BugSnakeWilly - Snakes Bio |
It may have started singing Beach Boy harmonies with my brother who later turned professional singer. Or maybe it started in 7th grade with innumerable concerts, competitions, and field shows, blowing brass, and learning what it means to work together musically as a unit. In any case, I knew early on that music would always be a part of my life. Nearing high school graduation and wanting to express my inner artist, I found myself playing drums with three other guys of unique perspective. We were called The Zits, played somewhere almost every weekend, cut a 45, sold maybe a thousand, and got some local air time on WHFS. Our mostly original new wave sound was gaining popularity, but as happens with many bands, the lead singer ran off and joined Ringling Brothers as a clown, literally. Torn but not broken, the guitarist and I held together and decided to start a new venture. I quickly transformed into a bass player, and an awesome percussionist joined the duo. Influenced heavily by the pop of Elvis Costello, we formed a tight, highly vocal trio known as The Mirrors, and soon started playing publicly. During this time I bought my first acoustic guitar and practiced regularly. I was fascinated by the portability and fullness of sounds that could be achieved by combining such a primitive tool with a human voice. When college graduation pulled apart the three-sided mirror, I still had me and my guitar. We traveled everywhere together, amusing ourselves, our friends, bouncing for years from one hopeful band to another. Until it happened, like the randomness of an atmospheric atom, I collided with Doug "Bugs" Sedgwick, a talented and proven solo musician. Finally, after 15 years of searching, I had found a guitarist/vocalist with the gumption and dedication to play publicly.