Biography
The Essentials Do Original Classic Rock & Other Groovy Stuff...
For Art Perry and Nancy Gibson, founding members of the band, writing and performing songs has always been both an avenue of expression, and a source of joy. We first performed together as a duo, and began adding members to the group when other musicians expressed an interest in performing with us. For the first few years, band members came and went, then, in 2002, we were blessed with a group that melded perfectly. With the help of our multi-talented friends, Kevin Joella (contributing writer and recording studio wizard), Louie Vasile (philosopher with rock n' roll hair), and Eddie Albrecht (God of Thunder, no hair), we are living our dream. We are the creators of beautiful noise, and people pay us to make that noise. Life is so good.
The Essentials are an eclectic group of children of the 60's, 70's, and 80's, all "Rockers" at heart, but we pride ourselves on writing and performing songs that have both cross-generational and cross-genre appeal. We dabble in Ballads, Country, Surf, and Blues from time to time, and have done some really silly stuff (A Jerry Springer Christmas, for example) just for kicks. That silly stuff has gone over well for us too. Our fans are so great.
We cover of some of our favorite artists (Beatles, Rolling Stones, Neil Young, REM, and others), but do our own unique renditions of their music, rather than trying to sound just like them. We are stylistic and creative in our own right, and try to emulate rather than imitate. That's just one of our things. Having a "thing" is groovy.
The Essentials are now playing clubs, coffee houses, festivals, and benefits throughout N.J., Pa., and De., and have had Air-play in N.J. (WVLT and WGLS) and De. (WSTW). Just so you know, 93.7 FM, WSTW, Mark Rogers, is the Delaware Valley's champion of original music, and host of Hometown Heroes, Sunday nights at 9 PM. If you can tune in, you should. He's one of our heroes, and hosts a great show. Also, check out the bartycast at itunes; a very cool show. Our local DJs rock!
Our newest CD, " The Marshmallow Theory", which we believe is our best work to date, was released in June 2008. The CD is available at Cd Baby, itunes, on our website, essentialsmusic.net, at myspace.com/justtheessentials, and at "The Essentials" gigs . The Cd features classic style rock, pop, and ballads with captivating lyrics, melodies, and rhythm. For those who have been asking, we hope to have another CD out Spring 2009, early Summer at the latest. Making music is awesome.
Our music has been described as unique and multi-stylistic (kinda like having multiple-personalities), with a familiar classic rock vibe. "Sounds-like" suggestions have ranged everywhere from Tom Waits to Frank Zappa and Jefferson Airplane to B-52s, so we've settled on "Original Classic Rock" as the closest of kin to a description of our sound. Sharing is so satisfying.
"We are the music makers. We are the dreamers of dreams." W.Wonka
Instrumentation
Art Perry: vocals, guitar. Nancy Gibson: vocals, shakers. Kevin Joella: lead guitar, keys, backing vocals. Louie Vasile: bass, backing vocals. Eddie Albrecht: drums.
Discography
Cds: Art Perry At Large, True Stories, Surfin' The Cosmos, and The Marshmallow Theory
Singles: A Jerry Springer Christmas
You can check out streaming audio at our website:
www.essentialsmusic.net
Or Myspace:
www.myspace.com/justtheessentisl
We have had airplay on WVLT, 92.1 FM, Vineland, N.J., WGLS, 89.7 FM, Rowan Radio, Stanley El's, The American Dream, Glassboro, N.J., and continue to have airplay on WSTW, 93.7 FM, Mark Rogers' Hometown Heroes, De.
Links
| http://www.essentialsmusic.net |