Nyte Lyfe Soul Cleansers

Interview date: 6-21-17

Josh Leep - Guitar/Backing Vocals /Astrology Sign - Scorpio

Steve Garcia - Bass /Astrology Sign - Aquarius

“Zombi” Andrew Wisecarver - Drums /Astrology Sign - Taurus

Stephany West - Vocals /Astrology Sign - Gemini

How long have you been together as a band?

All: Two years as a whole.

Steve: Josh, Stephany and I actually started as a different band and Andrew joined us about 6 months ago.

How did you come up with your band name?

Steve: We actually thought of the name while eating at a Denny’s!

Stephany: In High School I was in a Jazz group Called Nyte Lyfe and I came up with that part and Josh wanted Soul Cleanse. We liked both and couldn’t agree on which to choose. Then our previous drummer suggested why don’t we just take them and put them together.

Who Writes the music in the band?

Josh: I write the music and lyrics. That responsibility got put on my shoulders and I decided to roll with it.

Stephany: He is an amazing lyricist! He comes up with an idea and goes heres a melody, do what you want with it and I make it work for me.

Steve: Then Andrew and I add our own flavor to it.

Josh on Guitar — "I want to write more specifically about something that I’ve experienced, in the hopes that someone out there, even if it’s just one person, can latch onto it and feel like somebody understands them."

**- Josh Leep**

When you Write Music Where does your inspiration Come from? What is your message?

Josh: The Human Experience. Things that someone, somewhere out there can vibe with and understand. I try not to write too generically because there is already enough of that. I want to write more specifically about something that I’ve experienced. In the hopes that someone out there, even if it’s just one person, can latch onto it and feel like somebody understands them. Somebody’s been through what they’re going through. It’s very feeling based and I try to use a prettier vernacular than most people might use to express such a feeling.

How did you all start playing music?

Josh: I started playing drums around the time I was ten and I stuck with that for 5 or 6 years. When I was sixteen I picked up the guitar. It seemed like a fun thing to do, and then it ended up becoming my main instrument. Thats what I've been doing for the past 10 years. I learned entirely out of books, and internet tutorials. I never had an actual lesson, I just ended up learning by picking up things here and there, emulating influences and learning little bits of theory. As for lyrics I’ve been writing for about a decade now.

Steve: I started when I was fifteen and have been playing for about 18 years now. I am self taught, then started picking up theory from books, Youtube and watching other musicians. My style is more funkish, kind of nu-metal but, I like all types of music.

Stephany: I was two years old, when my mom realized I could match pitch. When I was about four, I had my first solo in front of my church congregation. It was a Christmas Cantata. Ive been singing my whole life, and I’ve done every kind of specialty group in high school. I babysat to pay for voice lessons and I am a trained vocalist. This is my first take at a band but, I’ve done a lot of solo projects as a soloist and entered competitions over the years.

Andrew: Officially, I started playing drums when I was eight years old.

How did everyone meet?

Josh: I think it was mostly Craigslist.

Steve: When we first started out, they were looking for a bass player for the other band and I joined them. We were together for a while and then we called it quits for a couple months. Then we got back together with a different drummer named Matt and we were looking for another singer.

Stephany: Tell them about what happened when you heard me sing…

Steve: I asked her if she had a video to watch of her singing and she sent me a video. She was singing "At Last" by Etta James and she almost made me cry. So I asked he if she would like to try out. She came to a try out and we started from there and we did a couple shows with the other band. Shortly after I had an accident where I broke my leg and was out of the band and we had to call it quits.

After recovering, I asked Josh if we wanted to get the band back together because a lot of people were watching our video we did on TV for Rising Star in our other band and they liked our sound. So we got back together for a reunion, created the new band name, and we ended up going through a few drummers until we found Andrew.

Josh: It’s nice to have a bit of stability for the time being.

What Musical Influences do you have as a Band?

Steve: We each have our own style and then we just meld it together.

Josh: Personally, when writing music, a lot of my influences come from Led Zeppelin, The White Stripes and Rival Sons.

Steve: Mostly Funk and nu-metal metal, and jazz. My bass playing comes from Jazz and Funk.

Stephany: I am a trained Jazz singer, so Jazz and my favorite vocalists are Robert Plant and Etta James. So they have a big influence on my voice.

Andrew: I run the entire gambit. I've played just about every genre there is and I grew up in a household full of music. My grandfather was a Jazz musician, and my uncle was a drummer. My first kit was his and it was bought from Louie Bellson’s store in Moline. That’s what got me into music. So of course that leaned me toward Jazz, Blues, Rock, Punk for a long time, and Ive fronted ska bands...You Name it I’ve Played it!

As a Band What Are Your Biggest Accomplishments?

Josh: I'd still say being on TV was definitely a high point!

Steve: Yeah, we definitely want to do that again!

Stephany: I had done Michiana Rising Star in South Bend a couple years ago and made the finals and sang on live TV! So when it came around I told the guys about it. I was like “ I know it's a drive, but c’mon!” We made it and we got to perform on TV.

What Are Your Goals As a Band?

Steve: We want to make this professional.

Josh: Ideally, we’d like to get signed, make records, tour and the whole nine yards if possible.

Stephany: I’m not doing it for that purpose, I play music because it makes my soul happy.

All: Definitely!

"I play music because it makes my soul happy."

- **Stephany West**

What is your driving force Behind Writing and Playing?

Josh: I like writing because it’s a therapeutic thing for me. It helps me deal with a lot of my inner demons and problems. As for performing, I like just being able to go out there and express myself and just have a good time beating away on a guitar.

Steve: It’s soothing, very therapeutic. If have a bad day, I pick up that bass and put my anger into playing and it just goes.

Stephany: Like I said, music is my life. I went through a period where I stopped singing for two years and I felt like I wasn’t me. Then a friend recommended me to an undiscovered talent competition and that was just the domino that sparked my passion back to life.

Andrew: For me it’s one of those things I’ve never sat still ever since I was a little kid. I think thats why my folks leaned me toward my uncle at that point. I’ve done so much, the touring, opening for other groups in the city and for fourteen years thanks to an ex-wife I stopped playing and it drove me up the wall. Once I brought that kit out it was a huge change for me!

What Do You Want Your Audience To Take Away From The Music?

Stephany: That we’re not just another cover band. Like Josh said the music that he writes is not generic. Anyone can write a bubblegum pink pop song.

Josh: What I really want people to take away from us is them realizing that they had an experience. That we brought them to a higher plane of existence through music and that we connected and shared that experience together. We understand their human experience, and that we’re going through it together.

We’re trying to say the things that are on everybody’s minds and in everybody’s hearts but they don't necessarily have the creativity or guts to say themselves. No one always wants to listen to someone else’s feelings but when someone else is putting that out there for them. It creates that connection between audience and performer.