who is west side sound?

Jacob has lived in many places over the course of his 31 years, yet Grand Rapids is where he chooses to call home.  Graduating from Grand Valley State University in 2011, he decided then that one day he would have something to do with the music scene in GR that went beyond playing.  He has many passions that include writing music, mentoring local youth, woodworking, and hanging out at his local neighborhood bar shooting pool.  Bring up any topic and he is sure to have an opinion on it, but if you don’t want him talking all night, most certainly don’t bring up a conversation that involves American history.  

Favorite gear:

1. 2011 Standard Fender Telecaster

2. 1990’s Refinished Gibson Special

3. 1973 Guild D25 M

First and foremost, Kyle is a journeyman when it comes to the allusive "perfect sound."  He's constantly looking for it - whether it be with his own musical productions, or as he engineers music for other artists.  Kyle grew up in northern Michigan - where the cold pushed people to stay indoors and find something to occupy their time with.  Kyle chose guitar and songwriting instead of just video games and tv (well, a fair amount of that too).  When Kyle isn't helping music to come alive for any of the artists we partner with, you'll find him playing with one of his newest musical additions from Reverb.com. 

Favorite gear:

1. 1973 Mustang

2. 2001 Fender Baritone Telecater

3. 1983 Gibson Sonex  

Melissa helps out with things like the website, photography, and general marketing nonsense.  She is the glue that holds this ragtag group together.  If she's not tweaking a bit of HTML, creating content, or telling local artists' stories, you'll find her listening to some of her favorite bands:

1. Death Cab For Cutie

2. David Ramirez

3. Noah Gundersen

This is Ellie May. Resident studio dog and couch potato. If you're nice, she may howl on your record.  Ellie has a couple artists she's fond of, though:

1. Howlin Wolf 

2. Elvis Presley (Hound Dog gets her way too hyped, though)

3. Snoop Dogg