If Stephen Kellogg could share a stage with any other musician, it would be Sheryl Crow. After all, Kellogg, jokes, she’s his girlfriend even though “she doesn’t know it.”
The jocular 29-year-old Kellogg, along with his band, The Sixers, will croon for GW students (sans Crow) this Sunday at Fall Fest. While Kellogg has established his musical career as a solo performer, being backed by a full band helps raise the energy at every show he said in a recent interview with The Hatchet.
“We try to bring the rock and make it fun as hell,” Kellogg said. Bringing the rock may be easy enough, but to make it a fun show, Kellogg has been known to grace audiences with his own style of shenanigans to keep people wanting for more.
Kellogg’s band consists of himself on guitar and lead vocals, Keith “Kit” Karlson on bass and keys, Chris “Birdman” Soucy on guitar and Brian “B-Fact” Factor on drums. Growing up on the glamour of 80s rock, Kellogg attributes his desire to pursue music from 1980s-era metal shows.
“I’m all about Bon Jovi, Def Leppard and White Snake,” Kellogg said. “Those are the guys who made me want to play music, even though the 70s rock is probably a bit more a part of what we sound like. I’m (also) a big fan of The Rolling Stones and The Eagles.”
A graduate of the University of Massachusetts, Kellogg has played countles shows in venues ranging from coffeehouse dives to bars and clubs. The musician said he is excited to be playing at a university after a summer on the road.
“We’ve really been playing a mix (of audiences). Since it’s August and schools aren’t really back yet, it’s been a lot of clubs, but I guess the audience has been pretty college based,” he said.
Kellogg and his band have a sound comparable to the Counting Crows, although tracks such as “Flower in the Rain” and “Such a Way” seem to have a country feel behind them. At the same time, tracks like “Uninspired Gambling” and “Vegas” are heavily fused with straight-up rock. On “Vegas,” Kellogg sings over a heavy, churning guitar riff, “There was comfort in the liquor, comfort in the bed / comfort in the things she said / now there ain’t no way to ease this comfort in my head.”
Kellogg said, however, people want to take in his music is all right by him – after all, he’s not really in it for the fame. He said on his Web site, “I don’t need to be famous, but I do need to make music that feels legendary.”
Expect a legendary performance from Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers – shenanigans and all – this Sunday at Fall Fest as they open for Robert Randolph and the Family Band.
To listen to full-length tracks from Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers, visit their Web site at www.stephenkellogg.com.
