Short Sleeve Heart

Short Sleeve Heart, (SSH) is a collaboration of East-Coast transplants bonded on the West Coast by a shared love of soul, indie rock and blues. Fronted by Laila’s powerhouse soul and Mike’s evocative guitar licks, the band began writing and performing together in spring 2015. SSH completed work on original songs for the feature length documentaries, “Citizen Soldier” and “Danger Close”, to be released in fall 2016. SSH also released their 1st self-titled EP, "Short Sleeve Heart." (NOW avail.on itunes, Spotify, etc.)

Laila Garsys (Lead Vocalist, rhythm guitar, harmonica, tambourine). Armed with powerhouse vocals, slick harmonica and rhythmic guitar chops, Laila continues to seduce us by mixing blues, soul and gritty rock into a sultry style of her own. Practically raised in a theater auditorium, she was first inspired to perform by watching her mom direct local musical theater. She began singing in prestigious and select choirs beginning in 5th grade, which led her to participate in a number of state and national vocal competitions all the way up through High School, including performances at Carnegie Hall. Laila has studied vocal composition in German, Latin, French and Italian. By age 15, she toured Europe as part of her select High School Choir. Before joining Short Sleeve Heart, she first began performing rock, soul and blues in a number of bands across the country. Laila currently resides in Los Angeles, maintaining an active life as Yoga Instructor and Holistic Health and Wellness Consultant.

Mike Trella (Lead Guitarist, Producer). Mike has formerly been a songwriter and lead guitarist for a number of Washington DC and NYC-based soul-rock bands, including Politicks, Stella and the Fire and Bridge City Hustle. As a member of Politicks, Mike played with legendary artists, such as The Roots, Al Green, Lauryn Hill, and Blind Melon. He recently wrote the original music for the theatrically released feature film, “The Hornet’s Nest”. His theme song for the movie, “Chariots”, was short-listed for an Oscar in the Best Original Song category for the 2015 Oscars. He recently completed the score for the forthcoming feature documentary, “Citizen Soldier” and will shortly begin work on two more feature films.

Patrick (Pat) Mannella (Drummer/Percussionist) was born and raised in Buffalo, NY and currently lives in Los Angeles. He began playing drums at 10 years old, performing with bands by age 13, and studied amongst Buffalo’s top instructors. Over the years, Pat’s mastered various genres, not limited to, rock, gospel, jazz, progressive rock, indie, jam, musical theatre, to name a few. As former member of Free Henry!, they’ve opened for major acts including, The Guess Who, Foreigner, Blues Traveler, Steven Page, Rusted Root, Blind Melon, Better Than Ezra, We The Kings, Drake, Dr. John, Joan Osborne, and Shania Twain. Pat also has recorded on full length albums and toured up and down the east coast.  Patrick’s rule of thumb: “Never stop playing.” Just as his old music teacher once said, “So that is what he does and will continue to do for the rest of his time here.”  

Isaiah Gage (Cellist, Multi-Instrumentalist, Composer and Singer/Songwriter), SSH’s collaborative songwriter who writes while utilizing the powerful sound of the cello, placing it in rare and novel contexts. New York City born-and-raised Gage is a conservatory-trained, award winning musician, who has spent a lifetime exploring the cello’s nuances through a myriad of musical genres and approaches. He’s played in venues ranging from the  Hollywood Bowl, Avery Fisher Hall, SXSW Festival, and even performed Live on stage at the 2015 Grammy Awards with Pharrell Williams and Hans Zimmer. Gage relocated to Los Angeles where he maintains an active musical life as a performer, composer/arranger and session player.