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The Installers are a four piece Massachusetts-based rockin' blues outfit featuring Singer Stephen Clarke, guitarist Kevin Visnaskas, bassist Marc Rines and drummber Jim Burns. The group hooked up with the legendary Jay Geils to produce their debut offering Nail It! and came away with a thirteen track project they can be truly proud of. The disc is packed with five originals and eight covers that bring back modern updates of songs by T-Bone Walker, Ray Charles, Robert Cray and others. While the Installers remain true to the original renditions, they add their own brand of color and style to the songs.
In addition to Jay Geils' producing credits, he also appears on guitar, playing slide, rhythm and soloing on many of the album's cuts as well as arranging the horns in the song "But It's Alright". Guitarist Barry Callahan and keyboardist Shawn McCann also make significant contributions to this fine outing from The Installers. - Metronome Magazine
The Installers are a four piece Massachusetts-based rockin' blues outfit featuring Singer Stephen Clarke, guitarist Kevin Visnaskas, bassist Marc Rines and drummber Jim Burns. The group hooked up with the legendary Jay Geils to produce their debut offering Nail It! and came away with a thirteen track project they can be truly proud of. The disc is packed with five originals and eight covers that bring back modern updates of songs by T-Bone Walker, Ray Charles, Robert Cray and others. While the Installers remain true to the original renditions, they add their own brand of color and style to the songs.
In addition to Jay Geils' producing credits, he also appears on guitar, playing slide, rhythm and soloing on many of the album's cuts as well as arranging the horns in the song "But It's Alright". Guitarist Barry Callahan and keyboardist Shawn McCann also make significant contributions to this fine outing from The Installers. - Metronome Magazine
Discography
Live - Plus 6 (CD, independent, released 2008). Available from cdbaby.com. Two tracks have been played on WZLX's Sunday Morning Blues program: "Southside Shuffle" and "Phone Booth"
Nail It! (CD, Francesca Records #1011, released 2004; produced by Jay Geils). Available from cdbaby.com. Two tracks have been played on WZLX's Sunday Morning Blues program: "Going to the City" and "Farmer John"
Making It Fit (CD, Bedlam Productions, released 2001; produced by Steve Gaetz and Beau Tremblay)
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Bio
The Installers have been rockin' clubs around New England for over ten years. They've played with some of the best, such as Roomful of Blues, Duke Robillard, and Sugar Ray Norcia.
Since 2004 they've had the privilege of working both on and off stage with Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominee Jay Geils, guitarist of the legendary J. Geils Band. Jay produced The Installers' 2004 CD Nail It! and played guitar on several tracks. Jay has also been known to occasionally join the band on stage for a few numbers when he's available. Jay's most recent set with The Installers was during one of the band's most important gigs as headliners at the 2007 Blues & Brews festival in Westford, MA, with a set that left the sold out crowd screaming for more.
Like most other bands, The Installers have endured their share of personnel changes through the years, with each change bringing something new and exciting to the mix:
During the recording of "Nail It!" they lost original member Barry Callahan (rhythm and lead guitar), but gained the highly talented Shawn McCann (keyboards) who added a new dimension to the band's sound.
Barry rejoined the band in June 2007, re-injecting the powerful rhythmic assault that he originally brought to the band a decade ago.
In October 2007 the band suffered the departure of original member Marc Rines (bass guitar). Marc played an important part in developing that "In Your Face" sound that helped launch the band, and we wish him luck in his future musical endeavors.
The search for a new bass player ended abruptly when John Bruner showed up to a rehearsal in November 2007. John's meticulous, fluid and often funky bass lines are just what the band needed to kick things up a notch in the rhythm section.
With the current line up of Stephen Clarke (vocals), Kevin Visnaskis and Barry Callahan (guitars), Shawn McCann (keyboards), Jim Burns (Drums), and John Bruner (bass), 2008 promises to be a fantastic year for the band.
"I first saw Kevin playing in 1991 at a local Chinese restaurant in a cover band and said to myself "Holy crap, this guy can play!". Over the next few years, I sat in several times as they were doing some J. Geils Band tunes and found that Kevin was as good a jazz player as he was at rock and blues. Around the same time I met Marc, as he was managing a nearby music store and playing guitar and bass in another local band. One day in 1997, I was ordering some vibraphone mallets from Marc and mentioned that I couldn't wheel my vibes through my cellar door because it was too narrow, and he said "I know just the guy to fix your problem - he built my house, he's a drummer and he loves the J. Geils Band." So he gave me Jim Burns' number; he came over and installed a wider door while I told him a few old J. G. B. stories. In 2002 Marc gave me a self-produced demo CD by The Installers, a band formed with Kevin, Jim, and singer Stephen Clarke. I liked it and saw them live a few times and said, "Hey, how'd you like to make a pro CD for my new label with me as producer?". Their response was "we'd like it a lot!" and so we did. I threw them a few curves in the session, but they always responded positively and with determination to get it right. We all had a lot of fun making this record, and you can hear it in the music."
(Jay Geils, from the liner notes of NAIL IT!)
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