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HackJammers play what they like to refer to as party rock. Their repertoire is geared toward being upbeat and danceable. They do classics like “Brown Sugar” by The Rolling Stones alongside contemporary tunes like “Shut Up and Dance” by Walk the Moon.
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Keyboardist Bob LaRochelle says that the most popular song the band plays is “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars.
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“Never in our decades of playing music in different bands have we seen a song that consistently gets people running to the dance floor!” says LaRochelle.
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The Santa Clara County quartet features Mark Sochan (bass, vocals), Roman Sochan (drums), Roberto “Bert” Bayardo (guitar, backing vocals), and Bob LaRochelle (keyboard, vocals).
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The band builds it sets by asking one question: Will this song get people up on the dance floor?
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“There is nothing more satisfying to us as musicians and entertainers than seeing the dance floor packed with people dancing and grooving to our music,” says LaRochelle.
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HackJammers has been together about four years. Its members are spread out across Santa Clara County, but they find time for weekly rehearsals.
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LaRochelle sat down with South Valley to discuss HackJammers’ Fifth Street Live performance in Gilroy on Friday July 15, the group’s musical influences, and what music means to him.
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SOUTH VALLEY: What’s the story behind the name HackJammers?
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BOB LaROCHELLE: The band name was suggested by Bert’s wife. She suggested HackJammers because we are all “techies” that have done programming in our careers. So we were “Hackers” who were “Jamming” in the living room and garage when we first started.
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What has the band been up to this year?
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2016 has been a tough year for musicians. We’ve lost some great people, but we use that as an opportunity to learn some material. A few months ago we learned “Rebel Rebel” by David Bowie. We’ve played “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince at our past few shows and the audience really loves it. It was on our list of potential songs to learn, but when Prince passed away it was a no-brainer to add it. The song will likely be a consistent favorite and a part of our shows going forward.
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Have you played at Fifth Street Live before?
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We played it last year and it was a great time. I don’t really know what the headcount was, but there were a lot of people. We had some people dancing. I think it was great to see some of the little kids just enjoying live music and getting a dose of that instead of watching TV. I think it’s a great family event and it draws a good crowd. We enjoyed it very much last year.
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Do you expect any difference this year?
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No. We’ve been around for one additional year, so maybe we’ll draw a bit of a bigger crowd. And hopefully we’ll have good weather. We’ll get a good crowd. I’m hoping it’ll be at least as much fun as last year.
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What other upcoming shows are the band playing?
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We have some exciting shows coming up. On Saturday, July 16 we are playing at Clos LaChance from 6-9 p.m. for a special “Saturday edition” of their popular Time for Wine event (which is usually on Thursdays). On Thursday, Aug. 11 we are playing at St. Catherine’s church from 6:30-8:30 p.m., which is a fun outdoor family event. And on Friday, Aug. 12 we return to Clos La Chance and perform for their “Ladies night out” event from 6-9 p.m. We perform at GVA Cafe in Morgan Hill on Saturday, Sept. 3 from 8 p.m. to closing. We really appreciate venues like Clos LaChance and GVA Cafe for supporting live music.
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What are the band’s musical influences?
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As far as the band goes, our guitar player Bert is from Austin, so he’s very influenced by blues players like Stevie Ray Vaughn. Mark and Roman, who are brothers, they both played in bands in their youth. I’d say they’re more influenced by kind of straight ahead rock and roll. They were in a country band for a while too.
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What about your influences?
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I’m a fan of bands like Steely Dan and Deep Purple. I took jazz lessons for a long time, so I really like Bill Evans. That’s somebody I like to listen to. But you know, I’ll probably never play that well in my life. A few weeks ago I went to Keith Emerson’s tribute concert, he passed away a couple months ago. So, progressive rock bands like Emerson, Lake and Palmer were an influence.
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When did you start playing? What made you want to start playing?
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I started playing in bands when I was in high school. Back then I lived in Massachusetts, so loading and unloading a van in the winter is something I don’t particularly miss. I was never an athlete, so music was something I could do to express myself, make some money, and get out and do something with other people. In my teens I really got inspired by some of the spectacular keyboard players like Elton John, Billy Joel, Jon Lord (Deep Purple) and progressive rockers like Keith Emerson (Emerson, Lake and Palmer) and Rick Wakeman (Yes). Back then, I made pretty decent money and it helped pay for college, gas for my car, etc. I was self-taught and that limited my musical perspective.
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How did those jazz lessons influence you? How have the bands you’ve played in influenced you over time?
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As an adult I took jazz lessons and that opened up a new world of musicians to listen to (for example, Bill Evans who will always be my favorite jazz pianist) and gave me a better background of how music is structured. I developed much better musicianship from taking jazz lessons, but sometimes need to play in a more straightforward manner for the rockers that HackJammers plays. Each band I’ve played in gave me the opportunity to learn from other musicians. My band mates are all super talented which makes performing a lot of fun.
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What does music mean to you? Do you see it as art? A hobby? Tradition? Has that meaning changed over the course of your life?
Music is one of the most positive things a person can embrace. There is music that can augment any situation or any mood. When I listen to professionals I see it as art, and a way to communicate and express yourself. For me it is a hobby, but one that I am passionate about. Since the band members are not teenagers in a garage, we focus on bringing our best to the band and we challenge ourselves. From a tradition standpoint, I think music has always been part of the fabric of people’s lives, and live music has always been a way for the performers and the audience to enjoy living in the moment. That “live in and enjoy the moment” experience has been consistent my entire life. I’ve gotten to meet so many talented musicians in south Santa Clara County since I started playing in public again and we support each other’s effort and have a connection from the mutual love of music.
