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Morry Sochat and The Special 20’s are bringing a fresh sound to the Chicago Blues scene. They mix classic Chicago Blues with Swing and Rock N’ Roll from the 1950’s. The band is influenced by the best in blues history. Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Louis Jordan, Junior Wells, and all of the Chicago greats.

Morry Sochat (pronounced Socket) moved to Chicago from Texas in 1990. He started playing harmonica in 2000, taking lessons from renowned teacher, Joe Filisko at the Old Town School of Folk Music. He played with The Shakes and Tongue & Groove before starting The Special 20s in 2005. Their first, self-titled release, recorded in 2006, was received with great reviews, taking the 20s from playing one or two nights a month to constant bookings all over the city. Morry has been playing around the city learning from the greats in Chicago, playing with Dave Specter, Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, Billy Flynn and Barrelhouse Chuck.

In 2007, Sochat took the next step and went out on his own. He hired some of the best musicians in Chicago to round out The Special 20s. In 2008, they returned to the studio to record a new CD. The recording Swingin’ Shufflin’ Smokin’ was produced by Nick Moss and featured Ted Beranis, Kenny Smith, Dave Ross, Nick Krebs, Shoji Naito, and Jim St. Marie. The CD was also met with rave reviews. This opened up doors for the band across the US.

In 2010 Morry took the band back to the studio to release Eatin’ Dirt. The CD was produced by Jimmy Sutton, and features 10 original songs. The band has grown in both skill level and size, adding a horn section on a lot of the songs. Eating’ Dirt was a sound expansion for the band.  It was the first CD that brought in the horn section.  The recording featured the line up of  Marty Binder, Doug Corcoran, Shoji Naito, Chris Neal, Jim St. Marie and Ted Beranis. It has special guests Billy Flynn, Dave Hererro, and Brother John on the CD.  The sound is vintage with a modern feel.

The new album, Dig In was released on November 24th, 2015.  It was recorded with the same band as Eatin’ Dirt with the addition of Billy Flynn.  Tim Bluhm, from the Mother Hips, produced the CD.  It was a crazy recording session.  We got 19 inches of snow on the first day.  The album came out great!!!

The band is cooking on all cylinders so get out and see them live.

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Mellencougar is made up of a group of musicians from the Illinois/Wisconsin scene. Our appreciation of the music of Heartland U.S.A. and specifically John Cougar Mellencamp helped to create our band and gain the respect of many venues, fans and musicians.

The shared experiences described in John’s lyrics bring the audience and band together while singing songs about youthful lust in songs like “Hurt So Good”, “Ain’t Even Done With The Night” and “I Need A Lover”
In songs such as “Check It Out”, “Small Town” and “Jack and Diane” you are reminded of what is truly important in life and how to recognize it.

As the fiddle cries and the bass drum hits, patriotic songs like “ROCK in the U.S.A.”, “Rain on The Scarecrow” and “Pink Houses” drive you to dancing as you raise your glass to toast the greatest country on earth, the United States of America.

Mellencougar has shared the stage with Eddie Money, Blake Shelton, the Spin Doctors, Styx, Night Ranger, Jamey Johnson and many other national acts.

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OMT play’s a variety of music from Rock to Indie to Country-from classic to current. Their approach is simple – choose great works and try to play them in their own style.

OMT was formerly ONE MORE TIME, originally founded by Rob Steininger and Tom Schlueter. One More Time was a band with rich long history and a strong following. In an industry in which the lifespan of most bands can be measured in months, One More Time had defied the odds. For a better part of three decades they were a local favorite delivering a steady diet of intense improvisation and jamming over classic Rock songs.

Multi-talented drummer and vocalist Bob Carroll of OMT was a founding member of One More Time, and in its final years OMT guitarist and vocalist Dick Kuhn joined the One More Time band. When Steininger and Schlueter left the band in 2011, Carroll and Kuhn teamed up with famed guitarist – songwriter Mike Aquino together with well known bassist John Jannotti for the 2012 season.

OMT had yet another reconfiguration this year with bassist Jannotti heading to Florida.  Forging ahead as it has done many times before, OMT was able to obtain the professional services of bassist Jason Trtan – a graduate of Boston’s Berklee College of Music, as well as a bass instructor.

OMT regularly appears at local venues like Frankies’s Blue Room in Naperville and in some of the areas most popular music festivals such as Naperville’s “Rib Fest” and “Last Fling” events. The band supports live music and venues that promote live music. OMT supports music of all genres and frequently invites other musicians to perform with them.

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Mixtape Junkies is a Chicago area band, playing a collection of songs you fondly remember from the late seventies through the late eighties

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The Mudmen is a Chicago-based Pink Floyd project born in the Summer of 2018. The band pays tribute to all Pink Floyd eras, from the psychedelic beginnings all the way through the enormity of The Wall and beyond.

Made up of an eclectic mix of established Chicago-scene musicians, the band serves up a fresh approach to Floyd’s catalogue. Each show is different with a balanced flow of fan favorites, deep cuts, longer excerpts, and unique arrangements which sets The Mudmen apart from other Pink Floyd projects on the scene.

The Mudmen make up for typical tribute gimmicks by providing its audience with a one of a kind aural journey each and every show. While some arrangements will hold true to the originals, The Mudmen also venture into uncharted territory that is rarely seen in other tribute acts.