ORYAN was formed in 2008 when Ryan Megan and Ryan Schoonmaker began jamming together in New Paltz, NY. Megan, a singer and guitar player with a Tom Waits meets Pink Floyd sound, and Schoonmaker, a drummer with a taste for progressive rhythms were sick of the local music scene. They despised self proclaimed “jam bands” who would gladly forfeit a tight, well written tune for another ten minute keyboard solo. Worse yet were the seemingly endless number of “hardcore” bands whose live sets sounded like a soundtrack for a torture victim, played with poorly tuned instruments. Where had all the solid, well crafted, kick a** rock music gone? Fusing elements of folk, progressive and classic rock, and even hints of metal and country, the two musicians began crafting tracks of a truly unique nature. They quickly realized that their mutual love for varying, and what some might assume to be clashing, genres of music created a sound and style that is definitively their own. In the spring of 2009, Ryan McCann and Adam Gosney joined ORYAN, rounding out the quartet. McCann’s tasty bass lines highlight Schoonmaker’s bombastic style on the drums and add even more depth to Megan’s baritone vocals and driving guitar, while Gosney’s tasty guitar licks and high flying psychedelic solos create a truly vivid soundscape. ORYAN has performed in such venues as The Chance, The Loft, The Basement, Keegan Ales, and The Black Swan. They have made it their mission, and will stop at nothing, to bring solid, lyrically driven music back to the upstate New York music scene. "The tone established here is clearly of distraught and somber intentions, and how it remains consistent while keeping in mind the original structure and impressive performances makes it truly a remarkable effort." - Obscure Sound