Local youths rock out for a cause

By Sarah Thomas, Town Correspondent

Teens from Wellesley and Needham have banded together to compete for the attention of some of music's biggest names and raise money for Children's Hospital Boston, according to a release.

Switcheroo, whose members hail from Wellesley and Needham, is joining other high school musicians to rock and roll for a cause in the Generation Cures Battle of the Bands competition. The deadline for bands to enter is Nov. 19.

The band members-- Charles Coleman and Nathan Bolton of Wellesley and Will Myers and Thomas Colgrove of Needham-- created an original song called “Chasing Dreams” with a “make it better for sick kids” theme. Listen to "Chasing Dreams" by Switcheroo here.

The teens formed a band through Plugged In, a Needham-based nonprofit organization that gives young people a venue to channel their creativity, learn to work in a group, and hone their music skills while learning about social activism.

Celebrity judges, including Boys Like Girls, Ashley Gearing, JoJo Levesque, Katharine McPhee, The Ruse, Matt White and others, will review the top 10 submissions. The winner will receive a professional recording session at the Real School of Music and their song will be featured on the Rock Band™Network.

The winner will be announced in January 2011. For more information or to make a donation, visit Generation Cure's website.

Sarah Thomas can be reached at sarah.m.thomas@gmail.com.