53.4 F
Indianapolis
Thursday, March 28, 2024

Funk, Soul & Rock ’n’ Roll: The Main Squeeze creates music for everyone

More by this author

When Indianapolis native Corey Frye joined a band in college, he never imagined that in six years his group, The Main Squeeze, would be touring across the country. Today, the independent band has more than 20,000 followers on social media, more than 70,000 views on various YouTube videos, and has taken the stage everywhere from New Orleans  to Nashville. Despite his nationwide success, he hasn’t forgotten his Hoosier roots. Annually, he makes it a point to come back home and play in Indiana. 

“Indianapolis is my home town, and though I live (in Los Angeles) now, I play in Indy once or twice a year. We just played a show at the Vogue, and it was a really great show,” said Frye.

Members of The Main Squeeze met at Indiana University and discovered their shared love of music. The group’s drummer, Reuben Gingrich, and guitarist, Max Newman, lived in the same dorm. Frye met Ben “Smiley” Silverstein, who plays the keyboard, while hanging out at Kilroy’s sports bar. Eventually, all five men joined forces and started playing at parties, and their unique sound gained the attention of music lovers near and far. 

“We all come from very different backgrounds, and our parents listen to a lot of different music. We’re like, let’s just write the music how we feel, and we will let that speak for itself,” said Frye. “We have this rock side that can get kind of heavy, we’ve got a funky side that you can dance to and feel good, and we have a soulful side that combines the best of both. It grooves and gives you an old-school feeling. It’s rock meets folk meets soul. It’s an eclectic sound, but it’s music for everyone.” 

Their sound has evolved through the years, and while their music is just as eccentric and upbeat as it was in their college days, they do not shy away from creating music with a message. One such example is the band’s song “Shot,” inspired by their time living in Chicago, as well as current events.

“In 2012, we moved to Chicago from Bloomington and lived there three or four years. It’s a beautiful place, but there were some bad parts. In Chicago, there is a lot of gun violence. With all of the things that were going on politically, and with Trayvon Martin and all of the police brutality, we had a message on our hearts and we wanted to speak our mind,” said the bandleader. “They say shoot before you are shot down, but your shot can be your voice, your positivity and your love for other people. It doesn’t have to be bullets. We released the video on Inauguration Day. It was so powerful and people really loved it.” 

As an independent artist, Frye is blown away by the amount of support the band has gotten. 

“There is no greater feeling than someone messaging the band and saying that our music got them through hard times, or even just a bad day. We see young kids take in the music and pass our videos around. As entertainers we want to alleviate the worries of day-to-day life. To help others forget about the hardships and celebrate what’s good in life is a powerful thing,” he said.

Frye hopes to bring the band back to Indianapolis sometime this fall.

 

For more information on The Main Squeeze, visit mainsqueezemusic.com.

- Advertisement -

Upcoming Online Townhalls

- Advertisement -

Subscribe to our newsletter

To be updated with all the latest local news.

Stay connected

1FansLike
1FollowersFollow
1FollowersFollow
1SubscribersSubscribe

Related articles

Popular articles

Español + Translate »
Skip to content