On Sunday, Orlando based folk band, The 502s are having an EP release show at Fiddlers Green Irish Pub & Eatery. Music fans will be able to pick up copies of the band’s debut four song EP at the show.
Three out of the four “regular” members of The 502s, Eddie Isola, Jake Isola, Jonathan Ruiz and Jake Icardi, are related. “Three of us, Ed, Jacob, and Jonathan, are all cousins,” said the band. “It really feels like we’re all brothers though since we’ve grown up together and have lived within five minutes of each other for our entire lives. In terms of being in a band with each other, it’s great. We all have personalities that mesh very well with each other and we get on extremely well.”
The band chose Plush Recording Studios in Winter Springs for their first foray into recording their original music. “It was awesome,” they said. “We didn’t really know what to expect going into the studio, because the stage is where we are most comfortable. We pride ourselves on our live shows, and have put a lot of work into them. So going into the studio felt a little foreign to us and we didn’t know if it would be a one day process, or weeks. We didn’t really know what the process would be like. We just went with a set of great live songs, played them through, and really had to trust the guys in the studio. It was well worth it though and the material turned out great.”
Joining the band for this special show on Sunday are several musical friends. “We brought in some very special guests,” said the band. “The first act of the night will be Lauren Lester, who is our good friend and an incredible singer songwriter. We actually met Lauren at Fiddler’s about a year ago at one of our first ever shows, and she’s been an amazing friend and collaborator ever since. We’ve also got Orlando-based Beemo playing. We met their bassist Tony three months ago and have gotten to know the rest of the guys well since then. They’re a great band and they have a very warm feel to their music, which will be a perfect fit in Fidd’s! Probably the most exciting part of the evening though is the addition of Kaleigh LeBeau and Miguel Lugo. Kaleigh is a singer/songwriter/jack of all trades, but to us she’ll forever be Orlando’s best trumpet player! We’ve known Kaleigh for about six months now, but it feels like it has been ages. She is absolutely phenomenal on the trumpet and really completes the songs, and we can’t help but feel warm inside when the trumpet starts humming! Miguel Lugo is equally as talented on the accordion, and his passion for playing living is second to none. The first time we ever played with him was at a Christmas party about three years on a whim, and it’s been a perfect match ever since then!”
In their live shows, the band hopes the audience experiences it the same way they do. “The most important thing is for everyone to just relax, have fun, and be in the moment,” said the band. “We enjoy playing live and expressing ourselves on stage. But we’re comfortable going on stage in the first place because we enjoy doing it and aren’t concerned about what people are thinking, and that’s what we want everyone else to feel. Just let loose and have a great time for an hour. Throw your hands in the air, clap them together, scream, stomp your feet. Do whatever you want and enjoy yourself because that’s exactly what we’ll be doing, and there’s a very intoxicating feeling to letting go and just being in the moment.”
The band may be new to the Orlando music scene, but they have jumped in with both feet and like what they’ve found. “The Orlando music scene is stronger than ever,” they said. “There are an incredible amount of talented bands in the area, and it feels like everyday we meet more. And not only is the scene growing, but it’s extremely welcoming. In terms of being established, we’re a fairly young band as we’ve been together only ten months. But it doesn’t feel that way out in the musical community. Everyone is warm and welcoming and willing to do whatever they can to help other bands grow, help the scene grow and that’s a very rewarding thing to be a part of.”
They may be a newly formed band, but they have a firm grasp on their goals and how a band can be successful. “Direction and planning,” said the band. “It’s very easy for a band to lose direction and fade out if they don’t have something to work towards and a plan on how to achieve it. And it doesn’t have to be some big, grand goal. It can be something as simple as wanting to play an open mic, which is exactly how it started for us. We decided we wanted to do an open mic, worked really hard towards getting prepared for it, and then went and did it. Then we found our next goal, and worked towards it in wanting to play Okeechobee Music Festival. We had literally two months together as a band, so it was probably a little ambitious in even thinking we could play a 35,000 person festival, but that just speaks to what have a goal and a plan of attack can do. Then again with the EP, same thing. Knowing what you want to do or achieve, and having the discipline and work ethic to make it happen is the most important thing for a band today – and not having that is the biggest obstacle to success. Just trying and working hard will get you places we’ve found, even if it’s not exactly where you intended to go.”
For this special show, the band is looking forward to the added dimension of their special guests. “First and foremost we are excited about the raw energy and communal atmosphere that will be in the building,” they said. “It’s going to be a very fun vibe that will, by the end of the night, hopefully feel like one big family get together, stemming from the other artists that will be there, which we’re really, really excited about. We’ve got plans to bring Lauren on stage, bring the fellas from Beemo on stage, we’ll likely end up on stage for a song or two of Beemo’s set. It’s really going to be a special show. Additionally, Fiddler’s is the perfect sized pub – it’s big enough to hold a lot of people, but at the same time small enough to create an intimate and unforgettable environment.”
The EP release show is on Sunday, August 14 at Fiddlers Green Irish Pub & Eatery, 544 W. Fairbanks Ave. and the music starts at 5 p.m. Admission is FREE.
Kat Tales 