By Braden Ochs | Echo
Stage lights dim. The crowd's chatter grows quiet as slow footsteps engage the wrinkled rugs that run across the small coffee shop stage. Four men stand behind their instruments as their 50 fans look on.
The audience cheers as the drums rumble and guitars' sound waves blaze their way through the hopeful crowd. The passion of their instruments fans an emotional fire; the strength of the singer's voice spears the hearts of the excited audience.
Stay Outside performs with vigor at The Abbey Coffee Co. in Marion, Indiana. Lead singer Aaron Becker bellows into the microphone. Lead guitarist Garrett Johnston strums a rocked-out string choir. Bassist Sean West, the heartbeat of the chorus, mixes his bass with Noah Mitchener's foot stomping drum beats. They echoed an action-filled rhythm throughout the building.
Stay Outside is an Indiana band with hopeful goals, a love for music and a heart for fans. Their current obscurity doesn't keep them from making music.
Connected throughout elementary and middle school, the band members' relationship is a rarity, and it is evident in their performance. Like any partnership, it did not start this way. It wasn't until they realized their similarities that they started to spend time with each other.
"We kind of flocked to each other because we all liked the same kind of music," Becker said. "When it's music, there's only a few people into that, and (others) get weeded out pretty quickly."
The three soon became best friends.
Playing in a rock band was their biggest dream. They listened to rock music as kids, and they wanted to become the rock stars they listened to. But according to the band members, they started out roughly.
"We were 13," Becker said. "So, we were awful and wanted to cover awful music."
The band consisted only of Becker and Johnston at first, but they soon realized they were missing a bassist. They asked West to join.
The trio played in two bands together before they started Stay Outside.
"Last fall, we decided to really go for this as a professional band," Becker said. "We made an oath: 'We're going to be all in this 100 percent, even if it is a risk.'"
So, that's what they did. They became serious about their work and slowly made a name for themselves.
According to the band members, their mentors urged them that their first step should be to change their mindset about the band. The second step was to figure out what tasks they needed to fulfill.
"We all have our own little zones, our own little jobs that we all (do), and every week we make sure each of us do (each of our) jobs," said Johnston.
Johnston produces a video of every show they do. He also composes the musical portion of the songs.
Becker, on the other hand, writes most of the lyrics and is responsible for maintaining the business side of the band: booking, marketing and social media.
West is the heartbeat of the group, like his role on bass guitar. He makes sure everyone is together and prepared for practices every week.
"He's our band dad," Becker said. "He's like: 'Hey guys, we have practice tomorrow at noon, okay? Ready? Everyone be awake by noon, okay?'"
However, the friendship does not stop with the trio. During live shows, they have a hired drummer named Noah Mitchener. He is like a little brother to them.
Becker describes Mitchener as the wild card or Charlie Day of the group, always making them laugh.
The band also talks fondly about his loyalty to them. Mitchener flew all the way from Texas just to be a part of one of the live shows.
Apart from the work they do running the band, they hang out with each other all the time. Johnston, Becker and West share a house together. They are huge TV and movie fans and quote their favorite shows to each other all the time. They also enjoy a good bonfire. It allows them to wind down and relax with each other.
One of their favorite things about Stay Outside is the live shows. According to West, without the people to share the music with, their heart for making music means nothing.
These three men try hard to affect and entertain the crowd.
"Something that's been pretty new over the past few months is when people start singing back," West said.
They care about the fans, and they want everyone to realize that Stay Outside isn't a band without them. The band-to-crowd relationship is something they have started to see in their live performances.
The relationships involved in making a great band work are pivotal, and Stay Outside is a good example of this.
"When I'm on stage, I'm with three of my brothers," Becker said. "I'm with family."
Sometimes a band is more than music. Sometimes solid relationships are what make the band great. The music is simply a bonus.
Link to their Facebook Page: here
