people dancing because it’s the blues. You can’t go wrong with the blues.”
The road from the dorm room to playing gigs is one that Pellatt says requires "a lot of cold calling and a lot of emailing and reaching out to people.” In February 2022, The Third Floor secured their first public performance.
“Our first real gig was Southern Belly Barbecue, which does not exist anymore,” said Goldberg. “We used to go down there freshman year and somehow convinced [the owner] to let us set up a DIY show there, and we put posters up all over Columbia and campus.”
Of course, with every great show comes days and days of prep work. “We knew only four songs at that point, so we worked ourselves every single day," said Pellatt. "We were probably practicing for a few hours [a day] at least, learning new songs and we got ourselves up to a twelve-song setlist.” This first gig was a success, a big step for the budding band. “It was awesome. A ton of our friends showed up, and it was a really, really great time,” said Pellatt.
Playing for your peers in a quaint, hometown setting has its own kind of magic. But in Fall 2023, The Third Floor set its sights on their largest venue yet: Cockstock.
“The committee putting it together reached out to the School of Music and asked if there were any student bands that he thought would be willing, and [Professor Polley] gave our name along with some other bands," said Pellatt. "It was between three and four [bands], and we were fortunate enough to get that gig.”
Beneath blinding lights and harmonized by an enthusiastic crowd, The Third Floor took the stage to open for COIN, a pop-rock band that has amassed over 3 million listeners on Spotify. It's no small feat to land a gig at all, let alone one of this caliber.
“We can estimate maybe 400 or 500 people there, all our peers, our fellow student body. It was the coolest thing ever. Everyone had incredible energy, was paying attention, listening to our original music, and we had never had the chance to put out our music to that many people who are eager to listen,” said Pellatt. “It was the best feeling ever.”
For many student bands, playing at a venue like Cockstock is a pipe dream. For The Third Floor, years of effort culminated in making this larger-than-life experience a reality. Pellatt and Goldberg both reminisce on the performance with deep gratitude and fondness.
“I’m so grateful to be able to have the opportunity to do something like that. I can hope we get back to the point where we can play another show like that, but you never know. That was something I was soaking in while this was happening," said Goldberg. "It was an incredible once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Sometimes, the size of the venue doesn't equal a more enjoyable performance. In fact, Pellatt and Goldberg insist that as long as there's music being played, there's fulfillment to be had. Last spring, a few months prior to Cockstock, The Third Floor was asked by a fraternity to open for their festival.
“We were super excited, and we got there around two o'clock for a sound check. Our spot was between 5:45 to 6:45 on a Friday, so pretty early. But we see this massive field... and it was the biggest stage we had played yet," Pellatt said.
After prepping for a rousing performance, the band noticed that the venue had not filled up at all. The crowd stayed extremely minimal even as The Third Floor took the stage. “We played our whole set to my girlfriend, Nick’s girlfriend, our roommate and three of the guys from the band playing after us," said Pellatt. "It was hilarious.”
Despite the small audience, the band was not at all deterred in their excitement to put on a great performance. “We were going as hard as we could," said Pellatt. "I was laying on the ground playing at times. That experience would go to show that it doesn’t matter who you’re playing for, you’re still playing music, and it’s fun.”
As an artist, it can be easy to get wrapped up in the desire to commercialize your work, but Goldberg implores budding musicians to keep one piece of advice in mind: “Make sure that having fun playing music is always the first priority over money or business or anything else.”
Pellatt echoes this sentiment, urging artists to never stop honing their craft. “Don’t let venues and establishments take advantage of that mindset. It’s the best thing to do in the world, but it’s still a lot of work, and I know that people who are interested in it are so dedicated, and that’s why it is so fun to do. At the end of the day, keep drilling at it until you’re satisfied with it. If you’re like most musicians, that will be forever,” said Pellatt. “Allow your passion to drive you, and try to make your mark.”
On May 10, Pellatt and Vogt will be playing at Curiosity Coffee along with the band North by North. Be there or be square. You can follow The Third Floor on Instagram at @thethirdfloorband and on Spotify.
