Images by Johnnie Crow
Words by Melissa Butterfly
With their beautiful hair and classic rock style, Joyous Wolf represents southern California to a T. Originally from Orange County, they drove north with passion, heart and soul to hit the L.A. scene hard. After making it in Hollywood, they are now taking their show on the road.
Vocalist Nick Reese, drummer Robert Sodaro and bassist Greg Braccio were in high school together when they met guitarist Blake Allard in their local Guitar Center and the band came together. Driven by a creative spirit, they love being able to play the music that they want to play. They all feel that being themselves and playing their own music is the best thing in the world. It’s having the freedom to do so that makes it great. All four of them are never satisfied and getting better at shows and songwriting. They are never going to settle and are going to keep pushing until they believe in what they are doing.
On a more literal level, their current tour has them driving around the country in their van. With trips of 31 and 40 hours between shows, they have slept in plenty of Walmart parking lots providing them a safe haven. Despite the tight quarters and cramped backs, the tour has given them a chance to overlook the discomfort of living together in a van, allowing everyone to come together and let brotherhood drive them. They feel very fortunate to be doing what they love and hope that they can become a spark to light the flame in other aspring musicians, by showing them that anyone can do it if they are passionate.
Joyous Wolf is musically driven by so many musical greats such as Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and Soundgarden. As a group of songwriters, they are inspired by themselves as a band. All together they make it happen through cooperation and sharing of the same passions. Their live show is something to behold – with love, brotherhood, and family at its core.
A full gallery of Joyous Wolf images at Aftershock 2017 in Sacramento, California can be found below:
A full gallery of Joyous Wolf images at Louder Than Life Festival 2017 in Louisville, Kentucky can be found below: