Jenny's musical background starts with her family. Her father is an accomplished guitarist, whose cousin is the late Felix Pappalardi, bassist for the band Mountain, and producer for the band Cream. Jenny's father toured with his own band in the 60s and 70s, and shared the stage with The Allman Brothers, Leslie West, and John Lee Hooker, just to name a few. Her sister sang at Carnegie Hall when she was only 17 years old.
Jenny started on guitar when she was 8 years old, and moved to drums later on in life, but singing remained her number one passion. She attended a performing arts high school in Chicago, where she majored in Fine Arts/Music.
Jenny sings several different genres of music, but classic rock remains her favorite. She is heavily influenced by Heart, Fleetwood Mac, Pat Benatar, Toto, and Pink Floyd. She performs as a vocalist in many other projects, does session work, and writes her own songs. She loves to make people smile, and her goal is to bring joy to all those she encounters on stage, and off. You might even catch her sitting behind the drums or picking up a guitar :)
Equipment: Shure
jane
The most important thing about Jane is that she is a goofball who loves to interact with the crowd! She has been a musician nearly all her life. Starting at age 6, she studied classical piano and joined her first working band at age 16. Over the years in the Chi-town music scene, Jane has had the privilege of entertaining literally thousands of people with the instrument God gave her. Her goal is to bring a smile to all those she encounters at shows and in life!
"Music is the expression of the soul"
Fave cartoon character: SpongeBob Squarepants
Fave bands: Led Zeppelin, Queensryche, Evanescence, and Sonic 7
Fave show: Stephen Colbert
Fave food: popcorn (tied with ice cream)
Fave comedian: Chris Farley (God rest his soul)
Come out and have fun with Jane and the rest of us!
Equipment: Shure
brian
Brian's musical influence stems directly from his uncle, Walter Parazaider, who is the founder and saxophonist/flutist for the band Chicago. Brian's late grandfather, Walter Parazaider Sr., started him on trumpet when he was just 5 years old. He started piano lessons when he was 10, and was heavily influenced by Chicago, and many other bands such as Journey, Boston, Foreigner, Kansas, and Styx to name a few. Brian formed his first band, The Aspirations (1991-1995) right out of high school. Following that project, he founded Mystic Raven (1998 - 2000) and BackStage Pass (2002 - 2010). Brian and Jenny founded Sonic 7, and worked together to find five other elite musicians that make the group you see and hear today.
Equipment: Korg
rick
Rick is a veteran of the Chicago music scene, playing both originals and covers. His interest in music began at an early age, while listening to rock, pop, Motown, and folk music on the radio. He is influenced by Rush, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Yes, and many other 70s classic rock bands.
Equipment: Gibson, Mesa Boogie, Marshall
info on new guitarist coming soon!
jeff
Jeff has been playing guitar since elementary school, and bass since high school. He is the grandson of Grammy nominated jazz musician, Roy Kral, and is heavily influenced by Boz Burell and John Paul Jones. He has shared the stage with many national acts such as Quiet Riot, Pat Travers, Smashing Pumpkins, Bachman Turner Overdrive, Brian Howe (Bad Company), Foghat, Humble Pie, The Guess Who, Molly Hatchet, Enuff Znuff, and The Tubes, just to name a few. Jeff also played with a very successful Bad Company tribute band for several years. He enjoys playing his 5 string bass through Gallien-Krueger amps.
mike
Mike started playing drums at the age of 8, following in the footsteps of his father, who was a drummer in the Chicago music scene throughout the 1970s and 80s. The influence of drummers that included his father, John Bonham, Neil Peart, Carl Palmer, Mike Arturi, and Todd Sucherman, helped define his playing style. He played his first show at the age of 12, when he opened up for Lovin' Spoonful drummer, Mike Arturi and The Jade 50s. In high school, he met and studied with Todd Sucherman, current drummer for Styx, and they have remained friends to this day. Mike has played with numerous local rock bands that included Dawn Patrol and Thunder Road, while playing as a studio musician and recording his first album with The Darren Edwards Project in the mid 1990s. He currently plays for Arra and Sonic 7.
