Story
The musical group Proverbial was originally formed in late 2007 by a group of college friends in Harrisonburg, Virginia, but took a new direction when Thomas Whitesell (saxophone, vocals), Phillip Walker (keyboards, vocals) and Stephen Holicky (lead guitar, vocals) graduated in 2008 and headed for Richmond, Virginia.
Upon arriving in Richmond, the group linked up with Stephen’s good friend, Michael Keeter (rhythm guitar, vocals), and reignited the creative flame that was and is Proverbial. After months of searching for percussionists and a bassist, the band was finally complete when Stephen’s former band-mate, Ryan Harlowe (drums) and his friends Scott Gerry (bass guitar) and Kevin Condrey (auxiliary percussion) joined in February of 2009. Jams morphed into songs, songs were spun on an E.P., the E.P. brought about shows, and shows spurned the beginnings of a dream.
Proverbial is comprised of members as diverse and unique as their compositions. Their various musical backgrounds converge to form an eclectic mix of reggae, hip-hop, and rock and roll; all conjured from the soul. Legends such as Led Zeppelin, Incubus, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Roots, Sublime, Bob Marley, and The Police have all been influential in the shaping of Proverbial’s sound. Though these artists have helped form the roots of this musical tree, its branches reach even further into genres such as jazz, funk, and rhythm & blues.
Since its inception, Proverbial has taken many steps to make their dream a reality. These steps include opening for major acts such as Switchfoot, Sublime with Rome, Badfish - A Tribute to Sublime, Crash Kings, The Flobots, Cartel, Paper Tongues, Skillet, Papa Roach, Ballyhoo!, Spiritual Rez, Jimmy’s Chicken Shack, and The Bridge. Even more, music has provided the band with the opportunity to help others through various humanitarian endeavors. These include entertaining thousands of participants in the Monument 10K Run/Walk, Y101’s Show Us Your Cans food drive for the Central Virginia Food Bank, Relay for Life and several AIDS, American Red Cross and Alzheimer’s benefits. In addition to the aforementioned accolades, Proverbial was crowned as champion of WRLX 102.1 the X’s Local Exposure 2010, WDYL/Y101’s 2009 Rock Off competition and the 2008 Relay for Life Battle of the Bands in Harrisonburg, VA. Further, Proverbial played for a live audience in WDYL/Y101’s studio for their weekly Community Service Show, and has also had several tracks off their E.P. played on-air by WDYL/Y101 and WRLX/102.1 the X.