Mikee T

by Mary Lowers

What better armament for a band of peaceful warriors than music? Music, whose power to "sooth the savage beast" is legendary, whose grace, truth and beauty have inspired everything from patriotism to passion, is the weapon taken up by The Peaceful Warriors, a Crestone based band moving into the national music scene.

Band founder, guitarist, lead vocalist and "Head of Musical Affairs", Mikee T, described his band to me as a synthesis of his musical career thus far. "This is my thing that I'm cultivating into a group thing. The Peaceful Warriors represent a way of living that involves liberation from the negative passions of life, diligence with practice, and acting in harmony with all sentient beings. The idea is to make music that everyone can appreciate. It's geared toward dancing, singing, improvisation, and empowerment through music." This band is professional and musically demanding.

The Peaceful Warriors will release their first CD, Primero, at a CD Release Party at the Silver Crest Palace on Friday, April 29. The album is a ten year saga of songs about relationships, from first love through true love and everything in between.  All the tunes on Primero are written by Mikee T, although he encourages the band to bring their original songs into the creative process.  A truly local creative compilation, the recording was done at The Peaceful Warriors' drummer, Ethan Blumenhein's Dojo Studios.  Every aspect of Primero was crafted "in house, in Crestone", except CD duplication. Brief biographies of band members will help you appreciate how this particular mesh of talents Mikee T has brought together produce a compelling, thought provoking, musical experience it's hard to sit still for. The Peaceful Warriors are:

Mikee T is the founder of the Peaceful Warriors.  Mikee is a guitarist and vocalist who has toured extensively in the U.S.  Aside from performing solo for many years, his resume of musical genres includes: Cuban, Brazilian, West African, Rock and Jazz.  He was on tour for four years with The Motet.  He has played jam music in Boulder and had a popular funk band in NYC during his college years.  A life-long musician, Mikee is an alumni of the William Patterson College of Music.  He has shared the stage with many acclaimed musicians, including Charlie Hunter, the String Cheese Incident, Maceo Parker, Tony Furtado, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, G-Love, and Merle Saunders.

Percussionist, Ethan Blumenhein brings what Mikee T calls a "natural feel to the rhythmic foundation of the band."  A sometime Crestonian, Ethan performed on the L.A. scene, most recently with a group called the Circle who recently recorded tracks for an upcoming movie.  He has also recently opened Dojo Studios in his home, where most of Primero  was recorded.  If you are interested in learning more about Dojo Studios, contact Ethan at 256-4944.

Pete Williams, known to many as a local contractor, is a "rock solid bassist" who plays with the Warriors in Colorado. Versed in bluegrass, jazz, blues and rock-and-roll, Pete told me he loves playing with The Peaceful Warriors, "because they are all professionals and it's a pleasure to be involved in a band where people are professional."


Garrett Sayers plays bass with the band when not on tour with the Motet.  A graduate of the New England Conservatory and Boston's Miracle Orchestra, Garrett's an extremely talented bassist.

Brian Juan is the keyboard player you will hear on Primero.  He is a long-time friend and musical compadre of Mikee T. He currently resides in Berthoud, Colorado. 

Steve Vidaic, the band's touring keyboardist and life-long friend of Mikee T, divides his time between Citizen Cope (Santana's Shaman recording alumni), Zilla (a String Cheese Incident side project), and the Peaceful Warriors.

These warriors do indeed make a wild, unique and joyful sound. Mikee describes his song writing as synergistic, "It just happens...some of it from personal experience, but mostly I am divinely inspired." As I sat back listening to a few cuts from Primero, it was indeed "happening". “Train to Do” is a cut with a blues style whine and rhythm, that carries the listener like a train, into the emotional energy and body shaking underbelly of music. As MikeeT says, their music "expands essence and experience."  Mikee T, who has recently begun to explore Buddhist practice, sees a similarity between being a musician and having a Buddhist practice; "You work so hard on one thing." This is a key to this band, they work hard on their inspired musical bliss.

Despite their dedication to musical discipline,The Peaceful Warriors love preforming live. The band's first gig in Crestone was a Crestone Volunteer Fire Department benefit in May 2004.  The band  who performs original tunes and covers at their live venues, try to read the mood of the audience.  Mikee T told me, "we tailor-make our gig according to how we are interacting with the audience. - Crestone Eagle