MAILING LIST!
27MILES is a four-piece original southern rock band spawned within the great outburst of raw musical talent from the burgeoning Malibu music scene. Their unique sound and a philosophy to "keep it real by staying true to who they are and honoring those that paved the way before them", come together to create unique and timeless music. Formerly Malibu's popular band 454, 27MILES features the rarefied combination of its original co-founders: singer, songwriter and guitarist Kevin Solomon, a.k.a. "SOLLY", and songwriter and guitarist Donny Kulp. Front man SOLLY brings masterfully adept guitar work, a powerful, emotion-eliciting gravel voice and gift of gab personality; paired with Kulp's prolific songwriting abilities and visceral and passionately explosive guitar expertise. As their sound developed and the songs began to come together for their debut album, they brought in British songwriter/producer Daniel Wills (Son of Rick Wills – Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Bad Company) to help finish some ideas and come up with a few songs to complete the album. As a trio these three are a force to be reckoned with. All understanding what the end result must be, timeless classics! "I knew just by the way these guys looked and played, and the fact that they were named after a muscle car engine, we would come up with some great stuff. I have never had as much fun working and writing with a band than these guys! They are truly the next classic rock band of our generation and they continue to aspire to live the dream!" says Wills. Daniel introduced the band to Producer/Engineer Brian Dobbs (Metallica, Motlëy Cru, Echo Brain, Man Made God), who would be the right man for the job to mix the band’s recorded tracks for their 2006 release 'Bringin' It Back'. Kulp and Solomon launched 27MILES envisioning "the greatest rock band ever" that truly reflected their influences from the great 70s bands such as Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Jimi Hendrix, retooled and recast in their own style. By combining blues, southern rock and acoustic numbers that are melodic and mesmerizing, set off with heavy choruses, a highly combustible bloodletting is eminent and guaranteed to entertain. Jason Benfield prefers his Gibson bass growl over the more jazzy fender bass sound. His biggest bass influences are the late great Allen Woody of the Allman Brothers Band & Govt. Mule and Jack Bruce of the Cream. "I love the dirtier thunder of Allen's Gibson basses and the crunch of Jack's playing. I would much rather see the bass player stand out than to hear a muffled bass tone in the background." At an early age, JB was introduced to his brother Jon's large record collection and musical taste. "Jon, my bro, is a 'finger-pick style' bluegrass/blues guitarist. He had an amazing collection of bluegrass, blues and rock on vinyl growing up. I looked to my brother for musical direction and he was always happy to help me out." JB picked up the bass @ age 13 and started practicing his blues/bluegrass progressions. "My brother and father were bluegrass musicians and they needed a bass player. I wanted to be in the band, so I picked up the bass. We played traditional bluegrass tunes mostly and spent a lot of time at local fiddlers conventions... My bro won second place @ Galax VA in the flatpicking competition. By the end of every convention my fingers would bleed from the large bass strings on my 17 year old hands." By 17, JB had been listening and playing to a lot of Bluegrass and Country. Later on, his brother pushed him towards Classic Rock. "The first rock songs I learned were Voodoo Chile and Crossroads... It was really thrilling to play those first notes. I knew I could learn the songs easily because of the blues/rock chord progressions of each song were so closely related to the bluegrass positions." Hendrix and Clapton became two of his favorite artists from then on. JB was now a serious classic rock fan. He loved seeing bands like the Allman Brothers, The Grateful Dead, and ZZ Top perform live in concert throughout the years but his brother thought that it would also make sense to learn about the influences of classic rock bands. "Jon had some awesome blues records and I put some serious time into listening to BB King, Albert King, Freddie King, Buddy Guy, and Robert Johnson, and also old country tunes by Hank Williams Sr. and Jimmie Rodgers." In 1996 @ age 22, JB was asked to play bass for Jon Fogel (Zoo Keeper) and Tim Taylor (The Kind) - two of Blacksburg, VAs hardest hitting rock/blues musicians. Being 10 years younger than the guys didn't stop him from ripping it up. JB cut his teeth with The Jon Fogel Trio touring regionally for about a year. Then in 1997, JB decided to move to Los Angeles permanently to work in the music industry. "I was so eager for any opportunity to play music or just to be in the music business. My first gigs in Los Angeles were in local blues bands. A lot of those gigs came through local jam sessions." JB is 27MILES' newest addition to the band and we're happy to have him posted up on bass! The final role was filled by drummer Joseph Kern. Jody is an accomplished percussionist who graduated from the Percussion Institute of Technology in Hollywood, CA where he blew away everyone in his jazz class with his creative and dynamic drum solos. It was there that he rounded out his drumming education. Throughout his career Jody has played with bands such as Malibu’s own Last Call, Venice’s The Degenerates, former Posh Boy and Fearless Records band Glue Gun in which he did two US tours. Jody is proud to announce rejoining with his old friends "from way back", and can be heard on their debut release, "Bringin' It Back". Jody Kern is one of our best friends but is no longer with 27MILES. We now have Kurt Custer formerly of Lynyrd Skynyrd circa,"1990-95" on Drums. Kurt Custer began his entertainment career as a member of the popular rock 'n' roll band Little America in 1985. As a Drummer, Vocalist and Songwriter, he was instrumental in helping his band-mates secure a record deal with Geffen and they released two records: Little America in 1987 and Fairgrounds in 1989. Both yielded two top ten radio hits Walk on Fire and Where Were You. The band did three videos which had great runs on MTV and VH-1. During this time, Custer met Country Rocker Steve Earle and he asked him to play drums on his record, Copperhead Road. Custer’s playing propelled his popularity and this record earned him platinum and gold status. In 1990, Ed King, from Lynyrd Skynyrd, found he loved Custer's drum work on the Copperhead Road record so much, that he called and asked him to join Lynyrd Skynyrd - which he did in November of 1990. Custer played the drums, co-wrote two AOR radio hits and sang back-round vocals. He was with Skynyrd four years and performed all over the world. There are three record credits: Lynyrd Skynyrd 1991, The Last Rebel & a live record called You Got That Right and did three videos with the Skynrd: Smokestack Lightning, Good Lovin’ & Love Don’t Always Come Easy. Custer performed on the Tonight Show twice and performed on an MTV special called "A Night with the Band", which aired world-wide also performing on "Live at the Fox Theatre," in 1993. He also performed with various artists including Travis Tritt, Hank Williams Jr., Bad Company, Drivin' & Cryin', Junkyard, Phil Hartman, AC/DC and many others. He has also worked with great producers such as Tom Dowd, John Hampton, Tony Brown, Berry Beckett and John Punter. He has done at least a thousand radio interviews while on tour during his career, lending not only a strong voice for this, but for singing as well. Custer returned to Steve Earle after leaving Skynyrd in 1995. He played drums and did some singing on I Feel Alright, which earned him another Gold record. Custer has also put out six solo records: Custer & Logan(1993), Hi, We’re The Johnson’s, Nice to Meet You(1998), Total Chaos(1999), which included some spoken word pieces, Peaceful Lunatic(2001), Chemical Imbalance(2005) and Custer(2009). Currently Custer is currently playing with 27MILES as of April 2009 and is way down with the sound. Long Live Southern Rock! 27MILES finished mastering their 11-song album at J.T. Meskiel’s Document Room Recording Studio in Malibu in April 2006. "27MILES are a great bunch of guys," said J.T. "They brought their A-Game and were very focused and disciplined, producing a remarkable album they so richly deserve." 27MILES "Bringin' It Back" is available for purchase online at www.27milesmusic.com, www.myspace.com/27miles and iTunes. Featured guest artists include iconic guitar from Dean Deleo of STP on the songs, "Where I Belong" and "Lessons Learned", Duane Betts, son of Dickie Betts of the Allman Brothers on the song, "Brotherhood" and Vocals by Angelic Leah Felder, daughter of Don Felder of the Eagles on the song, "Life Unknown" "I cherish kinship between musicians", Deleo said. "Like so many of us, music is a nice place to dip our minds. When Kevin asked me to come down and play on the 27MILES record, I was flattered. I dig the songs and their playing. Honestly, Kevin or Donny could have mustered up anything I played. They are both great players. They were recording at the Document Room where I had done some stuff for Chicago’s 30th album", noted Deleo. "If I can find any reason not to go south of Cross Creek I will. J.T.'s studio is the greatest, like water in the desert, state-of-the-art man. J.T. makes the time spent there quite easy and enjoyable as well as keeping us close to home." Professional musician Berry Oakley Jr. played the bass for 27MILES when they were recording their album "Bringin' It Back". Berry (son of Berry Oakley of the Allman Brothers) is a vintage nut who tours with The Robby Krieger Band of the Doors, Chuck Negron of Three Dog Night and the Allman Brothers among others. Oakley's approach and abilities are extraordinary, spontaneous and world class. The 27MILES interplay runs delicate and airy to dense and driving. Together they gel magically and soulfully creating a melodic and mesmerizing signature sound that plays heavy and explosive with a sophisticated integration of accompaniments, harmonies and an unstoppable rhythmic juggernaut: a single, powerful and textured sound. All songs written by Donny Kulp and Kevin Solomon. Daniel Wills co-wrote on 'High', 'Brotherhood', 'Where I Belong', 'Lessons Learned', and 'Back Home'. Produced by 27MILES and J.T. Meskiel. Mixed by Brian Joseph Dobbs. Recorded at Document Room Studios, Malibu California 90265 . . : GUESTBOOK . . PRESS . . STORE . . LINKS . . CONTACT : . .  Webmaster |