Minkin's Music: A night out with The Gage Bros.

By Jay Minkin

The artistic energy flowing from local songwriters, all in their mid-twenties, is just incredible.

Making fast strides are The Gage Brothers, who have gone from playing open mics to playing premier area clubs. Older brother Ben Gage (harmonica/Cajon beat box) and his younger brother Zach Gage (guitar, lead vocals) were playing music at church and began practicing folk songs afterward at home. This led to the duo performing in Akron at open mics and taverns in 2014, eventually breaking into Cleveland’s music network a year later.

Local mandolinist Brendan O’Malley (Honeybucket) was the first to join them followed by singer/songwriter Chris Volpe who added banjo and pedal steel.  

The layering of vocal harmonies proved to be the finishing touch to their sound. The foursome just released their self-titled second full-length record with 11 original songs and one cover as the follow-up to Take It Back in 2015.

Kevin Martinez (The Speedbumps/Roger Hoover) was brought in to play bass on the recording that was produced and mixed by Cleveland’s Jim Stewart. 

The album grabs your attention immediately with a snippet of a cappella before launching into the radio friendly, “All You Are,” a song that had been part of the brother’s early repertoire finally tracked with a full ensemble of players. The band uses different instruments to carry each arrangement, adding fills from the rest to give a subtle change from track to track.  

Songs like “Gone,” “I’m So Lonesome,” “Caged,” “Come Home” and “Third Season” will not only touch your heart, but your emotional soul. With the sweet addition of Caty Petersilge on fiddle at live performances, a night out seeing the Gage Brothers should be on your social calendar.          

Contact Jay at Blues4Bird@aol.com or post on his Minkin’s Music Facebook page.