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HighWire History

Shredder Bill Meyers, dynamic drummer Gary Raub, and bassist Tom Concannon dreamed up HighWire in 2004. They shared a vision of playing true hard rock and metal tunes—not just the pop rock that everyone else was covering, but the songs that real rockers would appreciate.

Next, the hunt for a frontperson was .. months of mostly mediocre auditions, finally a singer auditioned who impressed the band. Ok! Oh—but wait—there was one more singer scheduled to audition that day. Some chick. Well, the guys figured, what the hell, they could at least give this other contender her due as a courtesy.

Enter Kirsten. Nice enough gal and not hideous to look at, but could she sing? After one verse into Paranoid, Bill and Gary found themselves looking at each other and nodding. Bye bye other singer!

With HighWire’s lead screamer in place, the band added Spencer Setters, Bill’s 15 year-old cousin—and guitar wiz—to the lineup. At last things were really rolling (and rocking)…that is until bassist Tom moved to Florida. After teary goodbyes, the band moved forward and within a week another solid bass player came along: Scott Bohandy.

Once Spencer realized he was over committed with three bands and school, seasoned guitarist Ed Eckhardt kindly stepped in. Ed’s reign ended after he decided to “retire” from the music scene. Next came axeman extraordinaire Donnie Cooke.

Apparently, things were going too smoothly so fate intervened—drummer Gary was the next to step down to pursue another promising opportunity. The band was rocked (not in a good way), but soon renowned skins-pounder John “Nort” Knoerlein signed on. HighWire was back in biz…. until bassman Scott parted company with the band. Enter Nort’s former band mate and accomplished bass slinger Johnny “V” Volk.

Still, despite plenty of good shows and good times together, another line-up change was in store for the band… But this cloud turned out to have one helluva silver lining: a 6’7” ironworker who rips on the bass. Hello, Lurch Magnum! Drummer Jimmy Zane then added his chops to the mix, followed by the brief return of HighWire co-founder Gary. Ultimately, it was the uber-talented Allen Brunelle who ascended the drumkit throne.

Talent…chemistry…personality…sparks… HighWire is the act to see if you need a jolt of electrifying rock that makes your heart pound, body tingle, and causes short-term memory loss! Just beware: HIGH VOLTAGE…