Speak Easy

Speak easy was formed on connections made while going to school at USF in St. Petersburg. Eric Yoder, guitarist, met Brandon Porter, bassist, in a government class and the two became fast friends. Yoder had met Karekin Sahagain a year prior to meeting Porter. Sahgain was playing at an open mic in a bar. The two found they had a few things in common and began jamming together. They eventually found a drummer and Porter joined in on bass. The original drummer was eventually replaced by Jack Clements. When Clements joined the group they truly became Speak Easy. 

Each member of Speak Easy finds their inspiration in different places. Sahagain is inspired by going outside and taking in the surrounding nature. He also looks to books as a source of inspiration, stating that reading is beneficial for writers. Sahagain likes to make things sound beautiful, even if it’s a sad topic. Porter is recently heavily inspired by session musicians and producers. These artists generally do not get the attention received by big name artists, but put just as much if not more into their craft. Porter believes understanding what makes good music good from it’s roots is extremely important to playing and writing your own good music. Yoder began listening to music when he was very young; starting out with alternative rock and rap that he just did not understand. Eventually he moved away from those genres and really got into music when he began listening to The Beatles, The Rollings Stones and Creedence Clearwater Revival; these bands still heavily inspire him. Speak Easy's sound is uniquely created by all these inspirations coming together. 

Speak Easy recently put out a singled titled ‘Grapefruit’. The single began as a riff written by Porter, the rest of the song fell into place later on. ‘Grapefruit’ is different than what they have released in the past. ‘Grapefruit’ gives fans an idea where Speak Easy is headed in terms of sound. Yoder is a huge fan of the sounds and style of classic artists like The Eagles, Marvin Gaye, and Stevie Wonder. He brings those sounds and the aspects of each genre into Speak Easy’s sound. “We’re going for a mix of modern R&B/groove with a touch of Hall n Oates esque* pop,” explained Yoder. The change in direction is marked with ‘Grapefruit’, fans can expect the general attitude as well as the sound of the band to change.