Just a few shots of espresso are all it takes for Long Island City band “The Big Daddy Project” to write a hit song. This self-described “funk-rock fiesta” consisting of John Eccher, Drew DiCamillo, Marlin Slutsky and Steve Valdez is a quartet of companions that pulls musical inspiration from just about everywhere.
“We find our inspiration from the mundane to the extraordinary that we experience in our daily lives,” said bass player DiCamillo. “We never know what will strike a musical chord with us.”
The Big Daddy Project has written songs about everything from canoe trips to shopping for goulash in Budapest.
“We have a song about a block party in Queens,” said DiCamillo. “We have another song that tells the story of a Queens auto mechanic that builds a spaceship out of used auto parts that we use to escape global warming. We have a song about when Joe Namath tried to kiss Suzy Kolber. We have a song inspired by a friend, Lou Alvarez, who holds the record for the most number of nicknames for any living human being.”
The 15-year-old band, whose musical influences include Black Sabbath and Sly and the Family Stone, write songs everywhere, from each other’s kitchens to airplanes to sitting in their cars during a traffic jam.
“Each song is created differently. They are all unique as are their inception, motivation and structure,” said DiCamillo. “Some of our songs start out as a musical idea, others start with a lyrical theme and others just spring up while we are working on another song.”
The Big Daddy Project is close with several other local acts who contribute to Queens’ burgeoning music scene including Royce Peterson, Walter Hawks, Lee Ann Westover and the Crisis Team.
When there are no traditional venues available, the band plays in makeshift locations, including car garages and industrial buildings.
The band has begun to look for musicians to accompany them during their upcoming show at Arlene’s Grocery (95 Stanton Street, New York, NY) on December 10 @ 10:30pm. For most of their shows, The Big Daddy Project has a backing band of up to 10 performers, handpicked from Long Island City.
Practicing is currently not at the top of the band’s list of priorities.
“We’ll start hitting it a little harder after the holiday,” said DiCamillo. “Since we’ve been playing together for so long, we’ve pretty much got it down.”
