gabe

Gabe

Williams

Bio

Age: 26
Hometown: New London, WI

Social

History:

Oh man, I feel like the old timer in the group. I started singing on family car trips when I could first talk, we used to sing “Well he comes from Alabama with a banjo on his knee, Oh Susanna!” And I would imagine this guy wearing a straw hat, with a banjo inside of his knee protruding outwards. I was a strange kid.

I definitely had to be creative when I was younger to make noise, for a little while all I had was a plastic recorder, but that did not give me much satisfaction. Much like Joe, when it came time to chose an instrument in 6th grade, I chose the drums… well… my parents choose the Alto Sax because my uncle Drew had one. I don’t regret picking up that horn at all. Although band class in 6th grade was a disaster, in 7th grade, I quickly found that Jazz was my second love. Throughout High School I played in jazz combos and jazz ensembles competing in different cities around the area. It was all about Coltrane, Parker, Illinois Jaquette, Miles Davis, Louise Armstrong, and that’s when I found Frankie.

The whole time I played the role of a band nerd, I was stepping right in time with the choir geeks, because I was one. I sang and competed for choir plenty of times, and had a blast doing it. Music was one thing our school did well, and we did it with pride. We boasted several wins at local WI competitions and man we should have one some of the cheesiest choreography awards too.

Beyond the curicular activities, I also had the opportunity to study under Rhonda Cundy from Lawrence Arts University. While I hesitate to boast that I was classically trained, I can tell you she was, and she did her best to train me the same.

So I learned theory, technique, and a slew of other skills. I then threw them out the window and joined what we called a punk band. 101 excuses. We were likely terrible, but had a blast. I remember cracking open my first ever Redbull on the way to a gig at Rock n’ roll High School in Green Bay WI.

So the WI chapter ends, and delivered me to AZ, where I thought I may study music theater at ASU. I was wrong. I eventually ended up studying Human Communication and English, all the while playing in a slew of bands. I never let go of my love for music. In fact, I even spent some of my time as a DJ for ASU’s 1260AM The Blaze. The Schools indie radio station. They paid for my concerts, and I got tags from musicians (whether you like em or not) like Ben Kweller, Chris Carrabba, The Anniversary, and many others.

After playing by myself in coffee shops, with bands on almost every stage in Phoenix, I found myself working at Go Daddy. I still work there and love what I do, but more than that, Go Daddy brought me together with Chris and Joe. Joe started just before I did, and Chris shortly thereafter. I spent about a month working there before ever talking to Joe really, he kinda looked like a Nu Metal kid. Haha, anyways, our friend Anne introduced us, I went and actually “jammed” with Joe and Chris, and we really did hit it off. It was a hott mess, but it was good. Since then we have played 4 hours shows in Prescott, slept in the van in a Wal-Mart parking lot, sweated our butts off on the fourth of july, and had a blast sharing the stage with local and semi-national greats.

I still write music on my own in a band called Bears Of Manitou . But truthfully, all music I play is my own, including JAB and when you see us touring the Scottland Whiskey distilleries, you can smile and say “Damn, you guys are probably cold.” Because lets admit it folks, AZ is effen gorgeous.