Upcoming shows
Reviews
Jammin with The Cef Michael Band
EV: Introduce the band and tell us where ya’ll hail from and how you got together.
CMB: The band -
Cef, Mike Cefaratti, - Singer/songwriter – I live in Independence, Kentucky. Played with Rented Mule and Fowler Creek prior.
Harold Kennedy – Lead Guitar / vocals – Originally from Mississippi, lives on the West Side of Cincy, and has part-time apartment in Nashville. Professional musician who has played on the road with Montgomery Gentry, Steve Azar and more ... www.haroldkennedy.com
Jim Herlinger – Bass / backup vocals – Jim is our Eastsider! He lives with his family in Amelia. Jim was with Midnight Rain for years, along with our former Steel / utility player Dan McHugh, who passed away just before the new year.
John Hoffman – Drums – John lives in Erlanger Kentucky, and has played with various bands across the tri-state, most notably two different times with Bobby Mackie.
Rachel Neiman – Vocals – Rachel is from Ross, Ohio. Being able to play female songs is a great advantage and gives the crowds something they typically don’t get to see live too often.
Randy Baker – Steel and lead/rhythm guitar. Randy plays with us when he is not playing with Ryan Broshear. Randy is from Southern Indiana.
This all started with another band moving on, and me having dates booked that I didn’t want to cancel. I made calls to Jim and Dan, who were with Midnight Rain at the time. The two of them and Scott, who fronts Midnight Rain, helped me out. I brought a fiddle player who I knew from North Carolina, along with a friend of his on guitar, and we played shows. Our first show, most of the band had never met.
I brought these guys in from North Carolina for a few shows, until I got the call from Harold Kennedy. I had been wanting to work with Harold for years. He is one of the most sought after, highly demanded guitarists in the area!
We played our first few shows with no name, or rehearsals. I am not the person who needs my name in lights, but I didn’t want to get into the democracy of another band. Obviously, Cefaratti, has a lot of vowels, and there are not too many Italian country singers! I put a survey out on Myspace for our friends to come up with a name, and Cef Michael Band was born. It’s a pretty good conversation piece, and most people think its Seth at first!
EV: How long have you been making the club circuit (as the Cef Michael Band)?
CMB: We actually started booking our first shows as The Cef Michael Band in October.
EV: You play both country and rock. However does one out weigh the other or do you tailor the set list for the venue?
CMB: Our hearts are in country, but we love all types of music. We try to play to the crowd as much as possible without sacrificing the quality of the music. We try to feel out the crowd as much as possible to make them happy, but ultimately you have to be true to who you are. We try to throw as many curve balls as we can to the crowd. We love segueing from one song to another. The look on people’s faces when they realize that they were dancing to Stevie Ray Vaughn and we went straight into Brooks and Dunn without missing a beat, is great.
We also try to incorporate as many genres as we can... Country, rock, blues, bluegrass, and even some old school rap.
Many of the people who come to our shows were drug there by a friend and they “hate country”. We try to give everyone something they like and relate to. Some of our biggest supporters didn’t know they could like country.
EV: The female singer is a nice addition, what advantages does she bring to the band?
CMB: Rachel is awesome. She has an amazing attitude and incredible energy. She brings much more to the table than people may expect. Not only does she do a great job with the female songs, but she sings back up, gets the crowd going, and is very good at the behind the scene business of music. She has a great relationship with clubs, and her own following. She also, saves my voice, by giving me a break throughout the night. Look for more and more from Rachel. On a creative standpoint, having a female allows me/us to write different types of songs also.
EV: Your covers are great and we did catch a good original, what originals have you made so far and when will we see a cd?
CMB: Thank you for the compliment! My goal is to be a songwriter, and original music is my passion. We are currently playing out two originals... “The Rainy Day Love Making Song”, which you heard. We didn’t have a name for it and everyone kept asking for “the rainy day love makin’ song”, so we just embraced it and gave it the name. Our second song is “Makin’ Divots”. It’s about sneaking onto a golf course as a teen and .... well you know! It’s a fun groovy tune that we play out sometimes.
EV: Who writes and what inspirations go into your original writing?
CMB: I, Cef, do the preliminary writing. In case you didn’t notice, I don’t play an instrument which makes song writing very difficult. I do much more than come up with lyrics. I have what I call, the 8 piece band playing in my head. The trick is getting others to hear the same band!
I have had an opportunity to work with Mark Lorenzo of Lorenzo on a couple of songs, but these days it’s mostly Harold Kennedy and myself. Harold has an incredible ear and becomes almost the producer as well.
I want to write meaningful songs. The inspiration comes from everyday life. What couple couldn’t use a day where they just stay in bed and get lost in each other.
Our upcoming songs include:
“This Girl Won’t Be Played” - A sassy female song about a strong woman who gets hit on at the bar.
“Tiffany’s Song” or “The Monster”- I have a cousin who almost lost everything to her crystal meth addiction. This song is a powerful ballad inspired by her addiction battle. Although she has been clean for 4 years, that crave or “monster is always there.”
“I Came From You” - is a tribute to my single mom. I hate the expression “came from nothing”. This song talks about how we may not have had much growing up, but we always got by. Her love and discipline “molded me into the man I am.” This is one of my favorites.
I am trying to have a very diverse sound on the CD, which will be available in the fall. On our myspace page it says “country/rock influenced by years of channel surfing.” You will absolutely hear that on the CD.
The remainder of the tunes are a variation of some foot stompin’ country, a bluesy sexy good dancing song, and of course a couple of surprises.
EV: Where/when are you recording your next (or debut) CD?
CMB: Our album will be recorded in Nashville. With the music industry having its struggles some of the most talented musicians in the world are looking for work. It will be the most economical way to put out the best product possible. It will be our Debut CD.
EV: Which venues stand out as your faves so far (and memorable performances)?
CMB: If you look at our schedule, we have tried to find a great venue on each side or corner of the city. I don’t know that we have a favorite venue, as much as a favorite venue on each side of town. Being from NKY, I always love playing Woodie’s Tavern in Florence because I get to see so many friends and family. However, playing at Buffalo Harry’s we get to play to strangers who love country music. That’s the true test... can you entertain the people who don’t know who you are. They want good music!! Also, in this gig you are looking for the opportunity to be in the “moment”. With the size of Buffalo Harry’s and the great crowds, you get those opportunities to be “in the moment.”
The staff has treated us amazingly. We have had some of our highs and lows there. You were there Saturday night during my best friend’s birthday. We also debuted our first two originals there acoustically... the same day we laid to rest our band mate Dan McHugh.
Until that night I had never shared my original music with anyone. So many of Dan’s family was there and he was a big fan of the songs we were working on. Harold strapped on the acoustic and we played both songs. I always thought the term “shaking in your boots” was just an expression but I was literally trembling. We cried, but we pulled it off. The crowd was so appreciative and kind. It will forever go down as the most memorable musical moment of my life.
EV: How many Eastside venues have you played, any you have your eye on you’d like to get booked at in particular (& why)?
CMB: Buffalo Harry’s is the only East side venue we have played. I am a very loyal person, and I don’t like to compete with venues. For example Buffalo Harry’s has treated us so well, why would I want to play there this Saturday and try to take business away from them next Saturday.
We would love to play more of the festivals, fairs, and outdoor events. Or any venue who has a great summer outdoor setting. Why? We all love being outdoors, and also the festivals / fairs would give some of our supporters the opportunity to bring their children out, along with our families who don’t get a chance to catch us out live. Also, we would love to get to some of the river venues.
EV: What’s coming up for the band this summer.
CMB: This summer is going to be all about being outside, working on the marketing,getting more sponsors, and writing / recording. Things happened so quickly for this band that the marketing has to catch up. Our website is under construction but will currently lead to our myspace page. We are working on a nice Press Kit, and some videography. We have come very far on such a short time but its all been word of mouth. We are also looking to purchase a cheap bus to bring our people to and from shows. We don’t want people drinking and driving. It’s sometimes hard or expensive for people to get rides to shows 30+ minutes away.
