The SoulShake
Northern Californian band The SoulShake brings a laid back, danceable sound to the rock/reggae genre. With a mix of lyrics inspirited by heartfelt songwriters like Jason Mraz and the instrumental musical stylings of Sublime, their music reflects a connection to good times and the adventure of life on the Northern California coast. The trio considers themselves more than a band, they are best friends connecting with audiences through their outdoor surfer lifestyle, wacky humor, and songs that speak to love, life and creating a better world.
The project began in a small backyard on the east side of Petaluma, California. Guitar player Domenic Bianco and bass player Charlie Sisemore skipped school and met at a mutual friend’s house who, fortunately, supported Highschool truancy. They struck up conversation over metal themed t-shirts, lit a joint and spent the rest of the day playing guitar and bonding over their love for heavy metal music. Their friendship wasn’t always a wholesome affair, but following a few years of significant marijuana consumption, a misguided attempt steal a gumball machine while pretending to be a quarter machine repairman, house arrest for an undisclosed misdemeanor, daily gym workouts, and several more missed school days, they coasted out of their rebellious teenage years as best friends.
By 2016 they started their first serious music project, The SoulShake. The duo worked together as bartenders, rented a house near downtown, and were playing music together every day while staying out of trouble. The personal growth and life lessons they learned led them to be advocates of positivity through music, valuing the humor, love and community they found while discovering themselves throughout their rebellious formative years. Those values inspired their songwriting and production on their first album “A Little Peace in the Puzzle” in 2018.
Faced with sensible career choices, members from the original lineup came and went during production of the first album. The drummer from the producer’s band came in to finish recording their single “Hungover” and a craigslist ad was placed to replace the lost band members. After weeks without a response the project nearly ended, but they finally received a response to the ad. A grey Prius with a sparkling black drumset in the back seat pulled up to their house on Wilson St. A tall, well dressed real estate agent stepped out carrying a banana in one hand and drum sticks in the other. Despite some initial doubt, John Hendrick’s and his sparkling black drumset blew Charlie and Domenic away, locking in his place as the third member of the band. Charlie felt it was too good to be true, “he’s probably got kids in his basement,” but they came to find that John’s excellent musicianship, positive attitude and business like charm balanced out their fun loving antics with a focus that would ultimately guide them to take their first tour in 2019. Most importantly John has become a “brother” and a missing piece in the SoulShake puzzle.
The band is now working with Jake Stillman at Wilson Street Records to produce their second album, “Vibes” slated for release in Spring 2020 and planning their next tour.
- Website: https://www.soulshakevibe.com/