Absinthe Ava

Although Absinthe Ava has existed in name since late 2003, the initial spark of the band took place in 2000, with the meeting of Al Nikolic (22) and Scott Olczak (20). Playing guitar and drums, respectively, with both providing vocals, the two quickly developed what seems one musical mind, with two halves playing off each other as Olczak would respond to the ideas brought forth by Nikolic on the guitar. Songs got pieced together. Sometimes improvisation would give birth to new ones. In short, music happened. But nothing was even remotely complete without a bass player, and through one of those random occurences, Olczak found one in Aaron Harrison (25).
In 2001, Aaron bought his first bass guitar from a friend, and then spent the next year practicing day and night. The spring of 2002 he was lucky enough to meet local bass legend/virtuoso Chuck Bartels. He has spent the last two years studying on and off with Chuck. Al has been playing guitar since his early teens, and his musical appetite has been growing ever since. At some point, he made a decision to make a career out of it and he’s now nearing completion of a degree in music composition. Scott took a similar path and is currently working on a degree in jazz studies.
Rock music is only one genre that influences Absinthe Ava. The band draws inspiration from anything - from the cool stylings of Miles Davis, to the lush piano sonatas of Beethoven, to the asymmetrical rhythms of Serbian folk music while still maintaining a hard edge on some truly original rock and roll.
Said rock and roll was unleashed for the first time at the New Way Bar in Ferndale in December of 2004. There will be more shows to come, as well as a demo the band just recorded at Effigy Studios in Ferndale with the help of engineer Nathan Phenicie.