THERE is never a dull moment for September’s Mayoral Young Potential Grant recipient Joel Moloney.

Even with the VCE exams underway, the Galvin Park Secondary College student lives and breathes music – and is loving every minute of it.

“I’m busy every day of the week, except for Tuesday, that’s my day off,” says the 17-year-old.

“But it’s all fun, it’s better than sitting at home.”

As the school’s music captain, a member of the Wyndham FreeZa Committee “Infinite Entertainment”, and the bassist for two bands Dark as Day and Canoe, Joel is a familiar face on the local music scene.

He has been involved with organising events such as the Battle of the Bands, youth festivals and underage disco nights.

Joel’s music repertoire is impressive, too: He plays the bass guitar, double bass and the didgeridoo, and was named best bass player at the recent Battle of the Bands.

The grant, worth $500, will go towards buying a double bass.

“I’m very excited,” said Joel, who received the award at last week’s Wyndham City Council meeting.

The news of his successful application came as a surprise, he said. September had passed with no news from the council.

“I didn’t get it until the month was gone. So I was sort of a bit disappointed, but then I did get it, and it was awesome,” he said.

Joel plucked his first string before high school.

“I started before high school, with my uncle, just playing with him,” he said. “Then I got into Galvin Park and I started lessons with Paul Taliana, and I’ve been playing since Year 7.”

Mr Taliana had been instrumental in honing his craft, said Joel, who also named rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Michael “Flea” Balzary as a source of inspiration.

But while his family is supportive and the future ahead of him seems bright, Joel is realistic when it comes to pursuing his dream musical career.

“It depends what happens, whether it’s going to take off or not,” he says. “If it was good, I’d do it full time … but it’s hard to get it good, that’s why I have something else,” he said. And that is a bio-medical science degree at university after VCE.