This past Saturday, Kai LaMothe ’27, guitar in hand, took to the Goodrich Coffee Bar stage. Performing with his band, Space Bar, LaMothe competed in Battle of the Bands, an annual competition run by All Campus Entertainment (ACE). Eager students filled the room, cheering on their friends and peers.

The stakes were high. Of the six student bands performing, the three with the most student votes at the end of the night would be given the opportunity to open for the Spring Fling artist, Snow Strippers.

Events like these, according to LaMothe, are incredibly important at a place like the College, where academics are often pushed to the top of students’ to-do lists. A music major with a concentration in science and technology studies, LaMothe splits his limited free time between practice for Williams Ultimate Frisbee Organization and playing guitar. As a musician, he participates in everything from the campus jazz ensemble, to student cover and jazz combo bands.

Despite LaMothe’s love for music, prioritizing it in his day-to-day life isn’t always easy. “Because there aren’t too many musicians, and even fewer music majors, it feels weird to prioritize time to play music, because not everybody fully understands its meaning or its value in an educational sort of way,” he said. 

For LaMothe, Battle of the Bands was more than just a light-hearted competition. It was a chance for non-musicians at the College to get a clear view into the music community on campus and appreciate the importance of music to artists. “The best way for people to see [the value of music] is to actually just hear the musicians here play and just spend an hour appreciating a show,” he said.

LaMothe’s upbringing in Hebron, N.Y., was steeped in a deep love for music from the get-go. His father is a high school music teacher and his mother is a musical theatre playwright. When he was younger, his mother, Kimerer LaMothe, wrote and professionally produced “Happy If Happy When,” a musical about his family’s story, written for him, his siblings, and his father.

Although LaMothe’s father did not teach at his high school, he was inspired by how his father ran music classes like an in-school cover band. LaMothe picked up the drums and later the guitar. At the College, he began playing and recording music with his peers Diego Mongue ’25 and Sean Bottomms ’24.

Seeing student musicians like Mongue perform was part of what drew LaMothe into joining the College’s music scene. “Diego Mongue and his band played at one of the opening festivals when I first got here,” he said. “He was just absolutely killing it, and their whole band was so good.”

After seeing Mongue perform, LaMothe began sitting in on his friends’ studio sessions. Soon, he was playing on their tracks and co-writing on projects with them. He found that the music community at the College, while small, is passionate and driven.

According to LaMothe, the music scene at the College also benefits from being exceptionally intellectual and tight-knit. “The process of working with musicians who are deeply connected is endlessly rewarding,” he said. 

LaMothe especially values collaboration in music. “That’s why I love co-writing,” he said. “Because everyone brings different experiences to the table, and different songs come out of it.” 

Last fall, LaMothe studied abroad at Berklee Valencia in Spain. He spent his semester taking classes about music and music production, and attended many live shows with friends in his free time. 

He co-wrote his first single, “All Too Real,” with two other students he met in Spain after two weeks in the program. The group spent the rest of the semester mixing and producing the song for release. 

Now, LaMothe is looking forward to a semester working as a recording engineer in the Sawyer Library studio, helping students record and mix their own projects. He also looks forward to continuing his work with Bottomms and Mongue. Some of their music might be released soon, though he did not specify when. “Keep an ear out,” he said.

This summer, LaMothe is eager to work on his own music. Before that, though, you’ll see him on the Spring Fling stage with his band.

“Music is great,” he said. “Happy listening.”