Window

Always quit a job for a gig.

Members of the San Antonio-based band Window live by this advice.

Taking into account those seven words, the four members of the band are ditching their day jobs (including pizza delivery) when they embark on their eight-city tour. The second stop is in St. Augustine, where they will showcase at Club Fusion on Tuesday.

Window is comprised of four members, all of whom contribute their own unique part to the band. Nick Mery’s vocals are accompanied by Jimmy Dasher’s guitar, Danny Tano’s bass and Ryan Leath’s percussion, making up the folk and rock influenced sound of Window. The band considers themself diverse, according to guitarist Jimmy Dasher, incorporating the use of mandolin and harmonica into their reggae and Latin infused sound. Though they credit Ben Harper, Ryan Adams and Dave Matthews as their main influences, Window separates themself by playing strictly acoustic music that concentrates heavily on their folk roots. Dasher admits the band may experiment with electronic in a few years, but wants to focus on the sound they are building now.

The young band, all of which are all still under legal drinking age, formed just a year ago. Eight months later, it signed with This-Function Records. Their first EP, “Eleventh Street” is set for release next week.

Window’s first tour outside of their home state of Texas will first land them in Dothan, Ala., on June 18 and wrap up in Brunswick, Ga., on June 28. Dasher says this tour “is an experiment” and the main focus of the band right now. The conclusion of the Southeast tour will be the beginning of a state-wide Texas tour which kicks off on July 22.

The completion of Window’s summer tour will allow the band more time to concentrate on a national distribution deal for their Eleventh Street EP. The band also wants to concentrate on getting radio play outside the San Antonio and Austin area, which will allow for greater recognition of their first album. Eleventh Street will be available for the first time during Window’s Southeast tour and can eventually be purchased on their Web site, windowband.com.

—By Julie Calgiano
- St. Augustine Record

Using folk music as a base, San Antonio's Window is devoted to expanding its sound to include elements of Latin, country and reggae. Through soothing yet masterful guitar work, Window has caught the attention of fans across Central Texas and drawn comparisons to the likes of Nickel Creek, Ben Harper and Ryan Adams. - The Bryan-College Station Eagle

Musicians usually join a band because they share similar visions or personalities.

Brady Renner likes to joke that his involvement with the San Antonio folk-rock band Window is a financial obligation.

"My very first show with them was in Waco. It was amazing and everything went great," he said during a telephone interview last week. "Then we headed back to San Antonio, and I was driving the band's van ... and wrecked. It was bad weather, maybe an oil slick, maybe a bad decision or two."

Now indebted to the group for the damage to the van and instruments in the wreck, Renner is working it off as Window's bassist.

In reality, the four members of Window say it's a combination of their talent and personalities that makes them click as a band.

Jimmy Dasher (lead guitar), Nick Mery (vocals and guitar), and Paul Venzor (drums), along with Renner, have been together a little more than a year, although Window's roots go back to 2001.

That's when Mery and Dasher - who both attended Central Catholic High School in San Antonio -first performed together, although they were in separate bands.

"Truthfully, it was purely business-related in the beginning," Mery said. "I knew he'd play for me as long as I played for him."

What the two soon discovered is they were better off working full-time with each other.

In 2004, they officially formed Window with the goal of making eclectic folk-rock music.

Venzor and Renner didn't join the fold until late 2005 after the band parted ways with previous members.

That was the springboard, Mery said, for the band to reach new heights in regional popularity.

Since the current line-up's inception, Mery said the group's musical synergy has been fantastic.

Although he's the principal songwriter, he trusts his bandmates to offer input when writing and composing songs.

"These guys are all extremely talented," he said.

"We were familiar with each other and were willing to try anything, musically," Dasher added.

Just as important as the musical mojo is the close-knit bond among the four Window members.

That connection was already there for Mery and Dasher. And they said Venzor, and particularly Renner, had a short trial period before they were fully assimilated into the culture of the band.

Venzor also went to Central Catholic High School in San Antonio.

"[High school] was kind of a like a fraternity, so we all knew each other," Dasher said.

The four quickly became a cohesive unit.

"The best way to explain what we've been through is it's a relationship," Mery said. " You put up with a lot of stuff, fight a lot. And sometimes you think that you want to do something else or be with someone else. But your underlying love for what you're doing keeps you going."

All four bandmates are determined to make Window successful and are willing to devote the required time and effort.

"First off, we're all friends," Dasher said. "Sometimes it's hard to be in this business with friends, but the main thing is it's built on trust. You know, it's one thing for someone like Paul to come in and play the drums well, and that's cool. But it's more than that. You need to be able to trust them to make it to the shows and practice."

That's no easy task when school is thrown into the mix.

All four guys are currently or soon-to-be enrolled at the University of Texas at San Antonio (Venzor is a former Texas A&M University student who is transferring).

Balancing studies and weekend gigs out of town is a challenge.

As an architecture student, Renner has experienced many sleepless nights while juggling classes and Window commitments.

But he's more than happy to lose a little sleep to keep performing.

"We'll play a show, then I have to go home to put together some tiny little model of a building," he said. "I wouldn't say Window has affected school. I think school has affected Window."

With a growing fan base in Texas, the four musicians said they're confident that Window is primed for mainstream success and an expanded touring schedule.

The group spent its winter break recording a new album in Austin that should be completed and available for purchase in the next few months.

Dasher said the band has caught the ear of some record labels, and the performers hope to embark on a coast-to-coast tour during the summer.

"Even before I joined Window, I knew if anyone was going to make it in music, it was going to be Nick and Jimmy," Venzor said. "I was kind of honored they asked me to be in the band. And when I came in, I knew this was a band that was going to do something."

-Greg Okuhara
Eagle Staff Writer

- The Bryan-College Station Eagle - 1/19/07

Band Profile: Window

THE SOUND: The band uses all acoustic instruments (except for the bass) to craft eclectic folk rock with some funk, jazz and Latin mixed in for fun.

THE BAND: Jimmy Dasher, 21, guitar, harmonica, mandolin, keyboards, vocals; Nick Mery, 21, lead vocals, guitar, mandolin, keyboards, harmonica, ukulele; Paul Venzor, 21, drums; Bryan Rice, 22, bass

THEIR WORDS: “We're really young, and we're trying to do something that's damned near impossible (playing music for a living). You have to sacrifice a lot and leave a lot behind, and it really affects your school and your friends and your family. A lot of the songs on the album, they're not happy little love songs. There's loss, and there's isolation.” — Nick Mery, lyricist.

THEIR RECORDS: “Eleventh Street EP” (2005); “Wrong Way Home” (2006); “Jack and Coke” (due in April)

WHERE TO SEE THEM: Occasional gigs at Sam's Burger Joint and colleges around town. Window has played throughout Texas and the Southeast and is set to go on 36-city U.S. tour this summer.

THE WEB: window-music.com; myspace.com/window; preview the new album, “Jack and Coke,” at purevolume.com/window

THE 210 TAKE: How refreshing to find a young San Antonio band that ventures beyond rock to a gentler folk sound. And it's a good sound. The guys are solid in their songwriting, tight in their playing and not afraid to experiment with alt-country riffs or island beats when the mood suits them. This is great road-trip music, or music to throw on while hanging out with friends. They're sure to ask you, “Who is this?”

Jessica Belasco - Contributor
- 210SA Magazine

THEY ARE: Window



THE SOUND: The band uses all acoustic instruments (except for the bass) to craft eclectic folk rock with some funk, jazz and Latin mixed in for fun.

THE BAND: Jimmy Dasher, 21, guitar, harmonica, mandolin, keyboards, vocals; Nick Mery, 21, lead vocals, guitar, mandolin, keyboards, harmonica, ukulele; Paul Venzor, 21, drums; Bryan Rice, 22, bass

THEIR WORDS: “We're really young, and we're trying to do something that's damned near impossible (playing music for a living). You have to sacrifice a lot and leave a lot behind, and it really affects your school and your friends and your family. A lot of the songs on the album, they're not happy little love songs. There's loss, and there's isolation.” — Nick Mery, lyricist.

THEIR RECORDS: “Eleventh Street EP” (2005); “Wrong Way Home” (2006); “Jack and Coke” (due in April)

WHERE TO SEE THEM: Occasional gigs at Sam's Burger Joint and colleges around town. Window has played throughout Texas and the Southeast and is set to go on 36-city U.S. tour this summer.

THE WEB: window-music.com; myspace.com/window; preview the new album, “Jack and Coke,” at purevolume.com/window

THE 210 TAKE: How refreshing to find a young San Antonio band that ventures beyond rock to a gentler folk sound. And it's a good sound. The guys are solid in their songwriting, tight in their playing and not afraid to experiment with alt-country riffs or island beats when the mood suits them. This is great road-trip music, or music to throw on while hanging out with friends. They're sure to ask you, “Who is this?”

- Jessica Belasco - Jessica Belasco - 210 SA Magazine

This Function Records showcases up-and-coming Texas talent with Window (pictured) headlining. The band of youthful fusionists incorporates blues, reggae, country and Latin rock into a predominantly folk mix. You can expect a show driven by acoustics and impressive three-part harmonies with the surprising sounds of the mandolin and harmonica thrown in for good measure -- not customary at a usual rock show, but a welcomed surprise. Other bands performing include Austinites Canvas, and Pocketful of Deng. The party gives the artists a chance to get exposure in one of San Antonio's major music venues. Get seats to this show at AOL Tickets. -- A. Onofre - AOL

Window folk

San Antonio isn't your typical music city (there might actually be no typical music city) and Window isn't your typical San Antonio band (there might actually be no typical San Antonio band). Still, most bands, no matter where they're from, work hard on the home front, playing gigs at every venue that'll have 'em before recording a disc and hitting the road.

Window, a quartet of youngsters with ties to Trinity University, played a few gigs in these parts, got a CD together and then toured the Southeast. Friday night at Sunset Station Saloon, the folk/rock quintet will kick out the proverbial jams with a big show. Tickets cost $5 through Ticketmaster or at the Sunset Station box office. A Pocketful of Deng opens at 10 p.m. Window goes on at 11. Canvas closes out the evening with a midnight set.

Window is Nick Mery (vocals, guitar, mandolin, percussion), Jimmy Dasher (guitar, harmonica, vocals, mandolin, percussion), Danny Tano (bass, vocals) and Ryan Leath (percussion, vocals).

The band also doesn't play your typical college rock. Window is a folk band that uses acoustic instruments to blend rock, Latin, reggae, country and whatever else fits the mood into a whole that grooves, propelled by lyrics that can be heard. But don't get the idea these guys are just sitting around strumming. Dasher is a hot-handed guitarist in the Monte Montgomery vein and band members have musical and vocal chops galore.

Give a listen to songs such as "Don't You Remember" and "Besides You and Me" from the "Eleventh Street EP" and you'll be hoping Window does plenty more hometown gigs.
- San Antonio Express News - Jim Beal

The band Window is the latest College band to hit the ground running. This band plays a diverse array of music including folk, rock, reggae, and some Latin sound. You name it, this band can play it. Come experience the unique sound of Window and see why they are the reason many college students are getting out of the house. They are the perfect “chill band.” This is the kind of music you can definitely sit back and pop open a cold beer to. Window has been together musically for the past two and a half years, and tours throughout the country for college aged crowds. The “really really good looking” band members include: Jimmy Dasher (back-up singer), who plays guitar, harmonica, mandolin, and keys. Nick Mery is the lead vocalist who also plays guitar, mandolin, and keys. Brady Renner is the bass guitarist, and Paul Venzor is the drummer. You can hear the unique sounds of Window in San Antonio at Re-Bar and Sam’s Burger Joint. Window also plays in College Station, Waco, and of course on 6th Street in the ATX. Currently the “jam band” is on tour between California, Wisconsin, and Colorado. Window’s next performance in San Antonio will be November 11th at Sam’s Burger Joint and again on Dec 23rd. So come and relax to the sounds of Window. Meet the band, and have a musical experience you’ll never forget. The latest CD released is entitled “Long Way Home” and can be purchased at upcoming shows.

-Andrea Sanchez
- Study Breaks Magainze