Everybody who’s been to Nelson’s Ledges knows Jones for Revival, the Mahoning Valley’s own groovy, good-vibed jam band. The band prides itself on creating a fun and friendly environment everywhere it performs. Soon, you’ll be able to take more of its funky sound with you. The band is currently working on a second album and things are going to be more jamming than ever. I caught up with Jimmy DeCapua, the band’s lead guitarist, vocalist and founding member. He remembered the early days when he studied jazz guitar and sociology at Kent State University back in 2003, the days before Jones for Revival was an official staple in Ohio’s jam band scene, “We played a couple acoustic gigs here and there” he said, “we were just a couple of friends getting together and having fun.” The band began by playing covers of rock songs and the like, mixing in some original material to keep things fresh. But having fun playing acoustic gigs turned into a fulltime obsession for Jim, who took a year off from college to pursue something that he’d fallen in love with, jam music. “Honestly, I wasn’t really a fan of jam bands until I started playing guitar.” he said. DeCapua enjoyed the classics like Led Zeppelin and The Beatles, but jam music stirred something in him, “I’m a guitar player, I like soloing obviously. But as soon as I’d seen Phish in concert, I realized it was cool to solo for ten minutes.” So what exactly does “Jones for Revival” mean and what inspired the band’s name? According to DeCapua he name was spawned from a phone conversation between himself and the band’s bassist at the time, Matt Hahn. Jim explained it logic like this, “The revival aspect is like getting shot in the arm with adrenaline. It’s a spiritual thing. And we knew we were ready for something different than what was on the radio. We were “jonesing” for something new.” After a few more gigs and some lineup changes, the band took off. Nelson Ledges Quarry Park, Northeast Ohio’s premier jam band venue, was Jones for Revival’s big break. Nelson Ledges is ground zero for jam bands and DeCapua took advantage of the experience to learn more about the culture of jamming, “We realized that we didn’t jam enough” he said, “we were just on a little stage the first time we played at The Ledges and after seeing some other bands at the festival, we knew we were home.” Now, after playing at the venue for years, the band has its own annual festival at Nelson’s Ledges, Jones Fest. The group’s current lineup including Dave Lynn, Gino West, Ryan Mitiska and Andre Pitchkin is currently working on its first official studio album. The band is having fun with the resources the studio to offer. The use of vintage gear and old school recording techniques is helping the band to capture a sound reminiscent of an older generation of rock, “We’re recording onto tape instead of straight onto digital, it really is great” Jim said, “it’s making our music sound like music did back in the day.” Jam bands are all about great live shows, so translating a band’s performance onto a permanent media can be difficult, but Jim doesn’t seem daunted by the task. In fact, he welcomes the challenges, “We’re all creative equals in the band, everybody is free to contribute. In the end it’s a matter of being ok with one particular version of a song.” He continued, “We want our fans to have as great of experience listening to our album as they do at our shows.” The band plans on working on the album through January and releasing the album in March, just in time for festival season. When that time comes, the band will be back on stage exploding good-vibe grenades in Northeast Ohio. DeCapua, who is from Poland, sees positive things in the Youngstown music scene and in Youngstown’s residents, “Youngstown can feel like California. It’s like family, the connection helps people come together” he continued, “We all have the same struggles, we’re all in the same boat– we’re all just trying to survive. The scene is growing and I hope it keeps growing, because we’re all coming here to unite as friends and family and to be part of an experience.”