By Mark McLaughlin
The Dispatch and The Rock Island Argus – Life
Saturday, March 27th, 2004
A guitarless band may seem strange at first, but the piano-bass-drums-and-sax group called Minus Six is proving that they don't need that particular instrument to make an impressive rock sound.
"We're called that because we don't have the six strings of a guitar," explained Matt Sivertsen, leader of the group.
By day, Mr. Sivertsen, 24, is a registered investment advisor with the Planning Center, as well as youth director for Christ the King Catholic Church in Moline. The other band members are 16-year-old students at Rock Island's Alleman High School: Kevin Carton, lead vocals and piano; Kameron Rummans, backup vocals and bass; and Tyler Kaschke, drums.
Mr. Sivertsen is a 2001 graduate of the University of Illinois with a Bachelor of Music degree in saxophone performance. All four are Quad-Cities natives -- Mr. Sivertsen and Mr. Carton are both from Moline, while Mr. Rummans is from Rock Island and Mr. Kaschke is from East Moline.
Mr. Sivertsen met the students through his role as youth director. "We formed the band in May 2003 and started writing songs," he said. "We built up a repertoire by writing one to three new songs a month."
Mr. Sivertsen, who acts as musical mentor for the teenagers, is very proud of their accomplishments. "They volunteer a lot at the church," he said. "They're very giving of their time and musical abilities."
The group's original songs include such titles as "Tell Me," "Goodbye My Love," "All I Know," and "Denny's," about a young man who meets a girl at Denny's and becomes infatuated. The group's musical influences include the groups Ben Folds Five and the Dave Matthews Band.
"We have done some praise and worship songs at our church, but that's separate from what we do with Minus Six," Mr. Sivertsen said. "Our songs are about life, love, funny things, little stories -- hanging out and having fun."
The group has played at Fireworks Coffee House in Moline and Theo's Java Club in The District of Rock Island. "We've been trying to stick to the coffeehouse scene so teenagers can get in," Mr. Sivertsen said, "but we do get audience members spanning all ages. It's music the whole family can enjoy."
The group is finishing up production on its first CD, entitled "Overdue." "We're close to getting it done," Mr. Sivertsen said. "We only have two tracks left to record.
"Also, we've got a trailer to haul our gear, so we're looking into doing some traveling to some gigs," he said. Plans include playing at the Quad-City Marathon and the Fourth of July Firecracker Run.
For booking information on Minus Six, visit its Web site at www.minussix.com
© 2004, Moline Dispatch Publishing Company, LLC