Vertigo Haze

I have picked up on a band recently that has REALLY caught my undivided attention !! VERTIGO HAZE ,has appeared out of nowhere and kicked major ass recently at the GLAD CRAB's open mic night ., Not only mine ,but the host band OCTOBER and the owner stood in shock as these guy's hit the stage with their style of classic rock and TYPE of classic rock that I have'nt heard too many bands play .,Such as PETER FRAMPTON'S Do you feel like we do?... RUSH...STYX....PINK FLOYD., I think you should be getting the point by now!. Together only three month's these dude's can play pretty much any classic tune that might come to mind a versitility that is hard to find these day's and especially in the song list that is unthought of by most other bands in this category! VERTIGO HAZE is....SHAWN MITCHELL vocals/guitar....RICH HESS bass/vocals...and DON LIVINGSTON....drums/vocals. Ok here is the lowdown...SHAWN MITCHELL had his own band down in the Carolinas and Virginia areas and with Rich Hess and drummer Don Livingston playing with various bands through the years ...This combination lead to an awesome gathering of classic rock tunes that will not only catch your attention, but will soon make you realize how into it you have gone untill you finally look around and see that the WHOLE ROOM is jammin their asses off!!. -DJ MC - Nightlife Monthly

SATURDAY wakes me up to the promise of a very HOT but sunny day., VERTIGO HAZE did their Awesome show of classic and originals and even the guitarist Shawn Mitchell does a thing from FRAMPTON with a talkbox and then at the end of the time allotted Shawn smashes his guitar on stage and then throws what was left off the back stage!! Pretty Cool shit ! -DJ MC - Nightlife Monthly

For singer/guitarist Shawn Mitchell, classic and modern rock band Vertigo Haze has been a work-in-progress for over five years. "Vertigo Haze actually was formed in 1997 down in Richmond, Virginia," he explains. "It was still a three-piece then. I got the opportunity to open up for Badfinger as a first gig, which is real nice. After that, the band kind of split up, and I relocated up here in Pennsylvania. And it was just really searching for the right musicians before I kind of revived the band."

In 1999, Mitchell landed in Red Lion, where, three years later, he would team up with local rock veterans Rich Hess (bass) and Rick Taormino (drums), formerly of 11th Hour.

Lineup intact, the new Vertigo Haze began pounding out rock covers and originals with a fury. "Our covers, we do a lot of classic rock, and I try to focus on that mid-'90s alternative stuff, when alternative just started becoming real big. So, the Stone Temple Pilots and Smithereens and things like that. As far as original music goes, I guess it's a combination of all of that together, a lot of alternative and a lot of classic rock," Mitchell claims, citing influences from Paul McCartney to the late, great Soundgarden. "We have some material that almost sounds like Southern rock meets alternative, and then I have other material that's very Beatle-y, so there's a mix of everything there," he says.

While he was anxious to reincarnate Vertigo Haze in Pa., Mitchell is not wasting any energy on pursuing that major-label deal. "I had done so in the past," he laments. "When I encountered that Badfinger opportunity, I actually got signed to an artist management company - the whole band did. It turned out to be a scam, and so I'm very cautious as to what I get into anymore. It's gotta all add up before I would ever make a decision to make that leap again. ... I'm not really focusing on that as much as just going out and playing and having fun."

For more info, visit www.vertigohaze.net.

Story: Jeff Royer
- Fly Magazine Febuary 2003

I ran into another fun party band when I stopped into Chucky B's in Columbia last month. Vertigo Haze is one of those bands that just want to
have fun! They play songs ranging from Skynrd to Aerosmith to Steppenwolf to Petty to Hendrix to Pink Floyd to Dylan and the Dead. These
guys exude attitude and if you've ever felt the exhilaration of a Harley on the open road you'd understand Vertigo's disposition. They pretty much
Kick Butt! But aside from all the fun here, they perform the music really well with an insight to what all this music was written for in the first
place. Vertigo Haze is: Shawn Mitchell on guitar, Rich Hess on bass, Gwen Darrah on vocals, and Rick Taormino on drums. They have just
been chosen to play at Scott & Carla 'Swigs' benefit party July 31st at the Adamstown Rod & Gun Club.

By Steve Morrow - Pennsylvania Musician Magazine

By KATIE STRZESZEWSKI
For the Dispatch/Sunday News

Not much is better than
good, old-fashioned, classic
rock and roll.
One thing on the "better"
list, though, is rock and roll
for a cause. And the southern
Pennsylvania classic rock
band Vertigo Haze will rock
for a cause when they play at
Relay for Life Saturday afternoon.

About the band: Lead vocalist
and guitarist Shawn
Mitchell, vocalist Gwen
Darrah, bassist Rich Hess
and drummer Rick Taormino
comprise the part-cover, part original band.
The band's set lists mostly feature '60s rock songs, such
as Steppenwolf s "Magic
Carpet Ride," "Sunshine of.
Your Love," by Cream, and
"Roadhouse Blues," by The
Doors. But the band is not
opposed to playing more
modern material as well;
Puddle of Mudd's "She Hates
Me," Green Day's 'When I
Come Around and "Creep,"
by Radiohead, all regularly
make their way into Vertigo
Haze set lists.
Additionally, Vertigo
Haze's original material emit
the same musical sensibilities as the classic rock material that the band covers.

About the event: Relay for Life, to be held at the
York Expo Center, is a
24-hour event sponsored by
the York Chapter of the
American Cancer Society.
Teams consisting of eight to
15 members must have at
least one team member walking
around the Expo Center's
track during the relay.
According to Jacqueline
Lee, the community income
development specialist for
the York Chapter of the ACS,
the Relay for a Life is more of a celebration than anything else. The teams that participate in the relay spend the rest of the year fund raising; the relay is a chance to submit everything they have raised for the American Cancer Society.
And Vertigo Haze is extremely
proud to be a part of
this year's Relay for Life.
"We feel it's our way of giving back to the community," says
Taormino. "If we can add
some enjoyment to the event
and raise some additional
funds as well, then we've
done our job."

-Reach Katie Strzeszewski
at news@yorkdispatch.com. - The York Dispatch, Thursday, April 29, 2004