Category: Events

“We’re not just a band, we’re a state of mind,” says Carey Peak, 55, guitarist and lead singer for the band Friday At Five.

And, the good news is, you don’t have to wait until Friday at 5:00 p.m. to hear the band.

They play at all hours around town at THRōW Social and Johnnie Brown’s in Delray Beach, Packy’s Sports Pub in Lighthouse Point, Lefty’s Tavern & Grille in Coral Springs and will appear at Sharkey’s Bar and Grille in Coral Springs on Wednesday, Nov. 6.

“We’re a high energy party rock cover band,” says Peak. “There’s no song we don’t do.”

They take their name from country music singer Eric Church’s  lyrics in his 2011 song, “Drink In My Hand” (“Early Monday morning, ’til Friday at five; Man I work, work, work but I don’t climb, climb, climb.”)

In addition to Peak, the band, founded in 2017, includes drummer Jordan Welch, Gonzalo Gallarza on bass and their newest member, lead vocalist, Carrie Wicks Johnson, 28, who joined the band in March.  All the members sing lead vocals as well.

Peak was born into a musical family – his dad played guitar with Buddy Holly and as a child, Peak would fool around with his dad’s guitar and figured, “I could do that,” and became a child prodigy by the age of 12.

In his twenties, he formed the alternative rock band, Dore Soul and later, his second band, The C60s, an indy rock band was signed to Dreamworks Records. They charted number six on the college music charts, and received critical acclaim.

In 2006 Peak started The Free Radicals, a corporate cover band.

His most recent venture, Friday At Five, plays a selection of eclectic music from the 70s to today, including rock, pop, country, alternative rock, metal and reggae.

“One of the things our fans like is that we cover everyone from Lady Gaga to ACDC to Zack Brown to Bob Marley,” Peak says.

Peak says the band likes to put a rock edge on every song, putting big, hard rock guitars into a Whitney Houston song.  Two of his favorite songs to perform are “Sweet Child O’ Mine” by Guns N’ Roses and AC/DCs  “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘n’ Roll).”

“Our fans love that we cover this song,” says Peak, adding, “and with Carrie singing, it’s even better.  She’s both beautiful and an amazing singer.”

Among his musical Influences he counts Eddie Van Halen (“Unchained” is his favorite song), Buddy Holly (“That’ll Be the Day”) and, as evidence of his own eclectic tastes, Metallica and Barbra Streisand.

“Good music is good music,” he says.

Lead singer, Johnson, (she got married in October to Mike Johnson, a Coast Guard reservist) came to Florida from Long Island during the COVID-19 pandemic.

She was part of a top cover band there called, “Jessie’s Girl,” and also wrote original music and sang with the soul/rock band, “Carrie and the Cats.”  In 2018 the band won the Long Island Blues Challenge  and went to finals in Nashville, TN.

She met Peak when she made a guest appearance on stage at Mulligan‘s Beach House Bar & Grill in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea and a friend of was in the audience.

He recommended her for the lead singer in Friday At Five and Peak hired her instantly.

Peak recalls her rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” as making the hair on his arms stand up.

“Carrie is the real deal,” he says.

Johnson found her calling in life at an early age and knew that she wanted to sing.

“Ever since I started talking, I was singing,” she says, noting that she considers her ability to be versatile and be comfortable in multiple genres as her best musical quality.

Her parents never pushed her to pursue other careers, although she did earn a cosmetology degree as a back-up plan.

Her musical Influences include Aretha Franklin, Amy Winehouse, John Mayer, The Allman Brothers, Led Zeppelin, James Brown, Etta James and The Beatles.

Her love for the profession and for performing keeps her motivated.

“Singing makes me happy,” she says.  “It’s the only job I’ve ever loved.”

“The best thing you can do for yourself is to only compete with yourself,” Johnson said in a 2018 interview with the blog, LongIslandSound. “Don’t try to be better than somebody else, strive to be better than you were yesterday.”

On stage she sports fun outfits and with a nod to her cosmetology background – big, platinum blonde hair.
“There’s no better feeling than being on stage,” says Johnson.

In addition to bars, Friday At Five plays at city events, the Parkland Amphitheater, Wellington’s Food Truck & Music Series and Pompano Beach’s Music Under the Stars.  Peak says it’s a “feather in their cap” to be requested for many private parties, weddings and corporate events.

Future goals include cultivating their fan base and playing in new events and venues.

“We’re happy doing what we do,” says Peak.  “We’re grateful and blessed to play in such a vibrant music scene and get support from Richard Kushner at Sharkey’s Bar & Grill as well as other bar owners.”

“South Florida is a great area for music,” he says.  “We all support each other and we’re happy to be part of this larger community of bands and do our part to contribute to this vibrant music scene.”

Friday At Five will perform live at Sharkey’s Bar & Grill, 10365 Royal Palm Blvd., Coral Springs on Wed., Nov. 6. For more information visit sharkeysfl.com or call (954) 341-9990.  Visit sharkeysfl.com and fridayatfiveband.com.

 

 

 

 

It’s been full speed ahead for the Shane Duncan Band (S.D.B.) for the past 15 years, and contrary to its 2014 hit, “Life’s Snooze Bar,” the band hasn’t hit the snooze bar once. The five members include singer and guitarist Shane Duncan, 46, lead singer Tiffany Rosario, 40, lead guitarist Dave Scully, 51, drummer Bryce Kretz, 27, and bass guitarist Hernan Motley Rodriguez, 44.

Formerly known as South Florida’s “premiere party band,” the homegrown South Florida band is known for its wide variety of musical genres, including country, rock, top 40, pop, disco, dance, and Latin.

Duncan says what sets S.D.B. apart from other bands is its ability to capture the audience from the get-go. In addition, the band performs all songs live with no backing tracks or studio enhancements.

“We love seeing everyone on the dance floor having a good time,” says Duncan by phone from Knoxville, TN, where he and Rosario (a couple) went for a mini-vacation. “Come Friday night, people want to cut loose, have a drink, have a good time, and dance, no matter what’s going on in their life.”

S.D.B.’s repertoire ranges from Toby Keith’s “Get Your Drink On,” to Mily Cyrus’s “Party in the USA,” to Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer.” The group has written and performed songs for a 2024 film, “The Rocket Club: Across the Cosmos,” and TV, including the History Channel’s “It’s How You Get There” theme song, the Cooking Channel, Velocity Channel, and Fox Business Channel.

They performed at the Super Bowl XLVI Wounded Warrior event with former Bears quarterback Jim McMahon in 2015 and at a pre-party for the American Country Music Awards in Las Vegas in 2012.

“We’re proud of our accomplishments,” says Duncan. “The producers for ‘The Rocket Club’ flew us out to Hawaii for a week, and as unsigned musicians, our music is available on all digital jukeboxes.”

Duncan began playing drums in clubs at the age of 11. His father and some neighbors had a band, and he began jamming with them and going to their rehearsals.

Early influences included 1980s pop, rock, and country music as well as country artists like Ronnie Milsap and Merle Haggard. Later, he listened to Journey, Bryan Adams, Whitney Houston, and Def Leopard.

A highlight for Duncan was meeting his musical hero, Brent Mason, a 14-time Grammy Award winner, when Mason played guitar on one of Duncan’s original LPs, titled “Shane Duncan,” in Nashville more than a decade ago.

“I think we’re doing pretty well,” says Duncan, noting that the band has accomplished all the goals they set out to achieve—good musicianship, good singers, good song list, good sound system, good lighting system, and putting together a great package. They’ve toured and been on the road, and now they’re looking forward to being the best local band and sleeping in their own beds.

S.D.B. plays private events, city events, and weddings. It also has headlined aboard cruise ships on the Royal Caribbean and Norwegian cruise lines, was voted “Best Band on a Barge” in the Seminole Hard Rock Winter Fest Boat Parade in 2018, and opened for Charlie Daniels, Joe Diffie, Mark Wills, Clay Walker, Josh Turner, and Blake Shelton.

Lead singer Rosario has been singing since the age of 2 and always knew she wanted to be a professional singer. Growing up with a big Italian family, she said they would sit around the piano in her grandmother’s music room and sing 1950s tunes.

Rosario learned Frank Sinatra, Connie Francis, Ella Fitzgerald, Natalie and Nat King Cole, and Doo-Wop. “Singing comes naturally to me,” she says, noting that she never took a lesson and is self-taught.

Later, as an adult, she listened to ’80s rock (“all the way”) and admires lead singer Steve Perry of Journey (“my all-time favorite”). She opened for singers Wynona Judd, LeAnn Rimes, and Willie Nelson at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts.

“It was a great experience,” she says, admitting to some jitters.

For both Duncan and Rosario, playing and singing with the band is more than a job—it’s a passion for both of them. Often, they befriend their audience and have been known to socialize with their fans, who become friends.

Having reached their goals and succeeded in their professional musical lives, what’s left for the band to accomplish?

“Longevity,” says Duncan. “We’ve been on the radio, we’ve been in the movies, we’ve written songs for TV, we’ve headlined on cruise ships. We’ve pretty much done it all.

“We want to continue the ride and continue to do what we love most,” he says. “If you want to have a good time and listen to a variety of music, come check us out.”

The band will perform June 28 at Sharkey’s Bar & Grill, 10365 Royal Palm Blvd., Coral Springs. For more information, visit sharkeysfl.com or call (954) 341-9990. Visit ShaneDuncanBand.com.

A shoutout to legendary guitarist Greg Allman’s final album, “Southern Blood”—created in 2016 while he was fighting liver cancer—South Florida’s band of the same name, Southern Blood, pays homage to Allman and that genre of rock ’n’ roll known as Southern rock.

Emerging from Texas, the Carolinas, and Georgia, the music, characterized by its combination of rock ‘n’ roll, country, and blues, is focused on electric guitars and vocals, as exemplified in the music of the Allman Brothers, Lynryd Skynryd, Molly Hatchett, and ZZ Top.

“These groups were my musical influences,” says Southern Blood founder and lead guitarist James (Jimi) Robinette, 59, who grew up in Hollywood. “I loved Lynryd Skynryd, Aerosmith, Bad Company, the Who, and Molly Hatchett.”

The band is composed of Robinette, Todd Jones (guitar and vocals), Alan Vine (bass guitar), Greg Smolla (slide guitar and vocals), and Rodrigo Valente on drums. They revisit the ’70s and ’80s with their unmistakable, hard-driving groove, signature Southern vocals, and dueling guitars.

The members have been around South Florida “forever,” according to Robinette, who toured the country in the late ’80s and early ’90s with a band called “Heartless,” and they’ve been playing together for the past six years.

Typically, they play 100 shows each year, including local festivals such as the Winterfest Boat Parade in Fort Lauderdale and that city’s 2021 New Year’s Eve party for a crowd of approximately 5,000 revelers.

“Our main goal is to entertain. At this stage in our careers, we’re not looking to be famous or to go on the road touring,” says Robinette. “We love to get people involved, get them dancing, singing, and clapping their hands. We’re high-energy, loud, and kick-ass. We will get you up—moving and grooving to songs such as Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” and the Allman Brothers’ “Rambling Man.”

For bass guitarist Vine, 55, who grew up in Parkland, Coral Springs, and Margate, he fell in love with the band Molly Hatchett after attending a concert at the Sunrise Musical Theater with his friends in sixth grade.

“After seeing all the guys on stage making music and all the girls dancing in the audience, I decided right then and there that I wanted to do this for the rest of my life,” he remembers. He went home and asked his mother for a guitar, and the rest is a 43-year-long musical journey.

The group performed in April at Nova Southeastern University’s Miniaci Performing Arts Center with their newly formed and dedicated Lynryd Skynryd band, “Freebirds.”

“It’s cool when we perform well and do the music justice,” Vine says. “The vibe comes across and people notice the good time we’re having. We’re the best of friends and that shows when we’re performing.”

He says the band is appreciative of the support they get from fans, and they don’t take it for granted. Future goals include writing and performing original songs.

“We make a point to say hello and thank our fans for coming,” Vine says.

Chicago-born lead guitarist Smolla, 62, who now lives in Delray Beach, grew up frequenting the blues bars in downtown Chicago. He remembers seeing the big names of blues—Buddy Guy, B. B. King, Muddy Waters, Bobby Rush, and Ronnie Baker Brooks.

“You could go any night of the week and hear great blues music,” remembers Smolla, an engineer who came to South Florida 25 years ago with IBM.

His interest in piano and guitar began at the age of 10, and when he was in eighth grade, he played at the school’s ninth-grade dance. Early musical influences included Michael Schenker, a German guitarist who played with the band UFO (“my favorite”), blues guitarist Freddie King, and Irish guitarist Rory Gallagher, who influenced Jeff Beck.

 Smolla feels fortunate to have found Robinette and to be a part of Southern Blood.

“It’s the best band I’ve been in, here in Florida,” he says. “We have a big, full, Southern rock boogie sound that people gravitate toward.”

Because there are not many bands playing Southern rock, he says people travel from Florida’s west coast or from Orlando to see them perform.

“We’re authentic,” Smolla says. “Jimi is an engaging showman with a lot of charisma. We put a lot into getting the right sound and tone, and everyone is free to be themselves on stage—what you see is what you get.”

Smolla credits the band’s chemistry to translating to the audience. “Bands are all about the chemistry,” he says.

Gracious toward their audience, the band will often come off the stage and join their fans at their table or in the crowd and play something slow, quiet, and intimate.

“These are the moments that stick with you,” says Smolla. “All the songs have been written and all the parts sung, so when you’re spontaneous and get people to feel they are a part of it, those are some of our best memories.”

 Southern Blood will perform at Sharkey’s Bar and Grill, 10365 Royal Palm Blvd., Coral Springs, for Cinco de Mayo on Sunday, May 5. For more information, visit sharkeysfl.com or call (954) 341-9990. To see a complete list of Southern Blood show dates, visit southernbloodband.com

Named for the iHeartRadio station Big 105.9, the Big Rock Band was created for the station by Hollywood resident and deejay Alex Lencina, 57. Inspired by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Aerosmith, George Clinton, and the O’Jays, the band focused on less-played, familiar songs such as Autograph’s 1984 hit, “Turn Up the Radio.”

“We love to play music that has the audience bobbing their heads and tapping their feet, but is not overplayed,” says Lencina. “So, when they hear it, they remember it and remember they like it.

“That is the key to the band,” he says, paraphrasing Bee Gees guitarist Dan Warner’s parting words, “Groove is everything.”

Other band members include Fernando Santomaggio on bass, Jimi Fiano on lead guitar, Scott Sherman on guitar, John “Johnny O” Onderline on saxophone, Ysauro Hernandez on percussion, Philip Bithell on keys, and Euvoski Cunningham Sr. on drums.

The band plays at Cafe 27 in Fort Lauderdale, Galuppi’s in Pompano Beach, and Crazy Uncle Mike’s in Boca Raton, and they’ll play locally at Sharkey’s Bar and Grill in Coral Springs on April 12.

“We are a band of brothers,” says Lencina. “When we play, we are connected—no attitudes, no hang-ups—just having a good time and sharing it with our audience.”

Highlights for the band included having Big 109.5 deejay Paul Castronovo sing with them at a Super Bowl watch party on Himmarshee Street in Fort Lauderdale in 2018 and performing at Margaritaville in front of 10,000 people for New Year’s Eve this past January. “It was amazing,” says Lencina. “I will never forget it.”

While all the members have separate lives and other commitments, they all say they are happy to have this time to play together.

For bassist Santomaggio, 48, also a marine science teacher at Flanagan High School in Pembroke Pines, the time spent playing together is “intimate, deep, and profound.”

He explains, “We’re lucky to have something we enjoy, do it with those we like, and share it with the audience. We have a good time watching the audience watch us have a good time; there’s nothing better than that.”

Santomaggio especially enjoys his interaction on stage with lead guitarist Fiano, 66. “Jimi’s a local legend,” he says. “I looked up to him and now get to share a stage and learn from him.”

Fiano came to guitar playing at the age of 6, after his sister brought a guitar back from Mexico.

“I started playing it and couldn’t put it down,” he remembers. At 14, while still in middle school, he put together a band, and by the age of 16 he started playing in clubs professionally.

Influenced by the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Iron Butterfly, and Blue Cheer—and later, Grand Funk Railroad, a young Eric Clapton and the Blues Breakers (“full of piss and vinegar”), and blues guitarist Johnny Winter—Fiano is passionate about his craft.

Most recently, he put out a blues rock CD titled “Sweat & Pray,” which will be available on all streaming platforms. Shaun Murphy, a Nashville-based singer who sang with Bob Seger, Eric Clapton, and Little Feat, among others, did background vocals on the record.

Fiano says he hopes this CD will be his calling card as an independent artist. “I’d like to bring some like-minded people with me and go out on tour and see the world,” he says.

The father of an 18-year-old son, Fiano is at the peak of his career. He’s currently at work on his second album and says he can’t stop writing songs.

“My son won’t allow me to be old,” he jokes. “And, I want to leave a legacy.”

His advice for other would-be musicians? “Be persistent and color outside the lines,” he says. “Follow your instincts, take chances, and if you believe it, it will happen.

“I love playing with these guys and we genuinely have a great time making music together on stage,” says Fiano. “What could be better than that?”

The Big Rock Band will perform at Sharkey’s Bar and Grill, 10365 Royal Palm Blvd., Coral Springs, on April 12 at 8 p.m. Visit them on Facebook and Jimi Fiano at Jimifiano.com.

 

 

 

“Like taking a sip of fire, or listening to the band,” says Dany Roy, 58, lead guitarist for the band Sippin Fire, a native-born French Canadian, now living in Margate, explaining how the band got its name.

The South Florida-based rock, party and cover band plays a mix of 70s and 80s rock and roll, with their high energy, signature mix of guitar riffs, bass lines and down-home drum beats, accompanied by the soulful sounds of lead vocalist, Jade Fecteau-tasse, 33, daughter, of the band’s bass guitarist and promoter, Rejean (“Reggie”) Fecteau, 61.

Roy and Fecteau, also from Canada, met here in Florida when Fecteau was part of the Eagles Tribute Band, The Long Run.  The two decided to join forces and the rest is history.

“When I came to Fort Lauderdale and South Florida, it was love at first sight,” remembers Fecteau.  “I wouldn’t go back (to Canada) for anything – except maybe in the summer.”

“Together, we have phenomenal chemistry,” he says, noting that that the band is booked 3-4 times each week and has a full calendar through 2024 and into 2025.

More than a musical experience, their shows are a visual spectacle of lights, smoke and special effects, all designed to enhance the experience.

Two of their biggest fans and loyal followers are Boca Raton resident Wayne Belfer, 66, executive director of DOB Parkinson’s Charity, a non-profit based in Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton and Keith Richard Kraft, 62, a retired car dealer manager from New York.

Kraft, 62, who moved to Tamarac from Brooklyn four years ago, went with a friend to hear Sippin Fire perform in Fort Lauderdale.

Growing up he listened to the Beatles, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones and got into the Bee Gees and disco in the 70s.

“I fell in love with Sippin Fire, both musically and personally,” he says. “After a set, they come out and schmooze with the audience. Jade has a personality to knock your socks off.”

Belfer, who went often to hear the band, became friends with the musicians.

“The band is impressive, dynamic and together on stage,” he says.  “Their vocals are brilliant, with furious guitar solos and non-stop rhythm romps.”

Both are looking forward to the band’s next venture, “Her Majesty the Queen,” a full theatrical tribute production that will reproduce Queen’s Freddie Mercury’s stage, complete with lights, props, costumes and videos.

Vocalist Fecteau-tasse will reprise the role of lead vocalist, Freddie Mercury.

“There’s no question, I’ll be first in line,” says Kraft, admitting that while he wasn’t the biggest Queen fan, he’s a huge Sippin Fire fan.

“Besides being high-powered, they’re easy to watch,” he says.  “And, they’re super hard workers.”

Locally, the group plays at Sharkey’s in Coral Springs, the Margaritaville Bandshell on the Hollywood Broadwalk and Mickey’s Tiki Bar in Pompano Beach, as well as throughout the country, including gigs in Illinois, Las Vegas, Nevada, South Carolina, Utah and California.

Playing drums since the age of five when his parents bought him a drum set, Fecteau was on-track to become a semi-professional hockey player, until the music bug struck.

“Once I found music, I never looked back,” says Fecteau, who is also married to Nathalie Tasse, a keyboardist who plays with the group’s Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) Tribute Band, The Ticket to the Moon, playing hits such as Strange Magic, Evil Woman and Telephone Line.

An accomplished musician, playing seven instruments, Fecteau has been featured on many gold records and performed in Canada with well-known French artists Joey Tardif, Joel Denis, Pierre Lalonde, Michel Louvain, Michel Stax and Patrick Bourgeois.

He toured the world with The Long Run and in the mid-1990s played with the tribute band, “Yesterday Les Beatles,” a mega production in Montreal, a full-circle moment for Fecteau who fell in love with the Beatles and their 1967 hit, “All you need is Love” as a child.

Although the native French speaker didn’t understand the English lyrics, he was so taken with the Beatles and the song, he made it his mission to understand the lyrics.

Likewise, he says, his daughter, Jade, fell in love with Shania Twain as a child and would mimic her singing on key, although she also spoke French and didn’t understand the English lyrics.

Opera-trained by the age of eight and headed to Broadway by the age of 12, Fecteau-tasse was trained by renowned voice coach Arron Hagen, who worked with Ariana Grande, Selena Gomez and Meghan Trainor.  At the age of 16, she had a number one hit single titled, “My Destination,” in Japan for six months.

“Her voice is deeper and more colorful than other singers,” says her dad.

Lead guitarist Roy, was exposed to music at an early age.  Most of his family were musicians and he began playing professionally at the age of 17 at local bars, weddings, corporate events and music festivals in and around Québec.

A child of the 1970s and 80s, he loved classic rock bands such as Bon Jovi, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen and Heart.  While Fecteau is also influenced by traditional rock-and-roll bands, he also admits to a fondness for Dean Martin.

When the two met Spanish-born musician, David Carrica Martincorena, 45, (aka “The Beast”) last year, they knew they had found their drummer.

“David is the perfect drummer for us,” says Fecteau.  “The energy and camaraderie we have as a group are unbelievable.”

Growing up in Pamplona, Spain, Martincorena  began playing drums at a young age after hearing Metallica’s 1986 album, “Master of Puppets.”

He toured the world with the Spanish heavy metal band Tierra Santa, with which he recorded six albums and toured Europe with Diabulus in Musica, a symphonic metal band.

He came to Miami in 2019 and taught music at Sounds of Excellence School of Music.

“With Sippin Fire, we’re all on the same page,” Fecteau says.  “We’re all professional musicians, don’t drink or smoke or do drugs.”

“We take pride in what we do,” he says.

A highlight for the group is playing at the Margaritaville Hollywood Bandshell and in their ELO tribute band, The Ticket to the Moon, playing to more than 7,000 fans in Chicago.

Currently, they are shooting a promotional video for the Queen production and looking for large venues in which to mount the show.

“It’s more than a concert,” says Fecteau.  “It’s a full-blown theatrical performance.”

The production will reprise the glamour, theatrics and rock-and-roll style that defined Freddie Mercury and Queen, says Fecteau.

With attention to detail and Fecteau-tasse as the iconic Queen lead singer, he says audiences will feel as if “they are witnessing Queen in their prime.”

“Anybody can get on stage and play songs,” says Fecteau, “but not everyone can make it a show.”

“We give it absolutely everything we’ve got,” he says.

“People are playing money to come see us and we had better give them a good show,” he says.  “That’s what we do best.”

Sippin Fire will perform at Sharkey’s Bar and Grill, 10365 Royal Palm Blvd., Coral Springs, on March 15 at 8:00 p.m.

Visit them on Facebook or at https://sippinfire.com.

Who remembers the GI Bill? It was a range of benefits provided by the U.S. government for World War II veterans returning home after the war. Through it, Harold Garde received his initial art education at the University of Wyoming. Seven decades later, the artist’s education engages and challenges us in his works across the decades.

Garde, “the rebellious provocateur” as GrowingBolder.com has put it, was born in New York City in 1923 to Eastern European Jewish immigrant parents. He joined the U.S. Air Force and served in the Philippines and World War II from 1943 to 1945. He was exposed to Abstract Expressionism during his educational years, which clung a bit to his early career.

Garde’s prolific art career began in the later generation of Abstract Expressionists during the 1950s and ’60s. Early influences of Surrealism and Figurative painting in his educational years also seem to have held a motif to his later work. As his career matured, he seemed to grasp an individual gestural abstraction into the figurative forms of art. His works withheld hints of influence driven by the period of Neo-Expressionists between the 1980s and ’90s.

In 1984, Garde and his wife moved to Belfast, Maine, where many of his earlier works are represented. Garde was able to find his place as an artist in Belfast, where he remained an influential contemporary American artist making his mark on the world. In 1993, it was on to New Smyrna, where he then split time between Maine and his Florida home. Garde died Oct. 11, 2022, in Florida, just shy of 100 years old.

Garde invented Strappo printmaking in the mid-1980s as Neo-Expressionists were busy affecting conceptual and minimal art with their intense subjectivity. He developed this technique by combining printmaking and painting as an artistic ambivalence of originality worth mentioning. It is a transference of acrylic paint layers from smooth surfaces, such as glass, onto paper. The technique gives a reversal image of the layered medium, and a “Strappo Monotype.” His famous 2005 “Self-Portrait,” not at all shy by use of line, was acrylic Strappo mounted on paper. Garde taught his technique in workshops nationwide.

Garde challenges us to look back to the post-war movement in a new depth of today’s reality. His work transcends generations; to view it is to feel the past as an offset to emotional provocation. In the art industry, it is well identified that successful art is a work that provokes emotion, or which provokes a distinctive reaction. It is a work that defends itself while connecting points of view within the psychological stratosphere of others. It is a movement with time, as Garde proves to us, in shadows of color and thick use of strokes.

For example, “Nude Woman 2” is a geometrical offset between spatial relationships, and it is fortified with contrasts of color. It can be a reminder of the short-lived Fauvism even before his time. In one way, Nude Woman 2 appears to be divided into four separate sections. When we look deeper, the form absorbs its colorful depth, and into a minimized picture as a whole. It is then a man hiding behind the door where Nude Woman 2 is, and here we can see the desperate yearning for his helpless passions. These passions are further emphasized on the door that his back is against, where thought-provoking consciousness holds to his ear. Then we have a still life that decorates the room. What better color to use to paint a flower and what the flower sits in? The geometrical usage surpasses cleverness; it is where we see emotion as Garde shares it with us. It is the emotion that brings the painting to life.

Garde composes the figurative landscape into a two-dimensional acrylic on canvas in “Lady with a Cape” (2005). The passivity is here and is to be revealed within the autonomy of his subject, as Garde seemingly avoids any further depth away from her arm. The flattened background seems less important than the figure, and yet somehow a part of her, while the colors are geometrically atoned to emotion. Here, he develops a synchronicity of it that is held by her expression.

“Harold Garde at 100: The Unseen Works in Two Acts” features 100 never-before-exhibited artworks. This exhibition will unfold over the course of 2024, with selected paintings and works on paper from Maine, New York, and Florida. These works highlight the continuity of Garde’s clear vision and his unwavering symbolic hierarchy across decades.

With a passion and talent for music, Enrique “Rik” De Cubas, lead guitarist and vocalist for the rock and top-40 party cover band Havoc 305, says the band also wreaks havoc in the 954 and 561 area codes.

Originally known as the Swinging Richards, the current name evolved over a brainstorming session one evening and took hold.

Whether singing the Beatles’ “Come Together,” Rod Stewart’s “All Right Now,” or Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing,” De Cubas and his bandmates, lead vocalist and guitarist José Almonte, bass player and vocalist Arthur Granquist, and drummer and vocalist Jwani Brito, bring their own style and energy to each gig they play.

“Playing for our fans, friends, and family brings us much happiness,” says De Cubas. “We love the energy our audience brings, and we get a lot of energy from them while we play. We couldn’t do what we do without them, and we are indebted to their support and loyalty.”

All the musicians began playing music at an early age. Granquist started piano lessons at the age of 5 and played competitively by age 7. He learned guitar in high school.

Likewise, Brito, born into a musical family, discovered his passion and love for the drums early in life, after watching “The Muppet Show” with Buddy Rich and Animal doing a drum duet. Instantly he knew that was what he wanted to do.

Both De Cubas, who picked up the guitar at age 14, and Almonte, who fell in love with music at the age of 5 and grew up watching MTV and playing records he still has to this day, have devoted their life’s work to their passion for music.

The group performs regularly at the Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort and Margaritaville 5 o’Clock Somewhere Bar in Hollywood, THRōW Social in Delray Beach, Copper Blues Rock Pub and Kitchen in Miami, Voodo Bayou on Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale, Mathews Brewing Company in Lake Worth Beach, and Crazy Uncle Mike’s in Boca Raton. Additionally, they love to perform at weddings and corporate events.

For New Year’s Eve, the group will appear at Sharkey’s Bar & Grill in Coral Springs to ring in 2024.

Musician Chet Gary, who plays rock violin, mandolin, and guitar, joined the group on stage last October at THRōW Social for some impromptu jamming.

“I enjoyed playing with Havoc 305,” says Gary. “They are professional and intuitive musicians. We developed a groove immediately and generated an exciting conclusion to my electric violin solo in Guns N’ Roses’ ‘Sweet Child O’ Mine.’

“I look forward to jamming with these guys again,” he says.

De Cubas, who admires guitarists Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Van Halen, fell in love with the guitar as a teenager. Self-taught, he studied architecture but left school when he signed a record deal with Cane/Universal Records, with the Latin rock group El Duende, and toured with the band during the mid-1990s. Their first album, “Transición,” was a Top 20 hit in the Latin rock charts.

He went on to perform for more than a decade at Murphy’s Law, in the Hard Rock Casino Resort in Hollywood, from where fans still recognize him to this day.

Music, he says, is both a harbor and a refuge, and it stimulates him, makes him happy, and picks him up when he’s down.

“Once I grab the guitar and my fingers graze the metal strings and the strings hit the wood, it’s magical,” De Cubas says, noting that he still practices every day to keep muscle memory intact and his technique and precision crisp.

He met band member Almonte through drummer Brito. The two also perform separately as the Havoc Duo.

Almonte, who doesn’t remember a time before he was singing, grew up in New York and the Dominican Republic. A real rocker, he loves Guns N’ Roses and Led Zeppelin and counts Chris Cornell, Axl Rose, and Robert Plant as inspiration.

With Havoc 305 for the past five years, “it’s been a great ride,” he says. He is a married father of four grown kids in a blended family.

One of Almonte’s favorite things is to be on stage with his best friends, energized by the music and the crowd. “On those nights when the music is pumping and the energy is there from the crowd, we make a perfect match,” he says.

He loves to perform “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” and to get the crowd up and dancing along to the 4 Non Blondes’ 1992 hit, “What’s Up?,” singing along to the refrain “What’s Going On?”

Long-term goals for the band include going as far as they can here in South Florida and branching out to create original music.

Almonte has written and performed an original song titled “Warped” that the band is arranging, each adding his own touch.

“We’re a hard-working band,” he says. “We love to have fun while playing, and we hope our audience has as much fun as we do. It’s a high to see people dancing and smiling and having a great time.

“That’s our job—we’re entertainers,” Almonte says.

Visit Havoc305.com or like them on Facebook. Sharkey’s Bar & Grill is located at 10365 Royal Palm Blvd., Coral Springs. For tickets to the New Year’s Eve show, visit sharkeysfl.com or call (954) 341-9990.

Going with the flow is one way to describe the urban art of German-born street artist Simon Röhlen, 34, who goes by the street or tag name “KEF!”

While the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word kef as a “state of dreamy tranquility,” the artist chose the name to mean a scar on your skin, comparing the scar to the street tag, both having a long-lasting impact.

KEF! and his work will be part of the exhibit “Burner: The Exhibition,” at the Onessimo Fine Art Gallery in West Palm Beach through Nov. 12, as part of its North American tour.

A burner piece is described as a complicated, often legal street artwork that takes time and effort and makes a style statement. It’s so good that it “burns off the wall.”

The traveling exhibit of urban art features some of the most recognizable names in the graffiti and pop culture art movement, such as Banksy, Anthony Lister, Mr. Doodle, Kaws, Vinnie Nylon, Takashi Murakami, Reka One, Ben Eine, Dotmaster, Craig Knight, Harry Bunce, Henri Lamy, Dalek (aka James Marshall), Magnus Gjoen, Pure Evil, and the Connor Brothers, a pseudonym for British artists James Golding and Mike Snelle.

The two became known for their Pulp Fiction series, which uses stylized pinup artwork from dime novels juxtaposed with captions like “I drink to make other people more interesting” and “I don’t want to go to heaven,” with giclées on display at the exhibit.

“I am excited to present KEF!, a talented and influential artist, in person in my gallery, as well as some of the most important urban artists making a name in the contemporary art world,” says Debra Onessino, principal of Onessimo Fine Art Gallery.

“This exhibition opens doors to new conversations around art, freedom of expression, societal issues, and genres of work that have been at the forefront of the global contemporary art movement,” she says.

KEF! has on display the 2021 43-by-31-inch acrylic on canvas painting, “Deepness of the Moment #9,” with its strong black-and-white swirling lines and blocks of color; the 2023 “Slow Flowing River #8,” a 28-by-20-inch acrylic on canvas, the bold black lines offset by a Studebaker blue background and chunks of yellow; and the large-scale, 80-by-86-inch 2023 “Crescent Moon Fills My Heart #2,” acrylic on canvas, accented with touches of yellow, blue, and red.

KEF! began experimenting with graffiti art at the age of 14 and left his home base of Berlin for London in 2013, where his career took off.

His work can be seen at the Haus in Berlin, the Park Lane Hong Kong Hotel, and the Commerce building in Baton Rouge, LA, as well as on large-scale murals in the U.S., China, England, France, Germany, Guatemala, Israel, Spain, and Wales.

Retailer Urban Outfitters commissioned KEF! to design interiors for their stores in London, Berlin, Stuttgart, and Hong Kong. One of his most exciting commissions, he says, was the interior design he created in 2017 for the Park Lane Hong Kong Hotel’s SKYE Roofbar, with the panorama of the city and harbor below.

 “The view was just crazy over the skyline of Hong Kong,” KEF! remembers, noting that this project launched his international art career.

With a solo exhibition in Germany at the Museum Goch, a collab with Luis Vuitton, and representing Germany as a part of the official artistic efforts of @visitqatar and the FIFA World Cup in Qatar for last year’s games, his career scored more than a few goals.

Finding inspiration in nature and in the practice and rituals of Buddhism, KEF! is a devotee of Pure Land Buddhism, one of the most popular forms of Buddhism in eastern Asia, and has been to meditation retreats in China and most recently in Taiwan.

His art, a series of swirling and hypnotic patterns—he doesn’t paint lines or straight edges—is intended to promote peace and harmony in keeping with his spiritual beliefs.

“I find the flow relaxing,” KEF! says about his signature style. “It makes me calm to paint these flowing lines, and this is important to me.”

Not connecting with the traditional words and letters of graffiti-style artists, he discovered that these large-scale, patterned murals, using geometric abstract lines, resonate more with him.

“My work allows me to express what is inside of me,” says the self-taught artist who once apprenticed to be an industrial mechanic. Although he says he knew it wasn’t for him after the first week, KEF! persevered and finished the 3½-year apprenticeship.

“I took it as motivation to push my art career forward,” he says. “At the end, it was good, because it brought me to a more satisfying career.”

An admirer of London urban artist Stik (“his work is simple, but with a strong meaning”), known for his iconic depictions of stick figures, KEF! also has an appreciation for the classic art of Russian avant-garde artist Kazimir Malevich.

“His work is abstract, but very spiritual,” KEF! says. “When I read the meaning of his work, I really feel his spirit.”

As successful as he is at a young age, KEF! says his ultimate career goal would be to have an exhibit at MoMa in New York City.

“That’s when I would know I’ve really made it,” he says with a qualifier, also represented by his Buddhist philosophy and practice. “I would try to keep a beginner’s mind,” he says. “It’s unhealthy to focus on an end point. I want to keep my fire and curiosity alive.”

He says, “Success is more internal than external. As long as I can grow internally and be successful each day, I try to keep a balance between my material and spiritual goals.”

A seeker and a searcher on a spiritual journey, KEF! believes the world needs more harmony and tries to impart that message through his work.

His advice? “Try to relax when you observe my work,” he says. “Switch off your mind and try to feel my work emotionally and spiritually, and summon some inner peace and harmony.”

KIF! comments, “I hope my work conveys these feelings into my viewers’ lives so they can feel more calm, centered, and peaceful.”

Onessimo Fine Art Gallery is located at 4530 PGA Blvd., Palm Beach Gardens. For more information, visit www.Onessimofineart.com or call (561) 355-8061. Meet KEF! in person Nov. 10 from 5 to 8 p.m. or Nov. 12 from 2 to 5 p.m.