Musician says he 'came here to keep it real'
By NICHOLAS A. HESS

Photo by Nicholas A. Hess - Local singer/songwriter Jerome Wincek peers out onto Seneca Street in Oil City, taking a break from making music with his band, The Old Hats. Wincek and his group are just one of the many musicians in the line-up to perform with the second annual Oil Region Indie Songwriters Festival scheduled for May 23 and 24.

From thumping out abrasive beats on a well-used pizza pan to strumming the delicate chords of a classical guitar, local musician Jerome Wincek has truly come to embrace the places in which he performs in.

 

And although this 30-year-old singer/songwriter from Tionesta has grown to appreciate the rightful value of his craft, he still pulls most inspiration from a Christian upbringing and his days spent hauling countless stones from the family garden.

Check one, two

Born in Phoenix, Ariz., Wincek moved to Tionesta with his parents Jean and Tom when he was only two months old. While his father worked as a farmhand in the area, his mother, toiling away countless hours fingering the keys of a household piano, started her son on an early path of religious devotion.

"I was told that music that said 'the devil should go to hell' was wrong," he said.

But Wincek managed to sneak in various CDs that would come to shape his unique style. "It wasn't until I went to college that I discovered that there was a whole world of really good music I could learn from."

Wincek, working for his father's tree removal company from the early age of 16, later attended Geneva College for three years, majoring in classical guitar. However, he left the institution for what he deemed as a chance to "get his hands wet and dirty in the business," moving to Nashville, Tenn., in pursuit of stardom.

Yet after only a year of performing solo gigs at dive bars, open mics and busy street corners for pocket change, Wincek discovered that big city life had its drawbacks of superficiality and conformity which the young talent wasn't quite ready to adapt to.

"I realized that it wasn't really about the art, it was about the presentation," he said.

So returning to his roots, Wincek decided to pursue a career which he thought would better suite his budding talents.

But soon after his move back to Venango County, the 20-something singer/songwriter hit a brick wall: the "close-minded" people of a small city.

A murmur from the crowd

Wincek, settling back into the comforts of what lie along the rolling Allegheny River, decided to try his hand playing at several local bars and open venues. But after facing a barrage of native bands that, according to Wincek, only belted out early '90s cover songs, the outspoken musician decided to once again depart the familiar for the big city.

This time the eager youth relocated over 600 miles away in Portland, Maine, taking with him a renewed sense of optimism and mindset of success.

"That was a good town to be in," Wincek said. He even contemplated opening up a caf‚ in addition to his solo career. "But people like me are a dime a dozen in a city like that. So I began to think that I could be more useful at home. I thought Oil City could benefit from having someone like me."

So after only a year, Wincek decided once and for all to make a music career work in Venango County, focusing less on notoriety and more on his rare knack.

And upon his arrival, after managing a music store for some time, offering music lessons and tuning pianos, Wincek retreated back to working for his father, a job that not only paid, but allowed ample time for pensive meditation. Wincek even credits many of his best lyrics to the time he spent alone in the woods, walking for eight hours a day with nothing but a helmet and a head full of thoughts.

"I just wanted to express myself in ways that other people were expressing themselves," he said.

Wincek is now mostly making music from his Poplar Street home in Oil City. "The quality of life here is just amazing and having clean air to breath is a plus too," he said.

Soon after his return, Wincek joined efforts with several other local musicians, forming the band Big Jack Earl and later releasing two albums within two years. Yet after only a short stint together, the group disbanded, leading Wincek to his latest and greatest project: The Old Hats.

A steady beat

Comprised of Wincek, Nathaniel Custer, David Perry and Eric Hess, the foursome has come to epitomize what Wincek sought after in both talented performers and steadfast companions and friends. And although they have not yet been signed to a major label, Oil City has proven to be a haven where unique expression and inherent talent allows them to run rampant.

Wincek, a father to two and playing everything from the bass, mandolin, banjo and piano, to the harmonica and lap steel, has even announced the release of the band's third album, 'Love is a Martyr.' And although he stills uses anything he can get his hands on as an instrument - including cooking pans, a washboard, the living room wall and an old door - he credits moving back to the area as his main inspiration for his more than quirky techniques.

"For a while I thought I wanted to develop a new genre of music," said Wincek, who describes his style as 'Appalachian Pop.' "But it's hard to do anything really groundbreaking nowadays."

Wincek, having played with various community organizations and resident musicians both young and old, has even come to create and organize the Oil Region Indie Songwriters Festival, which will be held Friday and Saturday, May 23 and 24.

The event, giving local and nationally recognized acts the opportunity to perform in a relaxed atmosphere, came out of an idea Wincek had when he noticed the lack of venues for up and coming bands.

"It's really hard in an area like this to have a large group of like-minded artists," Wincek said. "It's just hard to keep the motivation to produce independent art."

With the prospect of touring in the works, as well as area festivals scheduled for throughout the summer months, Wincek has achieved the goal he set out to accomplish since moving back to the area: making music for people who are willing to listen.

And although his name is not plastered on billboards and his mug doesn't grace the cover of celebrity tabloids, living in rural Pennsylvania has not only kept the musician humble, but eager for what's in store for the coming years,

"I came here to keep it real and keep it based in the lives that regular people live," Wincek said. "And I am actually making it happen from Venango County."