THE ECLECTICS – A Kind of Mixed Style

THE ECLECTICS – A Kind of Mixed Style

 

Cocky and modest, some members snide yet all of them sincere… The Eclectics are an exercise in memories, contradictions and mixtures.

The Eclectics are:

Chris Sorensen – Lead Vocals
Gary Koppenhaver – Lead Vocals/ Keys
Joe D’Amico – Lead Guitar/ BVs
Todd Shill – Rhythm Guitar/ BVs
Gary Sorensen – Drums
Randy Knaub – Bass/ BVs

Bassist Randy Knaub who plays guitar, mandolin, and harmonica says the band is out there reaching real people who have the same contradictions. The music expresses those things for the band and the audience. “We love to get out and have a good time playing for people who want to have a good time and maybe, just maybe recapture a bit of their youth for a moment,” Randy said. “But with none of the angst and all of the fun!”

Therefore, the music is about memories as much as anything else is.

Rather than hide behind the tough personas they once tried to cultivate, the members have accepted this part of their personality and allow the audience to see behind the cracks in the facade. Instead of being cynical, it is endearing. Rather than weak, it is powerful.

Having held musical instruments in their hands since grade school, all of the members bring experience to the stage. They all have something to say and whether they say it in their own words or through those songs that touched them growing up, everything they do has meaning.

Partners in life and in music Chris Sorensen (vocals, percussion) and her husband Gary (drums) say their love of music has always been part of who they are. “I’ve always been surrounded by music for as long as I can remember,” Gary S. said. Randy knows the very moment he was struck, “I remember receiving my first two LPs at Christmas, right after my 8th birthday. The two albums were At Home with The Partridge Family and The Beatles Red Album. Shortly thereafter, I purchased my first LP, Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. That pretty much sealed my lifelong love of The Beatles,” Randy says, adding, “I still like the Partridge Family, too, by the way.” Todd Shill (rhythm guitar) was a lucky person who loved The Stones and went to a KISS concert with his mother in 1976, while Gary Koppenhaver (vocals, keyboards) credits his grandmother for making the family sing in church. Joe D‘Amico (lead guitar), the group comedian, says “last Tuesday” was when he first began to love music.

The band’s music has alternately been tagged as acid rock, pop, classic rock and categorized as primarily representing styles of the 70’s, 80’s and even 90’s mix. Band members say their name reflects that. “Our name (The Eclectics) says it all,” said Todd who has been playing music since 1976.

The truth is they have been at it a long time and have been listening to, playing and writing music through their heydays of so many styles that the only real style they have is their own. “I first started hitting real drums when I was about 8 yrs old,” Gary S. said. “But before that it was coffee cans and pencils starting at age 5.” Randy picked up a bass around the age of 16 and played in his first band for a few years right after that. “Then I pretty much gave up playing until I was in law school and rediscovered my love of playing,” he said. Gary’s piano lessons started at age 7 and Chris was in the choir since she was a baby. Of course, Joe began playing just “since Tuesday,” but the other members insist that he has gotten really good since then.

Joe and Randy are authors of the band’s original material, which includes Randy’s titles “Reach for You,” “Drowning Not Waving,” and “Stairway to Nowhere.” Joe did not name his songs but it is rumored that he has something titled “Last Tuesday” in the works.

Songwriting is an emotional and unpredictable experience, Randy said. “For some songs, the music comes right out like it can’t wait to get onstage. For others, the music has to be coaxed,” Randy said. His inspiration comes from everywhere. “From joy and hope, from heartbreak and loss, everything’s fair game, Randy said. “However, it is so much more than that. “Yesterday” came to Paul McCartney while he was sleeping. So, did he write it or did it write itself? Paul describes song writing as magic—and I agree with him. I have had similar experiences with songs that just seemed to write themselves. For example, after my best friend’s younger sister died of cancer last year, there was a song that just would not let go until I let it out of my head and wrote it down. It is one of my favorite originals. Therefore, it’s magic. Or, maybe it’s God.” Joe credits whiskey for inspiration while Chris looks to poetry and current events. Gary S adds, “Everything has a place in music. It’s an expression of what is going on.”

Currently the band plays mostly covers, partly because it is easier to get booked but also because they love those songs. They use the bookings as opportunities to move their inner music forward as well. “People love to say ‘hey, I remember that song,” Todd said, adding that it is a good time when audience members come out and sing with the band. “I think its fun,” added Chris. “There are always dozens of really great songs to choose from and there’s always a lot to put on the wish list,” Randy said.

Chris says that “Family, musicals, time period related stuff,” have always influenced her musical leanings, while Randy says that he has always been ’somewhat on the outside of the current scene.’ “For example, I grew up in the 70s and 80s and was always a big Beatles fan. Not too many of my peers were into the Beatles. They were into Kiss, Cheap Trick, Rush, Pink Floyd and a lot of other really cool bands that played great metal, rock, or pop stuff,” Randy said. “So when I joined my first band, we played a lot that stuff but I’ve always been more interested in playing smart bass lines like Paul McCartney played. That was evident in a lot of the bass lines I created for HotWingJones’ first CD Saturated which was original material.”

Todd and Gary K. both note the Rolling Stones while Gary K. adding Led Zeppelin and other “Classic rock and 80’s Rock.” Joe alludes to a country music background when he quips, “I was born a poor coal miner’s daughter,” a possible paraphrase of the great Loretta Lynn and says he would love to perform with Faith Hill.

Nevertheless, the real point of it all is the connection they feel when they are giving the audience what it wants. “To have people able to sit back and remember the past and remember what they were doing when they hear certain songs,” Gary S. said. “Greatness is playing somewhere and have people enjoyed what you play.” All of the members of The Eclectics agree, “Ultimately, it’s all about having fun!” Joe simply adds, “We like to rock!”

For bookings, one can contact the band’s lead guitarist, Joe D’Amico. He can be reached at (717) 265-5976. Alternatively, you can send an email to them via Facebook.

Facebook:  The Eclectics  

MySpace:  The Eclectics

 

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