All-female rock band Eminence has become an increasingly more prominent name in the Appleton music community, especially after winning the Wisconsin state battle-of-the-bands competition Launchpad and opening for the band Kansas at Summerfest in Milwaukee. Here to comment on Eminence’s success is Appleton North High School senior and lead singer of the band, Colleen Cline.

Noctiluca: When did you become a part of Eminence?

Cline: I joined the band last year in November, so I’ve only been in the band for barely a year so far!

N: Who are your bandmates?

C: We’ve got Molly McCarthy on rhythm guitar; she’s from Appleton East. Kenxi Dupey on the lead guitar is in Oshkosh. Alex Striker on bass is at UW Fox now, and Caitlyn Sweeney on drums is at Menasha.

N: How would you describe Eminence as a band?

C: It sounds completely cliché, but (we are) a family. We’re all from different backgrounds, different situations, different towns, and the fact that all of us can come together and make music and entertain people is almost close to a miracle.

N: What musician or music group has influenced you the most?

C: If I was just going off of myself, I’d say Gerard Way from former band My Chemical Romance. I saw him when he came to Minneapolis for a solo album tour, and I couldn’t thank him enough. Not only is he a brilliant performer and vocalist, but he’s also an advocate for being yourself and not caring what anyone else thinks, which is really important, I think, especially in this age of social media.

N: What success has Eminence met with recently?

C: A lot, and a lot we could never believe we got. It started really with winning Launchpad, which means we’re the best high school garage band in the state of Wisconsin. We got to play Summerfest twice, and one of those times was on the BMO Harris stage opening for Tonic and Kansas! We even got to play a bit at Les Paul’s birthday celebration, and got to be one of the bands performing at Rock For Autism, which was headlined by Stephen Pearcy of Ratt.

N: How do you manage the stress of being a lead singer and a high school student?

C: Oh man, I haven’t met with a ton yet. It’s not easy, that’s for sure. You have to set aside specific times for when you do your homework and practice your songs that have to be memorized for the three hour gig next weekend. I usually get any school work done in school or right after school; then the fun part of learning songs in different keys begins for the rest of the night.

N: What can readers expect next from Eminence?

C: To melt your faces off. (laughs) Yeah. No, it’s a great performance, and I think the coolest thing is being able to see five girls in a band performing music together. It’s very high energy, it’s very loud and it’s very, very, very fun.

For more information regarding Eminence’s upcoming events, visit eminencerocks.com or find them on Facebook.