A Night Light Serenade With Jay and Derek – A WPLS Nocturnal Session
In preparation for tonight’s Nocturnal Session – “A Night Light Serenade”, we (Maia and Ryan) sat down with Jay Knudsen and Derek Stadther from A Random Act of Harmony and picked their brains for a little while. The exclusive concert will take place in the WPLS station at Furman University, beginning at 8pm tonight. They will be showcasing some brand new original tunes as well as some revamped covers. Seats in the station have been filled already, so if you would like to hear the concert, please tune in to 95.9FM (if you’re in Greenville, SC) to hear the show.
Why the band name?
Jay – Literally, I was sitting in class at the beginning of the year, and we discussed getting a band together and figured we needed a name for it. Right before DG Band Bash, we realized we needed a band name for them to call out when we came on stage. It was really quite spontaneous. We then added three more people and kept the name.
Who is in A Random Act of Harmony?
Jay Knudsen-vocals/guitar, Derek Stadther-guitar, Andy Oneill-drums, Michael Souer-Bass, Hillary Taylor-vocals We have been known to have 6 guitars on stage at any given time.
What is the band dynamic like when practicing and writing songs?
Derek – The song writing duties have been mostly Derek and I, taking stuff from before and throwing it together to make cohesive songs. The other band members tend to learn that written material, and of course make it better. We have all have been friends for a good amount of time, so working together is usually pretty easy. Everyone is very talented and can play together with no problem at all.
What are your main musical influences?
Derek – Eddie Van Halen, Dave Mathews, John Mayer (but not his “sissy” stuff )
Jay – Matt Nathanson, acoustic singer-songwriters with a laid-back sort of style
The band – Matchbox 20, mid 90s bands, but usually more recent alternative music
What’s on your iPod right now?
Jay – Michael Buble, John Mayer, Dave Mathews
Derek – Muse, Mute Math, 30 Seconds to Mars
Do you get any influences from weird or non-conventional music?
Jay – Newton Faulkner has an ecclectic style of playing. He uses a finger-tapping method on the fretboard to make different sounds. The songs are usually in separate tunings, which help to create a folky and acoustic-pop blend. I try to get Faulkner’s character in the music I write, kind of with an off-brand word-play and some weirder chord structures.
Do you guys plan on keeping this band going through college?
Derek – Yes, we definitely do. Jay is going abroad in the fall and then Hillary is going to Africa in the spring, so things will be a bit different next year, but its definitely do-able. The majority of our music that is played has already been learned by Derek, Jay, and Andy so it really doesn’t take very long to teach the music to the remaining members.
What are some things you like and don’t like about playing live?
Derek – doesn’t like small crowds, Jay is the same. Used to playing in the coffee house/bar where the music is in the background, instead of the main focus. Playing live can be therapeutic as well as playing alone just to get our minds off of things.
How long have you been playing?
Derek – Since 6th grade. I started on drums, actually, then moved on to guitar after I realized that’s really where my passion was. I learned how to read sheet music at an early age, so I prefer that over tabs.
Jay – I picked up my first guitar in 3rd grade and took lessons for classical guitar, but I didn’t like that too much and ended up putting the guitar down for a few years. So I picked back up in 8th grade, and have been self-taught since. The best way to learn new music is listening to music and deciding if I likes it or not. Then I find the tabs and go from there.
