» Bio / Thru the Years / Odds and Ends / Travel Pics
At the early age of two years old I seemed to have an affinity for banging the tubs.
I was also grasping other basic human needs early on as well!
I remember falling in love with movie soundtracks when I
was growing up, and in my teens, I was sometimes considered weird by friends
for listening to soundtrack albums as well as the "classic" rock of
the late 60's and early 70's.
At age 17 I Started playing drums after "banging
around" on an old friends kit while playing along with "Mr. Blue"
from the Clear Light album( remember them??)and once I heard Cream, Hendrix,
The Dead, Mc5, etc...within a year I was in my first band.
The 70's were development years playing in cover bands as well as original bands with some moderate success in the Bergen County, NJ area.
The 80's was a decade of finding my own voice so to speak by playing for years in a wedding band as well as alot of freeform electronic jamming and other projects. The purchase of a Simmons SDS9 Electronic kit in '86 was the beginning of my electronic percussion experience.
The 90's were years of further development and exploration with electronic
percussion and midi applications. I started working on my solo electronic music
using a DrumKAT midi'd to a growing collection
of Synthesizers. I also constructed the
KATbox for use in the freeform band, AWW, which would roll into Village
showcase venues and just blow off the tops of our heads. Risky but fun! The
90's were also very busy years playing Acoustic
Drums and percussion with Frank Messina
and his band Spoken Motion, duo collaborations with guitarist-guitarsynths/
composer Ken Rubenstein, as well as various
projects both acoustic and electric.
Since 2000 I've become more involved in my solo projects in my home studio and
collaborating with musician friends for recording and just having fun playing.
I also began recording with guitarist/ composer
Chaz Jones at his ESAD Records Studio. Our orbits collided again after nearly
25 years. In the future I hope to link my music with other art forms such as
dance, poetry, etc... as well as license music for film.
» Thoughts on Playing
Ever since I grew to really appreciate jazz in the 70's, I'd rarely miss an opportunity to "jam".Whether in one on one or group situations, I've always been amazed at the joy of connecting musically as well as the disappointment of not doing so. To their credit, these are some of the New Jersey musicians that I've known over the years that have been and, in most cases, continue to be a great source of inspiration for me by being good friends, great musicians and open minded listeners. The list of people to thank is way too long to print.
.» Thru the Years
— '68 —
Started Playing
— '69 —
Pressure /Power Trio covers
— 70's —
Comfort/ Cover band
Waverly/Original Prog/Rock
Chaz Adams Quartet/Original Jazz/Rock
Jabberwocky/Original Rock
Rorschach/Original Jazz/Rock
And a few un-named bands
— 80's —
Jumpin' Jersey/Wedding Band
60 Cycle Hum/Electronic Improv
Various Projects and Jam Sessions with Joe Isgro, Paul Thorbjarnarson, Bob Sushko, Joe Bozzo, Ted Dailey, James Walck, etc...
— 90's —
Electronic Improv with Wayne Thiel (Guitar/Effects) and Adam Fleishman (Bass/Effects,Synths)
Ishkabibble
Acoustic/Electric Improv with Bob Sushko (Guitar/Effects), Joe Isgro (Bass),and the late Matt C. (Sax)
Limbo
Electronic Drum/Bass Improv with Adam Fleishman (Bass/Effects,Synths)
Hodgepodgelodge
Acoustic/Electric Improv with Joe Isgro (Bass), and the late Paul Thorbjarnarson (Acoustic/Electric Guitars)
Loonybin
Acoustic Improv with Joe Isgro (Bass), and the late Matt C. (Sax)
Electric Improv with Bob Sushko (Guitar/Effects), and Various Bassists
Abacus
Freeform Synth Improv with Busyditch (Synthesizers and Homemade Instruments)
Lonely Seamen
Progressive/Aggressive Electric Duo with Ken Rubenstein (Acoustic/Electric Guitars, Guitarsynths and Loops)
Frank Messina (Poet Extraordinaire), Bob Sushko (Guitar), Joe Isgro (Bass), Elliott Levin (Sax), and the king of sunshine,
Larry McDonald (Hand Drums/Percussion)
Apocolyptic Screams
/ Electronic Death Metal with Mace Abrams (guitar/voice)
—2003-2006—
JWW, Joe Isgro/bass, Wayne Thiel/guitar&effects, Wes Jensen/ Electronic Percussion
>
» Odds and Ends
»Travel Pics
With Joe Isgro in Amsterdam 1999
Sibelius Monument, Helsinki 2000
...
