You never know what you are going to get at a show by the Morgan Hill-based dance cover band the Emphatics.
“The way we set up our shows is we’ll start with what we think is the right set list, but then we have enough songs in our back pocket that we can tailor on the fly and play the show based on the crowd,” bassist Allan Riccetti said. “We have 60 to 80 songs that we know at one time, so we can jump into whatever we need to as we go along and see what the crowd is doing.”
The Emphatics is a four-piece band comprised of Joe Urbano (Lead Vocals), Allan Riccetti (Bass, Vocals), Ben Urango (Lead Guitar, Vocals), and Randy Welsh (Drums, Vocals). They cover dance hits both old and new. Classics like The Commodores’ “Brick House” and Wild Cherry’s “Play that Funky Music” can be heard alongside the latest songs from Justin Timberlake and Maroon 5.
The band’s influences are as varied as the songs they cover, and include Sublime, The Beatles, Run DMC, Prince and Bruno Mars.
“We are four individual guys of varying ages with a singer who actually grew up on the East Coast, so all of those variables definitely impact the type of music that influences us as a band,” Riccetti said. “Luckily, we see that as an opportunity to play music across all different genres. To be a great cover band, I think you have to know your audience a little. It’s not about what kind of music we like necessarily, it’s about what songs will get people to have a good time in that moment.
The band plays clubs from San Francisco to Monterey. They’re scheduled to play the Gilroy Garlic Festival for the third year in a row. This is their first year playing Fifth Street Live.
Riccetti spoke with the Gilroy Dispatch to discuss the band’s best performance, the story behind the band’s name, and what music means to him.
So what’s the story behind the name Emphatics?
ALLAN RICCETTI: You know it’s funny, about three years ago when we formed the first band, we couldn’t come up with anything. And someone just randomly said Emphatics and we went ‘All right’. And our drummer he had just shouted it out. I think, we never really knew where it came from and we said ‘We’re emphatic about what we do, we’re into it’ and it stuck.
Is the band a full-time job for all the members? For some members? If not, what does everyone do for a living?
No, this is not a full time job for any of us. It is a great hobby and passion that we all enjoy very much. We play two to four gigs a month. I work as a senior buyer for a high tech company, Ben works as an engineering technician, Randy works construction and Joe works as a membership manager.
What’s the band up to these days?
We’re all over the place. We have a standing gig every other month at a place called Murphy’s Law in downtown Sunnyvale. We’ve been playing there since day one. The manager there, he let’s us play every couple months. And then Fifth Street Live. Then we play out of Ridgemark in Hollister, at the country club out there every couple months. And then the Garlic Festival at the end of July.
Tell us more about your regular gigs at Murphy’s Law? What’s the story behind how you got a gig every other month there?
I have known the manager at Murphy’s Law for close to 20 years now and we became friends over the years. We bring in a good crowd to Murphy’s every time we play so we have been playing there every other month for over two years now. We will be playing there on New Year’s Eve for the second year in a row.
What’s the best show the band has played?
I think one of the coolest shows was when we played the San Jose Rock ‘N’ Roll Half Marathon last year. It’s different from any other show because the whole time you are in awe of what these runners are doing in support of charity. It’s an amazing feeling to help keep the runners motivated through our music. Some of the runners even pulled off to the side and danced a bit during the middle of their run. How cool is that!
What about the worst?
We have so much fun at every show so it’s hard to pick a worst. But I do remember that one of the more challenging shows we played was our very first gig after our sound guy retired. After he retired, we decided to buy our own PA system and run our own sound, which we still do to this day. But the first time doing that was stressful because we had never used the equipment before, and there is a lot that goes into putting on a good show. Needless to say, it was a challenging night, but we got through it and have learned so much from it.
What does music mean to you?
Music is such a big part of life for me and for most people I know. It’s all around us and it brings out so many different emotions, whether you want to engross yourself in the lyrics or just dance to a good beat. I think everything is better when there is good music playing in the background, and I feel lucky to be able to play live music for people.
The Emphatics play Fifth Street Live in Gilroy on Friday, July 8. More info on the band can be found at their band websitehttp://www.emphaticsrock.com/ or Facebook pagehttp://www.facebook.com/Emphatics-Rock-233436326999255
