how we picked our band

The band! They wear their sunglasses at night.

It's Rebecca Black day! And how brief the weeks go when they're only three days long. Is this what it's like to live in Scandinavia? I know they probably work more than three days a week, but between their fantastic healthcare, vacation days and 100% literacy rate, I bet every week feels like three days because everyone is just so happy all the time eating herring. And whatever, who needs the sun in the winter anyway?

What does this have to do with our wedding band? Nothing! But ever since we returned from our Scandi-trip 2K12, I'm pretty convinced that a residence in Stockholm should be in my near future. I'd actually prefer to live inside this restaurant. Did you know there's an herb called iron cross? They serve it there. Sweet.

Ok, moving on!

One decision that a newly-engaged couple makes pretty early on in the process is whether to go band or DJ or iPod for your reception. I had always thought that I'd be in the DJ camp, since is it really Michael Jackson if it's not the Prince of Pop singing it himself? I mean, I guess we could have bought the hologram? In which case I'd probably want to go with Tupac, right?

But after attending quite a few events with wedding bands who were decidedly NOT made up of old white guys wearing ruffled blue tuxes, I realized that the whole genre of the "wedding band" has come quite a long way. Gone is the electric slide and the macarena and in its stead are really talented musicians who often have two to three singers who can belt out everything from Carly Rae to The Pretenders. Plus, they're experts at reading the crowd, meaning if you want seven encores of the chorus to Like a Prayer, they'll make it happen. In short, there are some really fantastic groups playing in New York, so fellow affianced friends in the city, please do not fear the wedding band.

Once we made the decision to go with live music, it became pretty clear that there are a few front-runners in the New York nuptial music scene. If you are getting married at any large hotel, you can expect that you'll hear the name Hank Lane tossed around. In fact, if you have ever attend a wedding in New York, chances are that it was a Hank Lane ensemble playing. They're like the Vera Wang of wedding bands: somewhat ubiquitous, but always classic. While Mike did meet with someone from their camp (and had nothing but nice things to say), we ended up going in a slightly different direction for our own music:

A few years ago we attended the wedding of one of Mike's closest friends in Chicago and were absolutely blown away by their band. In fact, it was the only wedding up to that point where I actually remembered the band more than a day after the reception. And I even had, like, two glasses of Prosecco. I was hammered. But they absolutely killed it and I've never seen a dance floor so packed as when they performed their rendition of Party in the USA.

The band was The Eturnity Band and as it turned out, they're not based in Chicago, but right here on the East coast! Kismet, I say. Once Mike and I discovered this lovely detail, we hired them on the spot. We'd already heard them perform and fell in love, so what was the point in waiting?

Added bonus: Not only are they providing a band for our reception, but they also have musicians who can play string instruments for our ceremony and jazz guys for our cocktail hour. One stop shopping has never felt so good.

As for specific songs that they'll play; it's still TBD. We're putting that list together soon, and, of course, you can expect a post about that. But spoiler alert: there will be some Carly Rae.