Stepping Out

Getting to 'Know her'

Oceanside teens make an impact on the music scene

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In the midst of a high school production of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” nearly two years ago, five students met and formed a band. Sounds familiar, right? A bunch of teenagers saddling up with instruments, playing gigs around the neighborhood — a common storyline these days.

So what makes Oceanside’s barely Know her stand out from the rest? This young group of multi-talented musicians has a commitment to creating genuine music experiences for anyone willing to listen to them. What sets them apart is that they’re achieving this — and more — while students at Oceanside High School.

The band consists of Austin Sharpe, 16, senior (lead vocals/guitar/sax); Chava DiMaio, 16, senior (vocals/guitar/bass); Paul Cirillo, 16, junior (vocals/guitar/bass/sax); Joe Sammartano, 15, junior (vocals/keyboard/trombone); and John Bologna, 16, junior (vocals/drums). The group began practicing together in December 2014. They jokingly explain that they began as a ‘The 1975’ cover band, finding their sound together in the living room of Sharpe’s home.
“When we went to the first practice, all that was in there was a TV, two couches, a keyboard, a couple of amps, and a little drumming pad,” Cirillo says. “Today, we have five to six amps, guitars, basses, two full drum sets, and a synthesizer.”

“Without my dad, this band would not exist,” Sharpe says, adding that his father was once in a band, and encouraged his son to start one of his own.

They performed live for the first time at Oceanside High School’s annual Battle of the Bands in May 2015. Since then, bKh has gained an impressive fan following, and have upgraded from playing in the cramped corners of local coffeehouses and libraries to one of the most legendary venues in New York City. On Aug. 13, the group held their first New York City gig at the renowned The Bitter End.
“It was one of our best shows in terms of hype and energy, and it was a big step for us,” Sammartano says. “If you go back two years, I would have never expected to be where we are. It just shows that you can be a star at any age. If you have the ability, you can go far in a short amount of time.”
“It was surreal, but we still made it a genuine show,” Sharpe says. “At the end of it, I was on top of a table high-fiving people in the middle of a song, and I serenaded someone during ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You’.” One of the more popular covers bKh performs is their rendition of that Frankie Valli classic (which has caught on with a new generation of fans as a result of Lauryn Hill’s remake).

In addition to a busy summer concert schedule, bKh had the opportunity to cut a demo of one of their songs after winning Purpl’s Fifth Annual Battle of the Teen Bands in upstate Hastings-on-Hudson, on May 21. The band worked with producer Adel Hinawi (who laid the tracks for John Mayer’s first album, “Room For Squares”) to produce a studio recording of their original “The (Good) Okay Kids,” which was penned by DiMaio. “You could tell the experience and professionalism he had when it came to recording,” Sharpe says. “It was a crazy experience.” The demo is set to be released this month.

The bKh sound is a vibrant mix of pop punk and alternative influences, with hints of jazz and Broadway thrown into the mix. The band credits their showtune-inspired harmonies to their involvement in their high school’s theater group, Thespian Troupe 132. “Some bands just play music, but we love to actually perform, which adds a whole new level [for] whoever comes to see our shows,” Cirillo says.
“It’s also helped us perform under pressure because in theater you have to think on your feet. If you mess up you have to just go with it,” Sharpe adds.
DiMaio, bKh’s primary lyricist, says that there is no one genre for their songs. “The music I’m feeling at the time influences what I write,” she explains. “They’re all different.” She recalls when Drake dropped his latest album “Views” earlier this year, “that was the same month I wrote ‘Okay Kids’, [which] is an R&B rap song.”

The originals are true to the band’s vibe — easygoing melodies that you can sing and dance to. Their self-proclaimed fan favorite “Lost Song” is a feel-good, hipster anthem of togetherness and love, while “UFOs” is a kicked-up lullaby with an out-of-this-world reverb. The lyrics are dotted with heartwarming metaphors that are passionately driven by bKh’s energetic stage presence.
Despite winning multiple competitions, recording a demo with a famed producer, and playing one of the most noted venues on the east coast, bKh remains what they were at the onset of this journey — a genuine group of friends just making music together.

“I feel very proud of the work that we’ve put in and I’m glad that we’ve become such a great band, but I think the most important thing is to stay humble, because there’s always more to improve on. So we always need to make sure we’re on our A-game, but we still appreciate everybody who’s helped us along the way,” Bologna says.
This fall, bKh will continue to build upon their growing success. In early October, the band heads back to Manhattan, this time on the red carpet at the All-American High School Film Festival, for a screening of their music video “Lost Song.” It was chosen from over 1,800 submissions to be shown during the weekend-long event. Then, on Oct. 15, they’ll perform at a Breast Cancer Awareness Month benefit hockey game between the Long Beach Sharks and the LA Fighting Spirit at the Long Beach Ice Arena.

The band demonstrates a fierce commitment to their music and refuses to be boxed in by the phrase “for your age,” which according to Bologna are the most detrimental three words young musicians can hear.
Most are self-taught on their respective instruments, which they picked up specifically for the band. They remain focused as they cope with the demands of school and the band’s growing success: they packed Revolution Music Hall in Amityville with over 100 fans (or ‘bKh nation’ as their followers are known), while winning accolades and receiving incredible feedback from fellow bands and music professionals — in only two years.

“At our first [high school] Battle of the Bands in 2015, we may not have won the contest, but we definitely won the night. That was our start, like, ‘this band is something to look out for’, and not just because of how good we sound but how different we are,” Sharpe says.

Of course, they came back this year and won the 2016 edition of OHS’ Battle of the Bands. “We just can’t wait to see where it leads,” Sharpe adds.