Nick

How long you’ve been playing?

I started playing piano when I was 4 years old. I went through a couple of different music teachers. I got bored of playing classical music so I picked up an Aerosmith and Guns n’ Roses music book and started playing rock. When I was a sophomore in high school I decided to pick up the guitar on my own, and have been playing and writing music ever since. Being self taught on the guitar opened up my eyes to improvisation. I loved jamming with some buddies and that’s what kept me going. Once I started writing music I started taking it seriously and started a band with my brother Marko. Here we are today! I have been messing around with a lot of different instruments but my Gibson is what I hold dearest to my heart. I have been singing since I was a kid. My first lesson was with my choir teacher when I decided to sing for church in grade school. I have taken a few vocal lessons with different people here and there and love every minute of it.

Influences

A few of my favorites are Led Zeppelin, Guns N’ Roses, Stone Temple Pilots, Aerosmith, Def Leppard, Pink Floyd.

Why do you play?

As cliché as it sounds, I do it because I love the music. To be heard is one of the greatest gifts we can give and I think it would be a shame not to. Playing music makes me forget about life in general. When I’ve got that guitar in my hand all I’m thinking about is music. It’s a form of relaxation for me and gives me the opportunity to get away from everything. It’s just me, my music and my guys, which makes it so much fun to do. My inspiration when it comes to writing is whatever is going on in my life at the moment. I am inspired by a lot of things, like a good relationship, a bad experience, a nice day or even just laying down watching a movie. My biggest inspiration when it comes to arranging is my band. They all bring so much to the table and when they start going it sparks something inside of me and the creative juices start flowing.