The Grain

The Grain is more party than priss:
By Gene Paddon Electric City 2005

Those in attendance at The Grain's CD release party at the River Street Jazz Café can attest ... The Grain is more like "The Party Train."

Not only did The Grain pack the place (and that's no exaggeration), but it kept a rather raucous crowd on the dance floor all night. It was crazy white folks dancing. The kind of dancing you only see when half the wedding party is stupid drunk. It was the kind of dancing timeless bands like The Allman Brothers or maybe Willie Nelson have been known to induce.


With the style of music The Grain is pushing (that would be songs that often exceed five minutes that are chock full of slide guitar and keyboard solos), it's very rare to see a band connect with the audience. Typically, a guy will take a solo, the singer will announce his name, and the crowd will cheer. With The Grain, that's exactly what happened, but the members then actually followed up to the crowd response with a snappy retort or other antics.

Perhaps the best way for local fans to get a grasp on The Grain would be to say if the band Mighty Fine Wine were still around today, then shows with MFW and The Grain would have been worth a $20 cover.

The Grain, by the way, is Kubiski on lead vocals and guitar; Jessi Rupert on guitar, flute, and mandolin; Bob Scorey on drums, Jason Stefanski on percussion, Tony Blue on bass; and Fares on keyboards.

The CD is available now, and includes tracks like "Rattle & Shake" (which touts a catchy refrain of "rock 'n' roll 'til the day we die" and "G-String," a very O.A.R.-ish island anthem about hula girls and sunsets. You can visit WWW.THEGRAINBAND.COM for more info.

If the Titanic went down today, The Grain would have been the band that kept on playing. And had The Grain put on a show like it did last Saturday, those lifeboats would have been a lot less crowded.

http://www.thetimes-tribune.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=15210619&BRD=2228&PAG=461&dept_id=560916&rfi=6
- Gene Paddon Electric City

"MOMENT TO MOMENT, DELICATE TO PASIONATE, A WORK OF OUTSTANDING BEAUTY. ONE OF THE BEST DISCS I'VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF RECIEVING THIS YEAR." - Mike Naydock

Much of mastering a "pre-mastered" CD requires focusing on balancing levels (bass, midrange, treble, and loudness) to present a final version that doesn't require the end user to change their CD levels much from song to song. As a result, little time is spent critiquing the project content beyond technical issues.
But with "The Grain's" project, I noticed the great writing, arrangements, and musical abilities reminiscent of the 1970s style music many of us love.
It was a time when artist were "allowed" to express music from the heart
rather than play the cookie cutter "muzak" big music corporations push across radio today. Bill Davis also has done a fine job not only with recording and production, but his artistic touches as well. I certainly look forward to the songs destined to come out next year from "The Grain"
band!

Dave Hodorovic
Mastering Engineer,
Pyramid Recording Studio
Avoca, PA - Dave Hodorovic

Dave Thackara Electric City 2005


Turning the tables on nature, The Grain has been slowly growing a large number of people as a fan base in the area. Their formula for success is similar to the one farmers use - they plant their songs in front of an earthy audience, stand under some bright lights, and make sure everyone is properly hydrated (an actual gardening tip from the experts - beer helps plants grow. I'm not making this up). A month after holding a CD release party at the Jazz Café, The Grain was back, only this time, the band was recording a live album.

Hanging out before the show, the band greeted friends and fans alike. They seemed genuinely thrilled that so many people came out to see them play and preserve that moment in history. They shook hands and did that 'guy hug' - link thumbs, pull close, and pat each others' backs before quickly jumping away - with just about everyone in the room.

By the way, isn't it great how you can always tell who's in a band just by looking at them? Would anyone who wasn't about to get on stage wear an extremely paisley shirt and black bandana to a club? Other than a pirate, I mean...

At first I wondered how a band can know all their fans on a first name basis. Then I remembered that The Grain not only sent me tickets to the show, they did so by mailing them directly to my house. I don't think I was the only one who showed up with a personally mailed ticket.

It warrants mentioning that The Grain wasn't the only source of music. Miche Fambro returned to the Jazz Café to start the night. His multitasking, right-handed nylon string guitar wizardry gave new meaning to the term "one man band." Keep your eye out for him to come back - he's well worth giving up a Saturday night of the same old same old.

When Miche was done, The Grain went from playing the gracious host to main attraction without hesitation. The Jazz Café is an intimate venue; unless Shaq sits between you and the stage, there really isn't a bad seat. A small rowdy crowd of - dare I say - Grainheads gathered three-deep at the foot of the stage, but from my barstool, I had a clear view through the throngs to the stage (at one point, I'm sure the overworked yet cheerful waitress wanted to hire the King's College offensive line to move people aside so she could carry food and drinks to her tables).
The Grain launched into their set without so much as a how-ya-doin, much to the joy of their veggie burrito-loving fans. Joe Kubiski, the singer/guitarist and wannabe pirate had a smile on his face the entire show. He seemed to take a lot of pleasure in introducing the rest of the band throughout the show, and justifiably so. Individually, they're good. Together, they sound great. It's a classic example of 1 + 1 = 3.

Bob Scorey and birthday boy percussionist Jason Stefanski's solid beats laid the foundation of each song, which allowed multi-instrumentalist Jessi Rupert to experiment with a number of different and funky sonic paths. What does this song need? Sax? Slide? Wherever the mood took him, there he went. Fares Houssein complemented him nicely, adding a mellow edge to the overall tone while bassist Tony Blue tied everything together nicely.

I hope my habit of killing plants won't affect The Grain. Leave them under the spotlight long enough and they might grow big enough to win a ribbon at the county fair. Of course, we might need some more beer.



Dave Thackara Electric City 2005 - Dave Thackara Diamond City

Press Release
HMN Records January 12 2006
Woodstock Nation Underground

If The Grain was a high calorie fatty snack food and not a Pennsylvania based Original band you might find yourself eating the whole darn bag. Every piece is uniquely seasoned and methodically crafted. It’s very hard to define this bands genre.
If a folk hero with catchy melodies and groovy rock rhythm’s collided with Traffic you may have hit the Grain. The union between the autobiographical stories and the music is like a bridge between space and time. The same generation gap has also been traversed within the bands age difference. Joe and Tony are 30 something and Bob, Jesse, Jason and Fares are in their early 20’s, but the bond and creativity of this band reflects years of playing together. The real truth is this band has only been together 12 months and kicking out songs like “Guster Baines” A Blues-Rockin-Soul tune that local and college radio stations have labeled a hit with it’s constant rotation on the air waves. This song may be a hidden sign for the band to make the change between part time and full time as they begin to record there second album due for release in 2006.



The Nationally Acclaimed River Street Jazz Café has been The Grain’s launching pad as they aspire to become a solid and flowing act. Following in the footsteps of acts like Leon Russell, John Scofield, Dickie Betts, George Wesley, Lotus and many others that have graced the stage at River Street. Great crowds continue to gather at this club every other month when The Grain plays. Fans as far away as New York, Allentown, Philadelphia and Canada have traveled to catch their shows. General Manager Tom Moran said, “The Grain improves every time I listen to them, the only problem I have is they need to make their jam/lead sections longer. People love to groove at the foot of the stage.

The band said without Tom Moran and The Jazz Café they may have found themselves sadly falling into the same old local band ideals. “Play as much as you can at the same places in the same town every single weekend until people get tired of you. Then change your name and bring in a couple new members and do it again” said Bob Scorey the drummer for the band who has played and studied in London at The Drum Tech School. “Music needs to have substance and feeling to make me want to play, I believe we have captured that emotion that moves many of us”. Even You.

The Grain is one the hardest working bands in The Wilkes Barre Valley.
They rehearse, record and write 8 days a week 4 to 7 hours a day working on the total package. You ask where the eighth day comes from, ask Joe’s wife Sue, she says that Joe cannot stop working, writing, promoting or thinking about the band in or out of consciences. “We just do what we do and it’s a natural thing to play all the time for us. If we don’t have a gig on the weekend we’ll work for a while and then put together a small show somewhere and play as long as we can. It’s a lifestyle we’ll pursue until we can’t anymore”. Joe Kubiski said, the primary songwriter and singer for the band.

August 2006 Joe and the band will make a pilgrimage trip back to the garden in Up-State New York and Play at Yasgur’s farm. Their song “Bethel” tells the story of the show in 94. The Grain has pending dates for Festivals, National clubs and time set aside for recording. You can join the mailing list at www.thegrainband.com to receive free tickets for up and coming shows.
- HMN Records