Painfully Tasteful

Since 2002, residents of the Lehigh Valley (and now Northern New Jersey) have had the opportunity to witness the evolution and explosion of The Aardvarks.
The band has been praised by bar owners, employees and fans alike for their ability to cater to any crowd by performing a wide array of musical genres and styles for a variety of events including weddings, local festivals and weekend shows. This Saturday, March 15, the boys are making their debut at Smokey’s Texas BBQ and Steakhouse in Stanhope, New Jersey.
“The Aardvarks are pretty much our biggest band,” said Mezza Luna Sports Bar and Grill employee Michael Gubitosi. “I’ve seen them at least 10 times and they are always entertaining and have set records here.”
The band holds records both for attendance and sales at the Mezza Luna and prides attendance records at the Lehigh Sangerbund of approximately 900 people. Competing bands have not come within 300 people of the ‘Varks’ record.
The band’s rock and roll journey began in 2002 when lead singer and guitarist Mike Rauscher and vocalist, keyboard and pianist Rod Walls decided to take a break from the music scene after a decade of traveling and performing with other bands including Honeybuzzards, Seamrippers and The Armadillos. However, within a few weeks they formed a duo, A Pair of Armadillos and performed throughout the Lehigh Valley.
In 2003, the duo was joined by bassist Scott Erickson of Circle Sky and drummer Jay Sanita of Wake up Naked. A year later, the band went through another transformation as new members, bassist Jon Novak of Spacestation Integration and The Legendary Truth and guitar and vocalist Jay Morgan of Good Time Charlie were welcomed.
Tiring of one animal band name beginning with the letter “A”, the band mates decided to try a new breed and The Aardvarks were born.
Since 2004, The Aardvarks have assembled a catalog of over 100 songs including artists ranging from The Beatles, Tom Petty, Pink Floyd, Cream, The Cars, Van Morrison, The Police, Johnny Cash, The Grateful Dead, Lynyrd Skynrd, The Doors, The Stones and Led Zepplin to Phish, Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Sublime, The Black Crowes, The Wallflowers, 311, Ben Harper and Outkast, to name just a few, and are constantly expanding their repertoire both with covers and originals. The ‘Varks perform monthly at the Mezza Luna which features live music 3 nights a week and regularly throughout the Lehigh Valley area. However, the band’s popularity has grown substantially, making them more than a typical “bar band” with over 30% of their scheduled shows in 2008 being private events and weddings.
“The Aardvarks are definitely one of our top acts,” explained Mezza Luna owner Mark Culnen. “They hold the audience’s attention until the end of every night and that’s why we keep them coming back.”
Despite record setting attendances and an impressive music catalog, perhaps the most endearing quality of The Aardvarks is their youth and energy. No matter the age or size of the crowd, the type of the event or the location, the band delivers quality performances consistently making them a local favorite and guaranteed good time for friends, family, employees, guests and fans alike.
Culnen agreed, “They are fantastic. They have a great stage presence, play good music and are very talented. They are one of the best bands in the valley and we love having them here.”
To see why Culnen keeps bringing the boys back and why Smokey’s is bringing them Saturday, check out their painfully tasteful site for more information about future performances, pictures, the song catalog, other links and more.