Interview: Dive House Union

Interview by Julia Foy:

What are the names (and instruments) of the members of the band?

Todd Eberwine - Lead Guitar / Vocals,
David Miller - Guitar / Lead Vocals
Dave Herr - Bass / Vocals
Barry Arbogast - Saxophone
Tom Scime - Keys + B3
Shannon Street - Drums / Vocals


How long have you guys been together?/ How did you form?

The band was formed out of 4 members of The Todd Eberwine Band and 2 members of Beautiful Bones. TEB has been playing in the Buffalo area (and continues to do so) since 2003, we initially added David Miller to fill the void left by Quinn Murphy on vocals. Then we found Barry, drunk on wine at one of our shows playing the sax in the crowd and we realized we needed him too. (just kidding, he does love wine though). As DHU, we've been together only about 9 months.


What is the origin of the band's name?


From our website: Dive houses, juke joints, and dance halls have been the birthplaces of great musical moments and artists. Dive House Union is four members of The Todd Eberwine Band and two from Beautiful Bones, bringing their influences together into a soul shaking musical experience. They combine a roots vibe, driving rhythms, and melodic lines with the spontaneity and energy of a jam band. Empowering the music even more is the spirit of this brotherhood which shines through in every performance - that's the Union - that's Dive House Union.


How would you describe your sound, and who most strongly influenced that sound?


Influences on this band are all across the board. You have 6 guys from different backgrounds trying to blend their ideas. So far what's come out has been deep rooted pocket with some funk, soul, blues and jazz which can also go to full blown rock mode in either category. As we continue to write music, we see more and more influences coming out so if you haven't heard what you want to yet... stay tuned.


How has your music evolved since you first began playing music together?


This band being so young it's hard to say. It's really just getting it's legs as a complete unit. We have a ton of songs written, mostly by David Miller, a few by myself and then really only one true whole collaborative piece at the moment. We just purchased an old Theater as our new home and our intentions are to write music all the time together. We're REALLY excited about where that's going, we just moved in last week.

How has the music scene in Buffalo embraced and shaped your music?

The Buffalo scene so far has really embraced the band in its infancy. We recently sold out the Mary Seaton Room at Kleinhans Music Hall (videos on YouTube). We are currently mixing the recording of that performance for a live CD release. The Sunday Blues show with Anita West on WBFO has been HUGELY supportive of the band. We've had other musicians around town giving us compliments, some of whom we highly respect and that is a bit surreal.



What are your favorite songs to perform live, and why?

For me personally, it's a tie between "Set The  Music Free (Hennessey Jam)" and "Swinging Like A Hammer". It really depends on the mood I'm in that day. If I'm just ready to rock out and expend some energy then "Hammer" is the song. It's such a rocker. STMF I like for a lot of reasons. 1. It's primarily an improvisational piece and that's my love as a musician, creating on the fly and communicating with my band mates in a way that few get to experience. 2. It showcases everyone in the band. 3. It has the best story... We went through a phase last summer where the first song of every show HAD to be an improv piece on the spot. This songs main melody came out of one of those jams and we kept it. It was at the bar Hennesseys in Lancaster, hence the "(Hennessey Jam)" in the title.

Do you have plans to tour outside of Buffalo?

We do. We won't be playing in Buffalo again until this Summer. We should be announcing some spring tour dates in the coming weeks. We have one performance in NY this summer already lined up at the Willow Creek Winery in Irving NY. That's on June 25th, apparently it's the largest firework display in the state, about 1000 tickets will sell and it's a beautiful plot of land. Other than that, there will be a Rochester and Syracuse date released soon for the spring. Buffalo will get a summer date.

Anything else you would like to add, or anyone you would like to thank?

We would really like to thank everyone who has been so helpful and supportive to us thus far. Our families and friends, Anita West at WBFO and the fans for selling out Kleinhans (yesterday), so awesome.

Photo 1: DHU at Kleinhans Music Hall
Photo 2: David Miller of Dive House Union