Music
Press
WZRD hosted a benefit concert for Haiti in the school cafeteria on Thursday Jan. 28. The concert was the brainchild of WZRD members Michael Robin and Avi Steinberg, the former presented at the concert. The concert presented live music from various genres by artists such as DJ Demchuk, Kelsey Montanez, Flow Theory, and Kiddy Korral Jug Band.
WZRD, often times pronounced as the "wizard", organized the event within a week's time with help from Student Activities. They managed to find a varied set of performers to draw in the crowd. Sodexo catered the event and provided pizza for all guests in attendance. There was also free popcorn and tarot and palm readings.
DJ Demchuk was in the background playing various music on the turntables before the concert itself took place, and while people were going through the rummage sale items.
Kelsey Montanez was the opening act for the benefit concert and received positive feedback from the crowd with her acoustic performance of her songs. Her music was along the lines of indie/acoustic and alternative.
Following Montanez was the Kiddy Korral Jug Band (KKJB). The members of KKJB were dressed in colorful apparel, like how one band member was dressed to look like a demon and another a hobo or clown.
They also had very unique instruments because they were found and created objects used in a musical fashion. Their instruments consisted of a homemade washtub base, suit case percussion, spoons, and an acoustic guitar. The bands unique performance seemed to go over well with the crowd, during their part of the concert.
The final act of the concert was a band by the name of Flow Theory, who had a funk and reggae sound. They too were well received by the crowd and were also a bit more interactive. During one of their songs the member from KKJB dressed as a demon and Robin from WZRD went up during their performance and began dancing.
All the proceeds came from the five dollar donation for attending the concert and rummage sales purchases. The WZRD benefit concert raised an estimated $600 for Haiti, which went to the NEIU Haiti relief fund. - Northeastern Illinois Univeristy INDEPENDENT
Discography
Flow Theory has not released any singles, EPs, or LPs. Many songs have been released on the internet and a few have been played on the radio. A few of these have been removed: King of Thieves, RIP, Death and the Dog. The ones currently available on the radio and the internet include: Alone, Waterworks, SOS (live), Rebel Mountain Hop, Arrakeen Spice, Damien's Dub (live), Jelly Jam (live), Flow Theory (live), and Flow Theory.
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Bio
Nash (Guitar), Zev (Vocals), and Eli Gold (Drums) started playing together in Florida, writing songs and playing covers of their favorite bands like Sublime and Jack Johnson for their own amusement. The following year, Nash left for Israel and Zev and Eli returned to their home in suburban Chicago, continuing what began in Florida. During Nash's time in Israel, Zev met Avi (Bass) at a course in Chemistry at a local College. Avi had taken a year-long hiatus from performing after leaving his previous band, Lucius Warbaby. Zev also had a history of performing on stage, with groups including the Niles North Jazz Choir and Free Porn Industry, as well as stage appearances with two founding members of Cornmeal. Upon Nash's return to the United States, the four immediately discovered a unique musical chemistry.
Playing around with a few originals and some Sublime covers in a basement, they enjoyed making music together so much it was a logical step to form a band. They played their first show before they even had a name, at a small house party on the Jewish holiday of Purim (a holiday known for costumes and drinking) in 2008. The response to their performance was so positive, it was evident they needed a name. Within a few weeks, the Gold brothers had come up with several names, but the band could not come to an agreement. Finally, after much silence by Avi, he brought in a list of 20 or so names. Among the names, near the middle of the list, was a name that caught their eyes: Flow Theory. Unanimously, they decided to take on Flow Theory as a name. It was at that point that they began to play multiple times a week, consistently. This immediately impacted their music, creating more ambitious tunes than ever before.
As the rest of the year went by they continued to play as Flow Theory in their jam space. They wrote new songs, tweaked the songs they already had, and developed as musicians, though they were not playing gigs. It was during that early period that a life changing event happened to Flow Theory. They attended a premiere music festival in Michigan. At the music festival, they were fascinated by the bands and the countless number of people who came to enjoy live music. They quickly realized that Flow Theory could be good enough to perform onstage at such a level if they put in the hard work and dedication that was evident in the performers they were admiring.
Flow Theory started to play almost every day and began gigging regularly. At that time they were still a rock band, taking cues from hard rock bands like Primus, alternative acts like Cake, and ska bands like Sublime. They played their songs straight and tried to rock them out with passion each time. For a while this was enough.
As the band's skills progressed, they naturally began to experiment with news genres of music as well as improvisational jamming during practice. They integrated sounds from funk, middle eastern music, jam music, and even instrumental electronica. The inevitable direction of the music crafted was a more experimental and improvisational style onstage as well.
After much consideration Flow Theory decided to change the overall direction of the band and become a jam band in earnest. However, there are marked differences between Flow Theory and the typical jam band. One particular edge we hold is Zev's ability to jam as a vocalist. He is able to improvise lyrics and tunes during jams in addition to his talents as a songwriter. Also, Nash and Avi create an innovative interplay between guitar and bass, creating melodic, harmonic, and groove-based jams. Eli's jamming technique on drums brings a percussion-like element to the music. Their stage performance has become charged with a controlled yet spontaneous energy.
The band has taken an active role in organizing and participating in philanthropic and socially conscious endeavors, including benefit concerts and charitable work. They have created a mini-festival called PurimFest starting in 2010 that contributed to three different charitable organizations in its inaugural year. PurimFest 2010 featured local, regional, and nationally touring acts.
Their influences range across all genres and time periods. Notable influences include: Primus, Phish, Umphrey's McGee, Lotus, Gorillaz, EOTO, Jack Johnson, String Cheese Incident, Rage Against the Machine, the Doors, Queen, Sublime, Victor Wooten, Jaik Willis, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Radiohead, Tool, Keller Williams, Jamiroqui, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Mars Volta, Rush, Metallica, Del tha Funky Homosapien, Bob Marley, Cake, Les Claypool's side projects, Johnny Cash, Eminem, Outkast, Eddie Vedder, AFI, The Offspring, Incubus, Yngwie Malmsteen, Iron Maiden, King Diamond, Ted Nugent, James Brown, Parliament Funkadelic, Infectious Grooves, Postal Service, Yes, BB King, Jeff Beck, The Beatles, and Ozric Tentacles.
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