Joey Weinberg has only been creating music for a few months and consistently repeats that he is not that good. To any other ear, he sounds almost professional.

Growing up in Los Angeles with his guitar-playing father and a family grand piano, Weinberg was always surrounded by music, but it was not until his freshman year of high school that he began writing his own.

Influenced by electronic indie, dreamwave and psychedelic artists like Neon Indian, Purity Ring and early Coldplay, Weinberg decided to bring his songs to life just a few months ago. Through online tutorials and a whole lot of trial and error, he said he has finally got the hang of it, although he admits that he is still learning.

Two summers ago, Weinberg, a senior sport management major, taught himself a bit of music theory and from there, learned how to play the piano. He now has a miniature electronic keyboard which he plugs into his computer system. He uses this method to create almost all his sounds, including simple guitar chords.

Last summer ago he picked up a bass, learned how to play and has been in love with the instrument ever since. Although his bass remains at home, stored with his father’s collection of a dozen guitars, Weinberg hopes to someday plug his bass into his recording system as well.

Weinberg has released two demos on SoundCloud. But now, he spends most of his time working on an EP, which he expects to release next year when he has more experience.

A common theme in his music are analogies of light and darkness, a motif Weinberg used to craft his stage name: One With Shade.

“I have battled through some personal issues,” Weinberg said. “When you are in the light you should never forget where you came from.”

This idea of darkness is exemplified in Weinberg’s original “Lucid Dream,” where he repeats the lyrics “save me now” throughout the song. Weinberg’s vocals represent the title of the song, as they produce a dreamlike vibe, but his vocals aren’t a dominating force.

“When I put my music together, I don’t think of the voice as the main part of the song. I just think of it as one part of the whole feel of the song. I think the main part of the song, or what I’m trying to get out of the song is atmospheric vibes,” Weinberg said.

Weinberg’s goal for his EP is to create an experience for the listener. He wants to take the listener out of their current reality and create an “out of body” experience. He compares this listening experience to that of the soundtrack of the Netflix original “Stranger Things.” His goal is for each song on the EP to connectively flow together, so each song must be placed in a specific order.

In addition to the all-encapsulating experience he aims to create, his music is genre-busting.

Fellow friend and musician Will McCann helps Weinberg with his music, even though the two have different tastes. McCann plays jazz trumpet, but prefers electronic dance music when listening on his own. The two used to run a music blog together, but they now live in different states, so the blog is on hiatus. Weinberg will send McCann his music in return for constructive criticism and minor tweaks.

“He’s making dark electro…and I don’t just like dance music electro, I like all kinds of electro,” McCann said. So the tunes he’s making is in the genre I have listened to a lot. So I can compare what I’ve heard work in the pass and toss him thoughts and ideas that might fit in the track he’s working on.”

Weinberg has been friends with Colby Conetta and Matt Russo since freshman year. They prefer various types of rock music, different from Weinberg’s music, but they’ve noticed the influence of different genres in Weinberg’s music.

“He likes and has an appreciation for many different kinds (of music), including what Colby and I like, so I wouldn’t be surprised if it influenced his music in some way,” Russo said.

Weinberg’s favorite band is Twenty One Pilots. He admires how the lead singer performs.

Said Weinberg: “I just envision myself performing with passion, and losing myself in the music.”

Published on November 1, 2016 at 8:24 pm

Contact: lmeyers@syr.edu