Eight Stories High: A Muncie Band to Get Into

By Stephanie Swendsen

Sitting in a garage with three members of Eight Stories High, the guys seemed like your every-day college students. But as Zach Gore, AJ Wilson, and Jack Ramsey opened up, their talent, passion and love of music surfaced, and their drive for success became evident.

If you haven’t heard Eight Stories High, you’re missing out. The band is comprised of five Ball State students, with their formation rooting on Studebaker West’s eighth floor. As freshmen in 2006, Ramsey, Gore, Andrew Pelhem and Logan McNeely frequently jammed with one another. They formed a floor band, and Ramsey recruited classmate Wilson as their keyboardist. The band landed their first gig playing at Mo’s Tavern, and it was that night that they realized they were doing exactly what they were meant to do.

Pelhem and McNeely eventually stopped playing with the band, and Mike Brown stepped in as the new drummer with Tom Lyday on bass. Eight Stories High improved with the new additions, and they began playing as Bygones Bar and Grill’s house band every Thursday night. As their popularity grew, they got gigs playing at Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s annual Halloween party, numerous Waterbowl festivals, and their most recent accomplishment, being added to Doc’s Music Hall and Doc’s on Dill Street’s rotations.

Eight Stories High is a melting pot of musical genres. When you hear them, you can catch remnants of classic rock, funk, soft rock, jazz, and reggae, with the occasional jam session. As they struggle to pinpoint their genre, Jack lays it out and describes their music simply. “It’s like, bring your party… its party music.” No matter what your musical tastes are, there is something from Eight Stories High you can relate to and love.

The band’s individual members are as diverse as the their genre. Gore, the lead guitarist has 12 years of experience on guitar, playing since third grade. He took guitar lessons during his childhood. Upon entering middle school, he picked up the saxophone as well. He continued playing sax for his high school marching band, and played guitar for the jazz band. Currently, he is a classical guitar performance major, and has built two classical guitars. Gore is a self-described “Led Head”, showcasing his love of classic rock.

Wilson got his musical roots playing percussion. He was pushed, against his will, to begin playing drums in the fifth grade by his mother. But his love for music grew, and he continued to play percussion all through high school in both the marching and jazz band. He then developed an interest for the keyboard, and taught himself how to play. With his natural talent and musical background, he picked up on the keys quickly. Wilson dates his first musical influence back to the music he grew up with in church. Today, Dave Matthews Band is his favorite band, and his greatest inspiration.

Ramsey, the vocalist and guitarist, started off playing trumpet for his middle school’s band. He decided not to play in high school, and picked up the guitar instead. He and a high school friend played a number of gigs their senior year around the Indianapolis area. Ramsey pulls inspiration from a number of genres including: country, rap, rock, and classic rock. However, his greatest influence comes from Incubus. Starting off at Bygones with two, three-hour sets a night, the band played many covers. They covered bands such as The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, The Beatles, Sublime, Steve Miller Band, Dave Matthews Band, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and many more. Currently, however, they are in the process of transitioning to playing strictly originals. With Ramsey as the main songwriter, and Gore and Lyday also contributing, they have eight official originals, and many more in the works.

Eight Stories High is taking advantage of Ball States recording facilities, and have been in the recording studio every Monday for the past month. They plan to have their album finished by Dec. 1 for their album release party, where they will be giving away three to four hundred CDs. They have been putting a lot of time and effort into recording, and will have an eight-tracked album they’ll be sure to be proud of.

In regards to their future, the skies the limit for Eight Stories High. As they finish out their last year and half at Ball State, the band looks forward to finishing their album, gigging as much as possible, increasing their fan-base and building connections. This talented band has endless potential, and the passion necessary to reach it. They plan on staying together after graduation, and will go with whatever comes their way.

Wilson said it best when he emphasized the importance for the support of the local music scene to increase. “If there was anything I could say to the people here, those that love music, it is to go out and expand your horizon. Go see some local bands that are out there playing. Even if it’s not us, there are a lot of good bands to experience. There is so much time and effort put into playing and getting out there, and a lot of time people don’t come. We want to entertain people and want people to see how good we are as musicians and experience the music we’re creating.”

You won’t be disappointed if you take the time to come out and see Eight Stories High perform. Each member brings something unique, and they make it work. Different musical ideas are always popping up for these talented musicians, creating an exciting, musical spontaneity.

Band Members:
AJ Wilson- keys, vocals
Jack Ramsey- guitar, vocals
Zach Gore- lead guitar
Michael Brown- drums
Tom Lyday- bass, vocals

Upcoming Shows: Thursday, October 30 9:00 PM Doc’s Music Hall Friday, October 31 9:00 PM The Waterbowl Thursday, November 6 10:30 PM Doc’s on Dill Street

Website: www.myspace.com/eightstorieshigh