Music
Press
In a scene cluttered with unoriginality, it’s refreshing to discover a band with a unique sound. Jesta, a Marquette group, will showcase their original style of music at Stucko’s Pub & Grill this Friday night.
Jesta consists of guitarist, songwriter and NMU student Nick Agorgianitis, drummer Tom Sochowicz and Eric Treusch and Steve Miller on keyboard and bass. Keyboard player Eric Treusch said the band’s sound is hopefully something you can’t put your finger on. Their musical influences stretch across the horizon in rock, jazz, classical, funk and metal.
“I would consider it a mesh of our influences, both lyrically and musically,” Treusch said.
Since classifications are unavoidable, Jesta has fallen under experimental rock. In their live show, the audience can expect mostly original material with a couple covers mixed in.
“We do everything from ‘L.A. Woman’ to the Ghostbusters theme song,” Treusch said.
For audiences who have seen them play before, Treusch said to expect a totally different setlist this time around.
“We’ve got a pretty good list of tunes, so we try to get them rotating through our shows,” he said.
A lot of experimentation and improvisation should be expected in the live set as well.
“Within music, there are technically infinite possibilities. We might play some of the same songs as before, but you can expect something different out of them each time,” Treusch said.
Jesta started in early 2005 when Treusch and Agorgianitis were playing around with no definite plans. Things began clicking, and eventually they rounded up a drummer and everything fell into place.
In the spring of ’05, they played their first gig at The Village Pub (now Stucko’s Pub & Grill) and were offered a weekly gig at The Wooden Nickel soon thereafter. With the Nickel spot came more exposure and soon after they were playing shows at different venues in the area, as well as one show in Detroit. Recently, Jesta has done a few studio sessions and is hoping to get back in the studio to record an album. With the band still relatively new, each and every show is important for the band’s growth.
“There are points in every show where we get to go somewhere we’ve never been,” Treusch said. “Each show has high points where the energy feels new.”
Treusch said his favorite performance thus far was not the Detroit show or any of the local bar gigs, but instead a show at a friend’s camp with the Dead River as a backdrop. It’s evident Jesta isn’t fixated on becoming rock stars. Instead, they have a real appreciation for music and a love for performing.
What the future holds for Jesta is unknown, but it’s certain that Friday night at Stucko’s, they will again get to a point where they’ve never been.
http://www.thenorthwind.org/index.php?issue=177&story=4817&drop=news - -The North Wind-by Shane Nyman
Discography
Demo 2005- unreleased
"Let's Rock" a single from the upcoming album is receiving airlplay at college radio stations around the USA.
Photos
Bio
“In a scene cluttered with unoriginality, it's refreshing to discover a band with a unique sound”. Shane Nymann from the -North Wind-
"These guys are really, really good". -Jim Koski Q107 Marquette
Formed in the spring of 2005 with members deriving from all over the mid-west, Jesta set out to do one thing: BE THE 99th GREATEST BAND OF ALL TIME!!! They apparently don't like the number 1.
Conception. (Singer/guitarist) Nick Agorgianitis spends the blustery winter at home composing/recording the new music. Soon after, during the early spring, a few chance meetings occur and before anyone knew what the hell happened the small college town of Marquette went wild for this new sound.
After only their first show, the band was booked to play weekly at the Wooden Nickel, a local Marquette venue. The group soon developed a vibrant fan base of loyal followers that would come to see the band surprise them with something new; new set lists, zany theatrics, odd covers, and a whole slew of special guest performers. It was there the group rounded out their sound and discovered how fun it is to carry hundreds of pounds of music gear back and forth around town multiple times per week.
While enjoying the weekly Nickel shows the group still managed to play at other local clubs, get on the road for short runs, and play local festivals and benefit concerts. It was not uncommon for the band to play 2-3 shows a week right out of the gun. Jesta became a very hardworking band alongside college courses, minor runs of intoxication, and their dreaded day jobs.
This group managed to play over 40 shows their first year in the small college town of Marquette!!
Soon after, they caught the attention of local media who jumped on covering what this new band was up to. NBC affiliate TV 6 went on to produce a three part special on the band which aired throughout the Upper Peninsula and Wisconsin. Public TV 13 produced two studio concerts of the band for the series Standing O. Northern Michigan University’s paper The Northwind wrote an article about Jesta claiming, “In a scene cluttered with unoriginality, it's refreshing to discover a band with a unique sound”.
Jesta has also performed during Governor Granholm’s democratic rally in town and was asked to headline the “Rock the Vote” concert. They are active participants in political issues especially the anti-sulfide mining movement and have played numerous benefit concerts for the cause.
Throughout all the chaos the band keeps performing, continuing to work upon its arsenal of original and cover material. The debut album will be out next year as well.
the guys all have friends and family on the west coast the group has recently made the choice to relocate. Portland, OR. 2007.
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