The Uncommons, comprised of guitarist/keyboardist Kevin Moss, vocalist Kelly Serbonich, lead guitarist/vocalist Jay Skezas, drummer Jeff Goodmark, and bassist/vocalist Ash Eastman, are bringing new life to the Ithaca music scene both with their own music as well as with a podcast that will highlight local musicians. The band started several years ago as 5 Mile Drive but has since had several changes in lineup. The current members have been together for about two years and have since changed the name to The Uncommons. Kevin Moss told me that they “wanted something that sounded ‘Ithaca-ish.’ Someone suggested ‘The Commons,’ but then [we] said, ‘what about The UNcommons?’ [We] like to play covers that are a little ‘uncommon’ in addition to our originals. So it fit.”
Moss also told me that their songwriting process is very collaborative, and that the members will bring in different parts until a song “shines.” Many of their songs call for rather open-ended jams, where lead guitarist Jay Skezas will take a “crazy solo,” allowing the song to “evolve organically.” Skezas described his style of playing a solo as creating a “song within the song.”
All of the members stressed the importance of being open to new ideas when writing songs. Moss offered advice, saying, “Don’t hold back. Be open to being spontaneous.” Skezas described his songwriting style as “[writing] things down that are inspiring… this can be subject matter for a song, a few lyrics that I think are clever, a little musical motif or ideas about arrangements or instrumentation. I keep it in a log or diary that I refer to later. Most of the time I remember what I was talking about, and every now and then it seems like nonsense.”
The band also has a captivating energy on stage. I saw their acoustic side project, called Darkwine (featuring Moss, Skezas and Serbonich) earlier this year at Ithaca Bakery, and I enjoyed the performance because they enjoyed doing it. They fed off each other’s energy, and vocalist Kelly Serbonich told me, “you have to really feel what you are playing/singing and be into [the show] to transmit that to the audience. So, basically be genuinely enjoying yourself, give it all you’ve got, and it will come through!” Mr. Moss told me that, “you really have to connect with the audience. A lot of the energy comes from them… it becomes a cyclic flow of energy.”
The drummer of the band, Jeff Goodmark, is also creating a podcast called “Ithaca Is Music” to feature local musicians in live recordings with the goal of propelling Ithacan music into the national spotlight. The pilot episode showcased The Uncommons, when they played at Lot 10 on April 19th. The podcast features live sessions in front of audiences with interviews in between regarding the band and their songs. The Uncommons played all originals for the first podcast. When the podcast gets going full swing, it will be recorded every Thursday for ten weeks with the first polished recording coming out on September 6 of this year. It will be hosted by Goodmark’s friend, Victoria DeBerry, a local singer-songwriter and radio host. It will be filmed by the Finger Lakes Music Press.
The Uncommons are a perfect act for the beginning of the podcast, with their original sound and Ithacan vibe, not just because of their name, but also because of their on-stage energy and communal songwriting process. The band shows that music can be a part of your life even if you are busy with a full-time job, and that local acts can be just as talented as national headliners.