David Babich's deput EP, Mind Aside, is a unique blend of quirky jazz and folk-rock to everything in between, weaving universal stories of love, addiction, and freedom. Babich’s voice delivers gentle ballads of self-introspection as well as harrowing tales of loss and desperation. In “Suicide Game,” the main character loses his sister, his faith in God, and his fear, and takes to the streets on a motorcycle where he finally has a life changing epiphany on a desolate desert road at sunrise. On the other end of the spectrum, in “Clouds,” David searches his own soul and the clouds themselves for answers to his deepest longings. “Crystal Thieves,” another ballad, in a 6/8 time signature tells a story about an Ex Dot Com success turned Meth addict. Starkly poignant, this tale is orchestrated with a single guitar, bass, and a churning, eerie synthesizer. The full sound of the David Babich Band is a blend of cello, acoustic and electric guitars, percussion and bass. While Babich himself plays the electric bass lines on the album, Scott Hughes lays down some artful and groovy stand up bass lines on the title track, “Mind Aside” and on “Bad Girl Suzie”. One gets to know Babich’s comic side on this opening track, “Bad Girl Suzie”, as he tells a story about a first date gone bad. Suzie is sloshed when he picks her up at her house, leaves him at the bar, and steals his car while she’s at it. David's influences include David Bowie, Cat Stevens, Simon and Garfunkel, The Moody Blues, Elvis Costello, David Grey, Frank Zappa and Woody Guthrie. ----------------- About David Babich David was raised in a small town outside Kansas City, Kansas, but much of his folk influence came about while playing the role of Woody Guthrie in a musical in the San Francisco Bay Area. After learning and performing 22 of Guthrie’s songs for several months, he could not help but incorporate the style into his own. This influence, combined with the fact that his first guitar teacher forbid him to play with a flat pick, led to his finger driven texture which forms the basis for much of his guitar work. Bay Area After graduating from UCLA with a degree in Music, Babich moved to the Bay Area where he worked as an actor, singer, composer, music director and teacher. He was an integral member of the groundbreaking Jazz Vocal ensemble, Mirabai where he had the opportunity to perform with composer/arranger Michael Smolens, world class drummer Russ Gold, New York based guitarist Joel Harrision, and singer-songwriter Tamsen Fynn. He has also been a key collaborator with San Francisco Cabaret singer and actress Beth Wilmurt. Through his solo work as a singer-songwriter, he has worked with Cellist Alisha Bauer (India Arie, Stevie Wonder) and Keyboardist Joshua Paxton (Afghan Wigs, Wild Magnolias). He performed in dozens of Bay Area music venues, including The Owl and Monkey, Artists’ Café, Accordion Art and Music Space, Annie’s Hall, SF City College, SF Unity Church, and Coffee Katz. As a theatrical composer, David wrote the score for San Francisco Shakespeare Festival’s 2001 production of Romeo and Juliet. In 2005, he was commissioned to write a musical score for American Conservatory Theatre’s M.F.A. production of Bertolt Brecht’s Caucasian Chalk Circle. David’s music is also heard in the independent film, IPO. As a musical director, he has worked for the following professional companies: American Conservatory Theatre, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, TheatreWorks, Pacific Playback Theatre, The Magic Theatre and Art Street Theatre. While in the Bay Area, David performed as an actor in 18 stage productions and 10 films. Los Angeles Since his return to L.A. in 2005, David has turned all of his attention to his songwriting, resulting in the 2007 release of Mind Aside. He is now playing with a 4-piece band in clubs in the area. Recent venues include Tangier Lounge, The Mint, Synergy Lounge, Grande Vista Hotel, Club Fais Do Do and Genghis Cohen. Radio Play "Suicide Game", from his new EP has recently been aired on the weekly radio show, Somewhere Between, which airs on web radio “Golden Flash”, out of Belgium. After playing the title role in the musical Woody Guthrie's American Song, David was asked to do an encore performance on KPFA radio (1998). ----------------- Performance Notes for Mind Aside: 1. Bad Girl Suzie Guitars, Vocals – David Babich Stand Up Bass – Scott Hughes Percussion – Aaron Smith 2. Suicide Game Guitars, Vocals, Bass, Percussion – David Babich Cello – Alisha Bauer 3. Clouds Guitars, Vocals, Percussion – David Babich Cello – Alisha Bauer 4. I Might Have Smiled Guitars, Vocals, Percussion, Keyboard – David Babich 5. Mind Aside Guitars, Vocals – David Babich Back Up Vocals – Esther Chen, Melinda Vyvyan Percussion – Aaron Smith 6. Crystal Thieves Guitar, Vocals, Bass, Keyboard – David Babich