I currently play with NETWORK, Dave Schmidt & The Snouts, Cirrus Falcon, the reziduals, Terry McEldowney & Whitey O'Day, The Houndz, The Rumblecats & The Southside Hitmen.
I LOVE playing, listening to & talking about Music (of course), drinking Old Style, cheering for the White Sox, rooting against the Cubs, watching hockey (especially The Blackhawks), riding around on my Harley, partying with friends and bartending at Murphy's Law in Oak Lawn.
Music
XTC, R.E.M., The Brandos, Midnight Oil, King Crimson, The Jam, Gentle Giant, YES, Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Caravan, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, Weather Report, P.F.M., Emerson, Lake & Palmer, The Blasters, Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention, The Brian Setzer Orchestra, Roxy Music, 801, Little Feat, Bob Mould, Sugar, The Monkees, Steppenwolf, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, Renaissance, The Roches, Focus, Guadalcanal Diary, The Hooters, Los Lobos, The Smiths, The Posies, The Silos, Soul Asylum, Rank and File, Rockpile, Brave Combo, Red Elvises, The Daves, The Pirhana Brothers, Heavy Manners, Street Corner Symphony, Dick Holliday and The Bamboo Gang, Insight, Material Issue, The Burning Sensations, The Corrs, Nightwish, Tarja Turunen, Webb Wilder, the subdudes, The Radiators, Joe Ely, BeBop Deluxe, The Bodeans, Brother, Captain Beyond, The Iguanas, Bloodrock, Glass Harp, NRBQ, Alejandro Escovedo, AC/DC, Nick Heyward, Haircut 100, Lucifer's Friend, Madura, The Zombies, Beck, Gin Blossoms, Poi Dog Pondering, Social Distortion, Alice Cooper (the original band), Creedence Clearwater Revival, John Fogerty, Uriah Heep, Savoy Brown, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Blue Oyster Cult, Ten Years After, Humble Pie, The WHO, Robin Trower, The Police, Talking Heads, The Cars, Todd Rundgren, Utopia, Jeff Beck, Bruce Springsteen, John Cougar Mellencamp, Roy Orbison, Johnny Winter, The Allman Brothers Band, The Doors, The Flock, Chicago, "Blood, Sweat and Tears," Joe Ely, Johnny Cash, Delbert McClinton, Robbie Fulks, Del Amitri, Led Zeppelin, Graham Parker, Steely Dan, The Kinks, Sir Douglas Quintet, The Maverick's, Warren Zevon, Steve Earle, The Ventures, Liquid Soul, Prince, Daft Punk and more to come...
Movies
Anything by Stanley Kubrick or with flesh-eating zombies wandering around getting their heads blown off.
Television
THE SIMPSONS!!!
Son of Svengoolie, Scrubs, 30 Rock, Two and a Half Men, Coupling, Soundstage, Austin City Limits. Also: Reruns of The X-Files, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Monty Python and The Avengers, (Emma Peel episodes only!). Okay, Cheaters & COPS too.
Books
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller, my approach to life is based on it. Kurt Vonnegut was a profound influence, along with Hunter S.Thompson, who's lifestyle I emulate to this day. Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess is a good read too.
Heroes
Peter Gabriel, XTC's Andy Partridge, Peter Garrett from Midnight Oil, and David Kincaid from "The Brandos" as far as musicians go.
In "Real" life, Homer Simpson! He's a drunken idiot, but everything always works out for him.
Kent's Details
Status:
Single
Here for:
Networking, Friends
Orientation:
Straight
Hometown:
Chicago
Body type:
5' 9"
Ethnicity:
White / Caucasian
Zodiac Sign:
Libra
Smoke / Drink:
No / Yes
Occupation:
Musician, Soundman & Bartender
Kent's Companies
Sears Chicago & Hoffman Estates, Illinois US
Information Technology
1976 - 2004
Murphy's Law Oak Lawn, Illinois US
2008 - Present
Kent is playing at Fitzgerald's with "The Hillbillys From Space" this Wednesday at 10PM for "Country Christmas in Berwyn." Posted 4 hours ago view more
About me: I was born and raised in Chicago's Englewood area and am a lifetime "south-sider," White Sox fan, and Old Style drinker. I started my musical career early in life, playing trombone for the band and singing in the church choir at Visitation grammar school. I switched to the bass guitar during the transition from grade school to high school.
After a few years of jamming to typical three chord blues standards in various garages and basements, I eventually gravitated towards hard rock, and then drifted into the realm of "progressive" rock and fusion jazz. The main reason for this musical evolution was the discovery of such out-in-front "lead" caliber bassists as Chris Squire from YES, Leo Lyons from Ten Years After, Dennis Dunaway from Alice Cooper, Martin Turner from Wishbone Ash, Terry "Geezer" Butler from Black Sabbath, Michael Rutherford from Genesis, Bruce Foxton from The Jam, Stanley Clarke from Return To Forever, Jaco Pastorius from Weather Report, and (ultimately) John Wetton's work with the 1972-74 version of King Crimson. These influences can still be heard in my playing style today. I actually met Chris Squire from Yes back in January of 2006 at Martyr's when his original band, "The SYN" performed there. Not only did I get my picture taken with him and a couple of autographs, I got to tell him the story of how I locked myself in my bedroom in the summer of 1974 and learned all of his bass parts from "The Yes Album" and "Fragile" note for note. This disciplined approach has really paid off for me in the long run as far as learning parts that are sometimes somewhat "beyond" my capabilities.
The first "real" band that I played in was "Northwind," an 8-piece horn band that primarily did covers of "Chicago," "Blood, Sweat and Tears," and various other brass rock bands. "Northwind" was together for roughly two years.
After a hiatus of several years, a couple of my ex "Northwind" bandmates began a new musical project called "NETWORK." When they decided to look for a new bass player, I successfully auditioned and became a permanent member back in 1981. Now, over 27 years later and after numerous personnel changes, the band is still together and going strong.
Please check out: www.myspace.com/networkpartyband
From 1993 through roughly 1997, I also played with "Sister Swing," a side project consisting of several NETWORK members and three female vocalists performing 30's & 40's era swing music, 50's & 60's oldies and contemporary hits.
In 1994, I further expanded my musical horizons by accepting an offer from Irish singer Terry McEldowney to accompany him and fellow troubadour Whitey O'Day on several dates around the St. Patrick's Day holiday. This unorthodox collaboration, (at the time), still exists to this day. I also played with "The Windy City Irish," who's members Tom Black and Tom Walsh, along with McEldowney, composed the infamous "Southside Irish" anthem. The Irish connection continued when I also became a charter member of the "Katie Sullivan Band" after accompanying Katie in her solo artist days at the old Reilly's Daughter pub in Oak Lawn.
In 1998 I did about a year long stint filling in on bass for "JAB" (Just Another Band), a Northside biker jam band that eventually evolved into another short-lived side project known as "the reziduals."
In 1999 I began sitting-in with fellow longtime Chicago club circuit regulars "Cirrus Falcon," and have since become a regular member of the band's rotating line-up of supplemental musicians.
In 2000 I became a permanent "temporary" member of Back-in-Stride for about a year, a Chicago-style blues band that also hosted the weekly Thursday night open-stage at the now defunct "Limerick Public House" on Old Western Avenue in Blue Island, (It's "The Hideaway" now).
The high point of my musical career (so far) occurred in August of 2001 when I got the opportunity to sit-in on bass with one of my favorite bands, (Grammy Award winners Brave Combo), at my favorite club, (Fitzgerald's). Check out: www.brave.com
I currently play with "The Snouts," a hard rocking high energy blues guitar-oriented power-trio which includes Vocalist and Guitarist extraordinare Dave Schmidt and drummer Art Gigler from "The Hillbillys From Space." We recorded a CD with this line-up that was officially released in March 2008.
Check out: www.myspace.com/daveschmidtandthesnouts
"the reziduals" is the name we used as the House-Band that hosted the Open-Stage/Jam Night every Thursday at "The Hideaway" in Blue Island from 2005 thru 2008. It consisted of Jack "Blackjack" Casey on guitar & vocals, Art Gigler on drums and me on bass & vocals. We still get together once in awhile and host a "SPECIAL EDITION" Jam Night at The Hideaway or hit other Open-Stages to perform our "signature" tunes.
We added Jim "Izzie" Eisinas to "the reziduals" line-up, to transmorgify into the 2008 incarnation of "The Hillbillys from Space." The band is still active, but I'm no longer involved.
In early 2009 I teamed up with fellow Oak Lawn High School alumni member "Rockin'" Eddie Neese and his drummer Chuck "Sticks" Acosta as a temporary bass player for "Rockin'Eddie & Wild Deuce," another Power Trio.
Currently I'm the back-up bass player for "The Houndz," "The Rumblecats" & "The Southside Hitmen."
Who I'd like to meet: Peter Gabriel, Andy Partridge (XTC), John Wetton (King Crimson & Asia), Bill Bruford (King Crimson & YES), Peter Garrett (Midnight Oil), David Kincaid (The Brandos) and the Corrs sisters, (especially Sharon!).
I have met Chris Squire (YES), Mike Mills (REM), Alan White (YES), Liz Phair, Pye Hastings (Caravan), Alejandro Escovedo, Joe Ely, Dave AND Phil Alvin (The Blasters), and all of "The Radiators" and "the subdudes."
Also; Local area musicians that would like to get together at my Open-Stages, combine talents and have some fun. If any "magic" happens we can take it from there.
And of course anybody that would enjoy coming out to see any of the bands I play with.
Hey Kent, Yeah, I remember those days.....Nice to hear from you. I'll have to get some of the guys together and come out and hear you some time soon...Really liked your My-space,some very funny stuff on there , along with some kick arse music.....Really nice to hear from the old skool guys every once in a while......I read in your bio you did some irish stuff, check out .......The Elders...a celtic rock group with balls......once again, your musicianship is outstanding!.........................Cheers......Bill
kent, i have been playing music in the chicagoland area and road band's since i was 10,and i have never seen it harder and cheaper for a professional musician to try to make a living ever. hope you have a wonderful christmas, ern=)
Online Now!
