By: Matt Stock
“Who wants to start a reggae rock band on HHI?”
This direct, simple inquiry was posted by Soundboy’s Kyle Wareham on Facebook in mid-September of 2017. At the end of a wildly successful summer promoting and performing behind the breakout debut record from his other band, Pretty Darn, Wareham wasn’t ready to rest. Having spent 10 years as the frontman of beloved Philadelphia rock-reggae band Three Legged Fox, he could feel his roots tugging at his soul. “I’ve always enjoyed reggae music, it was the first kind of music I truly loved,” says Wareham, “and with this band I was thinking I really wanted to go strictly reggae.”
Replies to the Facebook post came in rapid succession, with no shortage of local musicians excitedly down for the cause. Fortuitously, two of those comments came from guitarist John Wilkins and multi-instrumentalist Jos Vicars, founding members of longtime island rock-reggae heroes The Storks. Unknown to Wareham, they were facing some stability and lineup challenges as the season was ending. “Things had fallen apart with The Storks and that post came up within days. We were hungry to get into a new project,” said Vicars. In a perfect twist of fate, the seeds of Soundboy were planted.
Wareham and Vicars weren’t complete strangers. Wareham recalls, “Jos and I met and I played a few gigs with him at Tiki Hut, and I always loved The Storks and thought he was a great bassist. He and I converged on the idea and it was a no-brainer.” When it came time to begin assembling Soundboy’s lineup, they knew there was only one option on lead guitar, the eternally cool Wilkins, with whom Vicars had been performing for over 20 years. “He’s super cool!” says Vicars of his longtime friend and collaborator. “He’s got taste, call it tone… he gets a sound off his guitars that other people don’t. The reason I keep asking John to be involved in projects with me is because I have yet to meet anyone that can deliver so many different tones and be a confident musician onstage. His repertoire is formidable.” The pitch landed, and Wilkins jumped aboard. An off-season of lineup discussions and planning continued in earnest. When the fog of winter dissipated, pianist Martin Lesch and drummer Greg Critchley, two of the best in the business at what they do, were also on board, as were percussionists Nate Douglas of Pretty Darn, and later, La Pachanga’s Juan Buzo.
The ultimate objective of Hilton Head’s latest all-star band was agreed upon from the beginning; Soundboy would serve as a platform for the members to hone and share their original material, with a sampling of covers. Reggae seemed an appealing medium to convey both. Elaborates Wareham, “I think reggae is just so universal. Part of the reason is that lyrically it’s positive music, and as far as the musical style and arrangement of parts, it’s very non-aggressive, there’s a lot of space and a lot of groove.”
It was also of paramount importance to Vicars that the space afforded within those grooves be used to convey the natural spiritualism that is not only a core tenet of reggae, but the cornerstone of Vicars’ personal belief system. “What I want to bring to this whole thing is to feel the waves and the wind. The vibrations of music are the same as those of a wave, or water, or light. To link up all these vibrations is, to me, just magical.”
This magic is evident each and every time Soundboy takes the Tiki Hut beachfront stage, their sole base of operations since their debut in May of 2018. “Soundboy Sundays” are majorly buzzed-about, must attend gatherings of local music enthusiasts (and more than a few musicians) with an unmistakable vibe.
It’s when you arrive to the show, feet in the sand, that the waves hit. Vicars demurs when called the band’s director, insisting that “this is a group of six badasses. I just happen to be the one with the mixer.” Still, Vicars’ recorded samples of effects-modified natural sounds and beats, paired with his bass and didgeridoo, create a clear through line as his bandmates build escalating jams in each number. Wareham and Wilkins provide a sharp yet infectious dual guitar groove. Critchley and Buzo keep a perfect beat, while Lesch explores deftly and playfully on his keys. This is FUN. Dancing and laughter are the order of the day, not just among the revelers, but the band as well. Soundboy radiates a kind of joy from the stage that cannot be understated; a loose, relaxed reggae swagger that builds to a crescendo where the band and the fans are truly elevated. “When you put that kind of music at a place like the Tiki Hut, on the beach, it’s a perfect marriage,” says Wareham.
A happy marriage at that. It’s impossible to watch these dudes and not notice each of them wearing permanent smiles through the course of a set, and it’s not a stage thing. Yes, these guys are pros operating at a high level, but they’re having as much, if not more, fun than the crowd gathered to boogie down with them. Says Critchley, whose grin perpetually emanates from behind his drum kit, “What I dig about playing with Soundboy is the sense of humor that happens within the ‘musical conversation’ we’re having on stage. While there are definitely roadmaps and song forms being respected and adhered to, much of what we play on stage happens by chance, it’s that improvisational aspect that carries with it a sense of playfulness and teamwork that can only be described as pure joy. That’s the smile you see.” Chances are, if you take a look around you at a Soundboy show, it’s the same smile you’re likely to see on everyone else.
