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FGCU alumnus’ indie band to release music video

Picture this: it’s a hot sunny day, and you’re lying down on the beach with the sand between your toes while listening to the calm waves crashing on the shore. FGCU alumnus Jesse Glendinning used this as inspiration and expressed it through his music with his bandmates in The Helmsmen.
“I spent four years at FGCU, and a lot of my music is influenced from living over there,” Glendinning said. “The music is the same kind of beach style that is on that coast of Florida.”
Hailing from Jupiter, The Helmsmen — comprised of Glendinning as lead vocals and ukulele, Derek Campbell as guitar and backup vocals, Jacob Constantakos as guitar, Micko Paparo as bass and Samuel King as drums — all had the same vision to create music with an island-indie vibe.
“I started playing the ukulele when I went to FGCU, and I kind of just gravitated toward that instrument,” Glendinning said. “The band really wanted to write music that represented the beach style and vibes, and the ukulele went really well with that. But, it also has a lot to do with the influences we listen too, such as The Beach Boys and The Beatles. That retro sound with all organic instruments.”
On April 8, the band is going to hold a music video release party for its new single “Rollercoaster” at a Jupiter venue called Maxi’s Lineup, where members will play a normal set and then project the new music video onto the wall. The music video was filmed in January at the South Florida Fair. With the help of another FGCU alumnus, Tyler Shore, The Helmsmen were able to complete their first music video off of their new album.
“I had a friend that I went to FGCU with, and he ended up starting a video production company,” Glendinning said. “I called him up, and he was down to drive over. So, he came out to the fair and helped us film a music video.”
The Helmsmen are also scheduled to release their first full-length album, “Midterm,” this summer on June 18. This release follows the group’s 2015 EP, “Homework.”
“I am just excited to share music with people again,” Glendinning said. “It has been awhile, like a whole year, since we’ve put out any original music, which has kind of been a bummer. But, now that we are getting closer to releasing the album, I am just so happy with the way it is.”

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