The band consists of Sonny Lombardozzi (lead guitar), Nick Wagers (bass guitar), Doug Peck (vocals), and Dave Brown (percussion).  If you are a metal fan and wasn’t at Sherlock’s Saturday night, you missed out on a shredding show.  Check out the photos from the show below and see the entire gallery here.  If you like what you see, you can purchase the photos too.

-Support the scene!

-Steve Puskar

Armed with an acoustic guitar, a microphone, and his voice, he had all he needed to put on a show.  At first thought, I figured he’d play some songs, just hang around on stage, and perhaps just stand around as he sang.  Well, this is the first time that I was happy I was wrong.

With songs from Neil Young, David Bowie, Collective Soul, Everclear, and (a crowd favorite) Sublime, Ray had the attention of several patrons which sang along, which brought more people to the stage. He was belting out lyrics, jumping to the music, and let the music take him over. Not only a musician and a song writer, he’s quite the performer as well.

It seems that almost every show I go to see, someone yells out, “Free Bird!”  Of course, “Free Bird” is the infamous track from Lynyrd Skynyrd that everyone loves to hear live. Well, Thursday wasn’t any different, but only this time Ray played it…the whole song.  I have to say, I was going a little crazy listening to it and shouting out the words.  But covers are not what Ray is all about.

Ray has his own original songs. In-fact, he has his own album on iTunes.  He played a few tracks from that album called, “I’ll Play a Song for You”.  ”Screw Driver” and “My Jenny” are the two songs I remember most from the show.  Personally, I think “My Jenny” is a great ballad. The high note he hits in the song is awesome.  Be sure to check out “High School” on the album too.  With lyrics like, “High School sucks, (sucks!)”, how could you not like it?

With his show a few days before Independence Day, he even played the Star-Spangled Banner for the crowd. Pretty sure people sang it out, swayed back-and-fourth, and had their lighters in the air.

Be sure to check out his MySpace page to see when and where he plays next in the coming days. Don’t forget to check out iTunes and buy a few songs, in-fact, buy the entire album.  And last but not least, see the entire gallery from the show on GoErie.com by clicking here.

Stay tuned for the next show, because it might just be your gig that I’m at!

-Steve Puskar

On stage was Cover Gurl, a band you may have recently seen pop up in the scene or played in a few venues. The four-piece band has a recognizable face, as Anthony Cox from the band Money Shot was anchoring the bass-lines.  But when you hear a band, it’s not the face that sticks with you, it’s the sound.

As their name suggests, Cover Gurl plays cover songs, but with female lead singer.  That female is Chelcie Gette. Never in a million years would I think I’d hear songs by Tina Turner, Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Carrie Underwood, and Kelly Clarkson sung by a band in Erie and sound awesome.  Now, those artists have a vocal range on another level then most of us, but Chelcie’s talent is right on par with them.  She was hitting the mark on songs that most people don’t even try to sing.

Other artists that were covered Thursday was P!nk, Jewel, Des’ree, Katrina and the Waves, and even Mylie Cyrus with a combination of Corey Heart’s Sunglasses at Night. Cover Gurl adds their own flavor and style to the songs they cover, so it’s not like listen to the radio. So if you are looking to see a band that has a great singer, some songs to sing along to, and a band to jam out to the heavy riffs, then Cover Gurl should be on your list.

Be sure to check out the full photo gallery from the show (67 photos) and don’t forget, you can purchase different size prints too.  Let me know what show I should check out next by letting me know via e-mail at info@rockerie.com.  Until then, support the scene!

-Steve

Alright, curse me out, but it’s true, I never saw them play. I haven’t heard any of their songs either.

[Pause for gasps, anger, shock and perhaps cursing…]

Every time they were in Erie or anywhere near, I found my self busy with prior engagements. What a bunch of mistakes those were.  For those diehard fans, you know what I’m talking about.  They put on a great live show and nothing but a sea of people wherever they play.  If you haven’t seen a show of theirs, its best you take my advice and catch a show when you can…cancel that appointment and pencil-in The Clarks.

Hailing from Pittsburgh, PA, The Clarks are a four-man rock group that regularly sell-out venues around the region.  But what people may not know is that they sell-out venues in the thousands, they have appeared on David Letterman, sold over 300,000 CD copies, and they have been together for over 20 years. Let’s just say they know what they are doing.

You won’t see them working the stage, wearing fine threads, or tons of jewelry; instead they let their music entertain the crowd.  They never started that way, yet they are still successful, so why change? Jeans, an old t-shirt, and some Converse shoes will do just fine.  Less I forget…some live music does the trick too.

Lead singer, Scott Blasey, provided some banter in-between songs.  One of his stories was about how they were at a concert and Bruce Springsteen was walking around with several people following him at every step. Scott told the crowd that there wasn’t a real joke tide to it, it was just his only Bruce Springsteen story he has. At that moment, Scott explained that he told the story only because they just played a Springsteen song.  I, along with the crowd, laughed on and then enjoyed the rest of the show.

Although I never saw a show of theirs, nor heard any of their songs…I did see a You Tube video for the song, “Cigarette”. I was hoping they were going to play that song, seeing that Sherlock’s is a smoking bar.  Well towards the end of their play list, I was right. Scott light up in front of the crowd as they cheered and sang along with him.  As they ended the show, the crowd chanted, “One more song!”

Bassist Greg Joseph came back on the stage and spoke on the microphone and said, “Well, we were going to do 3 more, but if you only want one…”  In response, the crowd chanted, “3 more songs!”

I am definitely going to see more shows of The Clarks and listen to more of their music, as I had a blast at the show. They are an Erie favorite, a Pittsburgh gem, and treat for the region and country that follows them. Get their album, “Songs in G” on iTunes now!

Be sure to check out the full gallery from the show and let me know what shows I should cover next! info@rockerie.com

-Steve

The five-man group from Erie have been playing for several years, all dedicated to their favorite band. I think when the average person hears the band name ‘Metallica’, they think of Lars Ulrich and his fight with Napster. Hate him or love him, but if Lars wasn’t apart of Metellica, the band probably would have never existed. Without Lars, Whiplash’s Mike Calabrese probably wouldn’t have been a drummer, for it was Lars that inspired him to be a musician. And without Metallica, fans and bands like Whiplash would not be entertaining us.  But enough about Lars, lets talk more about Whiplash.

Mike Calabrese

Mike Calabrese’s drum set-up is like none I’ve seen thus far.  He had the double bass, countless symbols, and I’m pretty sure he could do a 360 in his chair and still hit a drum in front of him.  The sound from the massive drum set was not heart pounding, but body pounding.  The extra set of speakers surrounding him helped the crowd feel the music…literally. Classic metal. But you can’t have a metal band without some hair. Matt had the locks out, but he wasn’t alone.

Jerry Szczesny

Lead singer Jerry Szczesny had the hair, the metal-rock outfit, and most important, the voice.  When playing live, his voice mirrors Metallica’s James Hetfield. His stage presence is his own. Roaming the stage, singing face-to-face to the crowd, and giving you glares with his delivery of lyrics, you get the whole experience that is Metallica. Mike and Jerry are not the only ones rockin’ the tunes and thrashing the hair around.

Sean Dean

Cue Sean Dean. I think i captured one of favorite rock-poses on camera when he was thrashing out music from his guitar.  This image just solidifies the energy he put out on Saturday night.  At first, it seemed he was easy going with the guitar, but when that guitar riff comes along (like any Metallica song), get ready to hit with heavy sound and screams. The heavy sound and screams where then carried on with fellow guitarist, Tommy T.

Tommy T.

No long hair is needed for Tommy to rock out. A bandana will do just fine. Plus, its not the hair that’s playing the music. Not much of a thrasher, but more of a purest when playing Metallica.  You see him constantly nodding his head to the chords he shreads.  Do you like fast, guitar screams? He is your man. If you want someone to hit you with heavy bass, then Phil is your guy.

Phil, or better known as Philith to the metal gods, jammed away at the bass.  He wasn’t a hermit to his spot on the stage…more like Lewis and Clark. Often you found him playing shoulder to shoulder with (Name) during some guitar riffs and chorus lines.

Philith

Saturday’s show consisted of songs such as Bellz, Creeping Death, Leper Messiah, Welcome Home (Sanitarium).  If you like these and more, then you need to check out Whiplash.  You won’t find any other band in Erie dedicated to the music and band that is Metallica.

Don’t forget to check out the full photo gallery from the show. You can buy the pictures, too! Let me know what shows you think I should cover next. That being said, enter ending, exit blog.

-Steve

Lights…check. Fog machine…check. 7 LCD monitors…what? I have never seen a band perform where they have a TV, let alone 7 of them playing as they play music.  What made it better was how they played the video of the band they were covering, and completely synced to their performance.

Ok, they have the set up that is like none other, but can they play and perform? Answer: yes sir. Not only can they play the songs to a T, but their performance had the crowd’s eyes glued to them.  It was the first time I’ve been to a show where the seats at the bar where a plenty, because the whole place was on the dance floor. I found myself navigating the crowd as if I were driving in an Erie blizzard…slow, dodging people, and trying to get a great view. But rather than traveling through a snow storm, it was more like traveling through time 20-30 years ago.

The crowd was filled with 30-40 year-olds, but they were dancing the night away as if they were in high school again. Lead vocalist Jay Secrest’s charm had a few ladies in the front stage smiling and cheering like a modern day Jonas Brother’s concert. Ok, maybe not that extreme, but none the less, they were definitely having fun being next to the stage. It wasn’t just Jay’s charm working the crowd; guitarist Ken Harding entertained the youthful fans.

Just like the rest of the band, Ken had the 80s look down. Aviator sunglasses, bandannas, and a guitar that screamed tunes that kept the crowd nodding their heads (and dancing of course). He was as energetic as Jay, but he played it in cool/chill way that made guitar playing look easy. Just like the chill-style of Ken, bassist Randy Horn played it cool and easy going, but he’s not one to be left out. When songs like Billie Jean start to play, all eyes are on Randy.

Easy going and chill is not what describes drummer Michael Scott Nelson when he performs.  His hard hitting, energetic, and show-stopping talent demands your attention. It’s hard to get a full effect of a drummer because they are further away from the other band, but I was able to get a couple of shots near the side-stage entrance to get the full experience of the drumming talent.  He plays the drums with a smile and his excitement on his face was like a kid in a candy store.

Like that kid in the candy store, New Wave Nation is a treat for anyone who loves 80s music. They hit you with different flavors of entertainment: looking the part, sounding the part, and performing the part.  If you have a sweet-tooth for 80s music, then New Wave Nation is your fix.

Don’t forget to check out the full photo gallery of the show.  You can purchase the photos too. We offer different sizes and even magnets. Let me know what shows I should cover next and who knows, you might see me there!

-Steve

First up on the ticket was Otis. This 3-piece funk-rock band are not only musicians, but part comedians too. Before every song, guitarist Sean Dunn had some humor to introduce the songs.  If you have their Live from Crooked i cd, you know what I’m talking about:

“We’re Otis, we thought we come here and sing you songs about abstinence and staying away from drugs and don’t drink, but instead we decided to play you one about an elephant with a tooth ache. This is called Five Ton Mary.”

Dunn’s guitar sound was that of pure funk riffs and some bursts of rock. But that’s not the first thing that you notice. The first thing you notice about Otis’ sound: bass.

Frank Ferko’s 6-string bass was in full effect as he hammered the tunes and at one point was beating it to create a sweet distortion sound.  Frank is also the lead singer of the group, belting out lyrics and doing his best to break the strings on the bass. When you listen to Otis, you can’t help but move to the bass and funk guitar. But you can’t forget Ryan McCall’s skills on the drums.

He provides that quick pace and sound that fits perfectly in the group.  In the song, “Death is the New Black”, the simple high hat beat is just right…and then having it transition to a harder-thrashing during the chorus sounded awesome.

After a few tracks and jokes, it was time for Otis to end and X7 to begin.

To say X7 is a talented group is an understatement.  I say this because of how the band promotes and obviously their music. What other band in Erie makes a promotional video about their next gig?  You can thank guitarist/lead vocalist/media producer Mike Kraus. Mike is a jack of all trades in music and art. His combination of the two creates a strong branded band with a great sound to back it up.

Hearing bands live always seem to sound different than audio tracks, but not X7.  The real deal is what you get. It’s a must to see these guys live, but you need to check out their videos too.  Illustrating the words and song into a video is something that can be difficult, but they have it down to a T.

I’ve seen some videos of bands, but the quality doesn’t do the song justice.  Here for X7, the song and the video make for an engaging experience that will having watching another video, listening to another song, or browsing through their website. I am telling you this because this is what it has done to me!

X7 is a definite show to go catch, and if you can’t see them, check out their website and hear some track and watch their videos.  But all good things must come to an end because as they rocked it out, the time had come to end their show.

By this late hour, one may want to go to bed, grab some grub, or just get home because they work the next morning.  But FDH2O was not one to stand still.

If you have seen them play before, you will know that they do not just play their music, but they let it control them.  I don’t think there was one spot on the stage where lead singer Paul Downey was NOT at.  When he performs, he gives it his all and then some.  You can tell because by the end of the night, his shirt, hat, everything will be soaked in sweat.

This alternative rock band plays in raw emotion…in song and performance.  Because of this, its no wonder FDH2O has showcased for three major record labels and at the Hard Rock Cafe in Cleveland, OH.

After four hours, ringing ears, over 1000 pictures, and soaked shirts, it was 2:00 A.M. and it was time to go. I went through the pictures and picked out a few 100+ gems for everyone’s viewing pleasure. Don’t forget you can purchace prints of them along with magnets and such, so check it out and be on the look out where I will be at next!

-Steve

The night started off with the listening to Dirty Looks’ new CD.  As I’m writing this blog, the tunes are jamming in my headphones. To describe it, all I have to say is: old school rock.  Lead singer, Henrik Ostergaard, has a voice that echo’s AC/DC’s front man Brian Johnson.  It’s no surprise they have a cover of AC/DC’s, “Down Payment Blues”.  They also have another cover on the track, this time from The Turtles called, “Happy Together”.

This 10 track CD is a great rock album and I suggest you give it a listen, and buy it like I did.  My personal favorite on the album is between “Only Friend” and “Got A Ticket”.  It is hard to decide what I like better, but easy to love both.  The slight use of piano on the track, “Got a Ticket” has me loving the track. But the beginning of “Only Friend” has a Trans-Siberia Orchestra sound to it and it is sweet. I think it takes the cake for me.

Their CD is in dedication of fallen band member, Greg Pianka.  He passed last February, but still lives in memory and this album.  A plaque was created in his memory and was presented on stage before Drunk in Memphis went on.  Deepest of sympathies goes out to his family, friends, and his band members from us at RockErie.

This is was not just for remembering Greg, but celebration for him and his bands’ CD release.  Plus, we still had two more bands to carry us into the night.  First up on that list was Hammersmith.

These guys went through several line-ups and now they have been playing with the same members for roughly a year now.  They opened up with a Velvet Revolver track and continued to rock out songs from Silver Chair, Wolfmother, Stone Temple Pilots, Iron Maiden, The Cult, Live, and Audio Slave. Lead singer, Ed Little, has a voice that’s not little at all.  He belts out lyrics with that raspy sound.  The trick with singing like that is not to force it and not to try hard.  Ed had it down just right.

Although some sound trouble paused the tunes for a little while, they still rocked it out and had a great crowd gathered up near stage.  The saying, “Time flies when you’re having fun” was in it truest form as sand ran out on Hammersmith.  But that only meant the beginning for Drunk in Memphis.

Drunk in Memphis…what an awesome band name.  There has to be a story behind that and I tend to find out soon.  These guys just looked the part of rock stars. Bassist, Joe Lorei just eats & breathes rock musician.  Black tank-top and leather pants…the uniform for rock.  Meanwhile, lead guitarist Mike Dattilo and drummer Marty Light had the classic metal hair.  Just check out the pictures…the proof is in the pudding.  Last but not least, lead singer Russ Higby was sporting the fur coat, cowboy hat with a crucifix on it, jeans and white shoes. Clash of different styles mixed into one just screams, “yeah, I’m in a band”.

Drunk in Memphis had guitar riffs that wailed in the classic metal sound.  But the most unique song that I heard was a clash of two songs that are very popular, especially in Erie.

I know when I think of Metallica, the first song that comes to mind is, ” Enter Sandman”.  Everyone knows it has one of the best intros of all time.  In fact, just talking about it has me tapping my foot to the beat, and I bet you will be doing that too. Now, take that and mix it with another Erie favorite.  What song is that? Well, when it’s near closing time at the bars downtown, you usually hear a little number by Journey. Yes, I’m talking about the song, “Don’t Stop Believing”.  But, Journey and Metallica together? I never thought of that, never heard of that, never would have imagined the songs combined. But Drunk in Memphis did it, and it sounded awesome.  You definitely need to hear them play it.  These guys know how to rock, and the crowd at Sherlock’s was packed.  I had trouble navigating, but made it out alive.

I look forward to seeing these bands again. Until then, I have pictures to go by and you can see the gallery of over 90 photos by clicking here. You can buy them too!

But before I go, what shows do you suggest I go see next?   Want me to come to your show? Give me a shout at info@rockerie.com!

-Steve

With their high energy and post-punk sound, they worked the crowd and had a successful show.  A good show is what you want to have while your filming for a DVD, and that’s what they got.  Dr. Rock had an interview with them that was featured in the showcase, and if you missed it…here’s  a link.  If you haven’t heard them play, check out their music at their website at enterthephantasm.com.

Be sure to check out our photo gallery of Phantasm and Redlight Romance.

Speaking of Redlight Romance, Joe Hunt and his crew followed up Phantasm with energy of their own.  2009 Album of the Year winner, and 2010 R&B winner carried out the rest of night with their songs.  To me, it seemed like an endless circle of energy…the band would play, the crowd would go nuts, they band played fed off of that, and so on.  With the funk-rock sound, you can help but get into the music.

Great shows by both bands. Fans wanting to know about when the DVD release for Phantasm, it looks like they are shooting for the release next year, so stay tuned.

-Steve