The sounds of summer could still be heard Saturday evening at Lefty’s Tavern in Barnegat, when Funk Shway stepped in to play some of the band’s best original music, a mix of surf-rock and funk-reggae tunes. Obviously Long Beach Islanders, sporting bare feet and summer garb, the group played a unique set of feel-good music with beachy vibes. Intricate bass lines laid down by Anthony Capriotti took center stage, while a loud horn section and a few choreographed dance moves led by Sam Lasko on trumpet and Tyler Sprague on alto and tenor saxophones put a matchless spin on the upbeat performance.
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| Photo by Ryan Morrill Chelsea Wozniak steps in with the other band members to sing one of their original songs. |
“The bass is definitely a driving force in all the songs,” said drummer Mike Konyha, who claimed he didn’t start playing drums until he was about 20 years old.
“Most other bassists are just bassists. (Capriotti)’s our lead bassist,” Sprague emphasized.
The six-piece band, a group of friends in their upper 20s who mostly live together in Beach Haven, also includes lead vocalist and guitarist Aaron Budd and “lead shake shake” and backup vocalist Chelsea Wozniak, who recently started dating.
A laid-back, easy-going woman with a powerful singing voice, Wozniak, who wore a relaxed maxi dress and had her hair loosely pulled back as she chit-chatted with the audience between songs, said she doesn’t mind being the only girl in the band.
“I just kind of jumped on board with what they were doing, whether or not they wanted me to. It’s the truth,” she said, laughing. “I have a tambourine and a microphone and just sing background and hang out with the guys. It’s great. We have a lot of fun.”
“Chels keeps us organized, too. It’s good to have a woman on the team,” said Sprague.
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| Photo by Ryan Morrill Aaron Budd, lead vocalist and guitarist, croons. |
But the band didn’t form until last summer, when three of the members moved in together and started jamming out for fun at home. Not interested in solely playing cover songs, they began writing their own music and recorded a demo album with friends at Oak Leaf Productions.
“We didn’t want to be the sixth band in the sixth night in a row playing the same songs that five other bands already played,” Sprague said.
“Since we’ve started, we’ve wanted to focus more on playing our own music,” added Konyha. “There’s a lot of bands that we see, on the Island especially, that play the same Top 40 cover songs. We just didn’t want to fall into that category. We wanted to do our own thing and focus on making our own music, even though we do love doing covers.”
While sipping beer between sets, the band belted out a few of their most-loved cover songs, including “Break Down” by Tom Petty, “Bad Fish” by Sublime, The Grateful Dead’s “Franklin’s Tower,” “Fame” by David Bowie and “Love Roller Coaster” by Red Hot Chili Peppers.
“When we play 30 songs a night, we only play 10 covers,” said Capriotti. “It’s primarily original music.”
The band’s original sound is influenced by performers such as James Brown, Steely Dan, Stevie Wonder and Sublime.
“We like full bands like that,” said Capriotti. “They always have horns. It ties it together.
“We have so many songs that sound like a summer day,” he added. “When you hear it, it just feels like beach music. It’s good, sunny-day music.”
Since forming, the band has garnered a lot of local popularity for its unique sound, landing gigs at local surfing events, including the Coquina Jam after-party held earlier in August, as well as at other local bars and venues.
“It’s cool,” said Capriotti. “People are actually listening to our demo, and we see regular people that come to our shows. They sing the words; it’s great.”
Some of their most popular original songs include “Cacti,” “Miles and Miles,” “Earl” and “Down South.”
The group has become recognizable off stage as well, the members said.
“We don’t really go anywhere without anyone,” said Sprague. “We don’t really just play music together. When we’re not playing, we’re hanging out together. We all just got back from a music festival. We go to see shows together in Atlantic City, Philly, anywhere we can go to when we have time.”
Sprague, Konyha and Budd began working for Sprague Rudman Construction after Superstorm Sandy devastated the local area.
“We’re together every day, all day,” said Sprague. “We’re fun-loving beach-goers. We’re a bunch of friends who like to hang out and have fun together.”
Their friends and family are also their biggest fans, the band members said. Relatives and friends made up a large portion of Saturday’s audience.
“We’re just lucky enough that we get to actually come out and play for people who actually like our music,” said Konyha.
Although summer is winding down, the group said they’re looking forward to writing and recording new material during the off-season.
Catch them at Breeze’s Bar and Grill in New Gretna Friday, Sept. 12, around 8:30 p.m. The band will also be teaming up with The Billy Walton Band at Breeze’s on Saturday, Sept. 13, around the same time.
To hear some of their music, visit soundcloud.com/funk_shway.
–Kelley Anne Essinger
This article was published in The SandPaper.
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