Nash.V.ILL’s lead guitarist/songwriter, Byron Nash, on his band’s new single, opening for Living Colour, and enjoying the moment
Byron Nash has had a very interesting musical journey. The lead guitarist and songwriter of the Pittsburgh rock/soul band Nash.V.ILL, has done everything from touring on the road to being a music journalist. It feels like he’s just getting started. In a phone interview, I spoke with him about the band’s new single, opening for Living Colour, and enjoying the moment.
Nash.V.ILL will play at Spirit on Friday, January 17th. Band members are: Byron Nash (Guitar/Vocals), Jacquea Mae (Lead Vocals), Jimi Julz “The Rockstar” Powell (Drums/Keys/Vocals), and Josh Powell (Bass/Synth).
Forming the Band
Josh: When did you guys form as a band?
Byron: We’ve been around for about three years.
J: Did you guys already know each other?
B: Not really, I knew of them from previous bands. I reached out to Julz to play this show with me. We ended up having his brother (Josh) on it. Then it took off really fast. I was playing this gig at this art show in Lawrenceville, doing a cover of Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine,” when I heard this big church gospel voice in the crowd. It was Jacquea. I was like, ‘yeah.’ Shortly after that, we’re like, ‘Why don’t we turn into a band?”’
Music Inspirations
J: What inspired you to play guitar?
B: I grew up on funk and soul music. Rick James, Prince, all that kind of old school stuff. My mom had a really awesome vinyl collection. You could hear Elton John, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Queen on the same day. Then I really got into rock music. Ozzy Osbourne and Iron Maiden and Motley Crue. I really stood out in the black community. It’s my thing though, you know.
J: I really like the behind-the-scenes videos you put up on social media. Is that something you’ve always done?
B: I feel like there’s nothing to really hide. I guess back in the day before social media, you really didn’t know how people did stuff. I just was like, ‘well, this is really how I live.’ Instead of holding on to the secret, just share it with the world.
J: Absolutely. People get inspired watching you play solos.
B: I don’t know, man. I’m always just trying to get better. It’s a work in progress.
Life in Music
J: You’ve done a lot of interesting things in your life. You toured with other artists and you were a music writer?
B: I got into the music business, not as an artist, but as a graphic designer. I didn’t really have the skills but I had the creativity. There was this little magazine back in the day called RocknRoll Reporter. I always liked writing, but I didn’t think I was gonna be a journalist. And then I became a local music editor. I started learning photography and taking photos of live concerts. I was interviewing everyone from Rob Zombie to Pantera to Slayer to Lenny Kravitz to Taj Mahal. So it’s a lot of perspective from people who were actually doing it that really shaped how I navigated my own career.
J: Did you ever think about writing a book?
B: You know, my son always jokes that I should just do a podcast talking about these experiences because I have the ticket stubs and the photos for proof.
Nash.V.ILL Songs
J: Let’s talk about the new single, “Can’t Bring Me Down.” The chorus really jumped out at me. Very catchy. Is there any certain message?
B: It’s interesting because I wrote the music years ago. I named it “Can’t Bring Me Down” as a working title. We kept playing it live long before we recorded it. We’re not gonna let somebody else bring us down, but we gotta make sure we’re not bringing ourselves down. So it has a few different meanings of just making sure you persevere. And no matter what the obstacles are, you don’t give up.
J: Great solo at the end of the song. Did you write that while practicing or was it in the studio?
B: Honestly, most of that song was one take demo stuff. And then I just held onto it for 10 years. I did all the guitars at home. We went in the studio and recorded live as a band.
J: “Gnarly Girl” and “Sister” both have a good groove to them. I didn’t know Jimi and Josh were siblings.
B: When you got brothers in the group, there’s gonna be a rhythm, you know? We have the Van Halen for you.
J: You mentioned a possible new song coming out on New Year’s Eve.
B: I was actually in the studio last night. After this, I’m gonna go home and record the solo. It’s called “Tha Feelgood.” It’s this super slinky funk song that I’m super proud of. Oh, it’s gonna be a good one.
Live Shows: Opening for Living Colour
J: I saw you guys play at Spirit earlier this year. There was some improv in between certain songs. Do you guys like doing that often? It seems like it came naturally.
B: Yeah. We always have a loose structure with the sets. Jacquea has a lot of cover songs in her head. So if something kind of sounds like it, she’ll start singing it, and then we are just in the moment. We do that because it’s fun, and it really challenges you to be in the moment. I’ve always kinda had that element of playing in the moment. We’re playing the song but we’re feeling it, and everyone’s driving that wave. That’s what music is about for me. It’s just that connection and that energy.
J: You’ve posted about writing new material while playing live.
B: I have probably a 1000 riffs and ideas that are either in voice memos and demos. I’ve been recording over the years, but I probably have about 6000+ videos in my phone.
J: How many shows do you think you’ve played in your life?
B: You know, I really didn’t keep count of them until 2021. From May to December, I did 100 with New Year’s Eve being 100. On average, 75 to 100 a year.
J: What venues have you guys played?
B: Literally everywhere. The only place we haven’t played yet that I’d like to play is Stage AE. But we’ve played pretty much every other room, and we do a lot of outdoor festivals, which is nice. I rarely do shows where we have to charge people. So a lot of them are free and a lot of artists should wake up to that. We played Market Square for their holiday market, Picklesburgh, Arts Fest.
J: You guys opened for Living Colour. What was that like?
B: You wanna talk about opening for your heroes? They couldn’t have been nicer. They treated us like we were peers. I had this guitar that there’s only like, 22 of them made, that Vernon Reid used to play. I got him to sign it. It was just really cool, man. I’ve played with George Clinton, Fantasia, Busta Rhymes. Like really crazy stuff.
J: That’s enough for a lifetime.
B: Yeah. And you know, I keep going. I know this sounds cliche. You really have to enjoy the journey. There’s days where you don’t feel like loading out and you’re like, ‘gosh, another one,’ and it’s like, ‘hold on, check yourself, some people wish they could do this’. I’m from the era of flyers on a pole. Social media kind of changed that, but it’s still the same tactic you have to cut through.
Music Advice, Gear, and What’s Next
J: Any words of advice for musicians just starting out?
B: Appreciate what you have and don’t take it lightly. Someone who might not be as good, might be willing to work a little bit harder than you. You should always keep doing it and then really give back to the people that are supporting you. Give to your fans. Do it because you love it.
J: How many guitars do you own?
B: I honestly don’t know. I love gear. It’s not about clothes for me. It’s about music, memorabilia, records, instruments. My house kinda looks like a Guitar Center.
J: Any favorite guitars?
B: Honestly? It’s always the cheaper ones. I always bought used. One of my prize possessions would be a Paul Stanley Flying V that actually was owned by Paul Stanley. I met the guy who built the guitar for him. I just recorded it for the first time last night. It’s so badass. So it’s things like that.
J: I’m guessing Nash.V.ILL will be playing a lot more shows and releasing songs in 2025?
B: Oh yeah. It’s gonna be a song a month for the next six months and then we’ll probably drop the EP. It’s time to take it on the road. We’ve kept it fairly regional. After playing with Living Colour, it kind of feels like we can take this on the road. We’re ready, you know. So maybe some music festivals in some other cities and things like that.
Be sure to catch Nash.V.ILL at Spirit on January 17th, 2025 – tickets to come! Keep up with the band on Instagram and Facebook.
Check out November’s Band of the Month here!
This content was provided by a local, independent contributor to Made in PGH, a lifestyle blog.
