Upstart band, Esthetics, defines their mix of hip-hop and alternative as ‘simple, soulful’
Posted on April 24, 2008
Twenty-four hours before their first concert, Lee Stashenko and Mike Williams decided on their band’s name: Esthetics. Both JMU students, Williams is a music industry minor and Stashenko plans to be in that minor soon. Stashenko wears flip-flops. Williams sports Air Jordans. Musically, though, they’re on the same page, and they’re bringing a fresh fusion of hip-hop and alternative to the Madison music scene.
The band was formerly known as Nocturnal, but they were contacted by a rapper who’d already claimed the name. They’ve been recording at a fellow JMU student’s apartment, putting out a song a week for the past month.
Stashenko and Lee got a chance to perform their newly-minted songs at the “Rock For Relief,” a decidedly informal charity event held last week in the Festival Ballroom.
Esthetics was first up. As event coordinators hurriedly constructed PowerPoint slides for the show, the boys readied themselves for their first performance, setting up as their DJ, Brendan “B-Rob” Robinson, donned his headphones.
Turnout to the event was low in the first hour, with attendance hovering around 20, including a small contingent of the band’s friends.
Junior Christie Whitehead said the band was normally something she would dance to, but she “was a little intimidated by the empty room.”
But Esthetics wasn’t discouraged, and by the end the band’s soulful beats had driven about a dozen girls to dance and break it down in the near-empty venue.
What’s apparent from the start — and what shone through during Esthetic’s first stage performance — is the harmony in which Stashenko and William work together. Stashenko intently strummed the guitar, bringing a jam-band feel and melodic lyrics while Williams holds his mic close, working the stage with the swagger of a seasoned hip-hop performer.
“For their first show, they did great and they have potential,” junior Allie Sinape said. “I think [their sound] is like hip-hop meets alternative. It’s something that everybody will really get into ’cause it’s a little bit of everything.”
And Esthetics will soon have a chance to realize that potential.
Jonathan Rezadoost, owner of the popular Web site JMaddy.com, plans on making Esthetics the site’s featured band soon. Rezadoost heard the song on MySpace and decided to interview them.
“I think they offer a fresh, new perspective of the type of music JMU students are making,” he said. “I personally like the beats and can’t wait to hear more from them.”
Williams defines their sound as “soulful, simple.”
While Stashenko and Williams comprise the artistic core of the band, Esthetics is a fluid, creative endeavor. They’ve featured a female vocalist on one of their songs so far and express interest in continuing with different collaborators. When asked about the difference between hip-hop and rap, Williams replied, “the labels, I don’t think they really matter anyway.”
Esthetics ended its “Rock For Relief” setlist on a high note with “Change The World,” a song which samples Shirley Brown’s “Woman to Woman.” While there will be more songs that use samples, Stashenko said that doesn’t define their sound. The guys seem just as comfortable crafting their own songs as they do layering their own material on a sampled beat.
“Change The World” is about where Esthetics is headed, the band said. They plan on staying a few weeks into the summer to continue building their body of work. After that, just where are they headed?
“To the top,” Stashenko said, grinning.
