Musician: Russ Reiser

What is one of the things Vic Ferrari band and the Stringbenders have in common? Russ Reiser.

Russ was born on February 25, 1956 in New Holstein, Wisconsin to Marge and LeRoy Reiser.

When Russ was young he loved to listen to the music on TV, especially the themes to “Batman”, “Wild, Wild West” and “Get Smart” television series. When talking about his history with music, Russ said, “When the Beatles hit, I wanted to play guitar.”

During the 80’s Russ played with a popular band in Florida called Truc of America. Now, he sings and plays his guitar solo using a midi recorder for his back-up instruments. In November, 1995 a booking agent asked Russ if he could do some weeknight gigs in Appleton, WI. “ I had jammed with Dave Steffen and we played well together, so I asked him if he was interested.” Russ went on to say, “We started out just the two of us and then added Craig (Neuser) and Ron (Kalista). I named it the ‘Stringbenders’.” Russ also plays guitar and sings vocals with the Vic Ferrari band. They do some original music, but mostly covers.

In 2004, Russ released his second cd, “Square Pegs, Round Holes”. It is classic style rock and all of Russ’s original music. “ I played all the guitars, bass and some of the keyboards. All lead vocals and most of the harmony vocals. I used three excellent drummers. My goal with this cd was to express the different emotions and points of view I have and share them with others.”

To this day Russ still likes to listen to the Beatles. In his song ,“Leave It Behind”, you can hear the influence they have on his music. You can find his cd on http://www.cdbaby.com/.

Along with being a great song writer and guitarist, Russ also gives guitar and voice lessons.

To find where to go hear this awesome musician check out: www.russreiser.com (The Russ Reiser Acoustic Show), www.davesteffenband.com/stringbenders.htm. , www.vicferrari.com and find Russ on face book.