Drums

At the young age of 11 Eric told his parents he wanted to be a drummer. His parents weren't quite sure what to do with their young "Animal", so they found him a drum instructor and bought him a cheap set of drums, figuring it would be a passing phase. Eric loved playing everything from Dave Matthews Band and Incubus to classic rock and hard rock, and he played every chance he could get. It became obvious to his friends and family that his love of the drums was not "just a phase". After graduating from high school Eric spent some time performing around RVA with a local band before taking two years off to attend the Musicians Institute in Los Angeles, where he pursued an education in music. After graduation he returned home to Virginia and joined The J.O.B., touring the U.S. and recording with them for several years. Once, while shooting a music video for "Red Eye" with The J.O.B., Eric even played his drums in a bus while it was cruising down the highway! Now THAT'S rock 'n' roll. In addition to being in The J.O.B., Eric also taught percussion at the School of Rock when he wasn't out on tour. That's where he would eventually meet his new musical partners in crime. Today, Eric is the V8 engine and heartbeat of Rock Therapy, providing the killer rhythms that keep us all rocking. 

#porkpiesnares #promarksticks #remoheads

Bass / Keys / Vocals

Music has always been a huge part of Jocelyn's life - she has always loved listening to it, dancing to it, singing along with it, or creating it. As a toddler she would often be found dancing on top of the living room ottoman while singing along to her favorite songs like "Let it Whip" by the Dazz Band and "Miss You" by the Stones. Eager to steer her away from a future exotic dancing career, her parents enrolled her in piano lessons at age four. She added clarinet, alto sax, ukulele, and bass over the years after that. If you looked up "band geek" in the dictionary, you'd see her picture! Growing up, she performed in jazz bands, orchestras, all-state bands, musicals, marching bands (HS and JMU MRDs), and the JMU pep band. She also competed in state and national instrumental competitions, and even taught music lessons during grad school for extra spending money. In 2022 she played bass for several special shows celebrating women in rock at the Viper Room and Whisky-A-Go Go in Los Angeles, performing live on stage with Orianthi, Kathy Valentine (Go Gos), Nancy Wilson (Heart), Melissa Etheridge, and others. Today, Jocelyn enjoys holding down the low end for Rock Therapy, and also contributes keys and vocals as needed. Fun fact - she's married to Rock Therapy's sound engineer, Karl Knox. 

#DaveGrohlForPresident

Guitar / Bass

John has always been a music lover. Growing up in the age of MTV, he honed his musical (and fashion?!?) tastes from the rock bands of the day; it was an excellent time to be a music fan. There were tight pants and tight riffs everywhere! Strangely, aside from playing the recorder in elementary school, John didn't actually start performing music until the early 2000s when his friend's band, Mourning Wood, needed a bass player. No experience? No problem...John got a bass and was off to the races. [Fun fact - the band played at a lot of the same dive bars in Shockoe Bottom as Drew's band during those years, so the two bands likely crossed paths several times, never realizing they'd later join forces to rule the RVA rock scene.] John eventually moved on to play with Stomach Nine, though the band disbanded after the Y101 Rock-off at Richmond's Power Plant in the mid 2000s. John retired from touring and didn't start playing again until he decided to dust off the old bass and jam to Foxy Shazam tunes one day. Wanting to play again, but not knowing others to form a band with, he later joined the School of Rock "Adult Band" as a way to musically network. There he met several like-minded individuals who were also there teaching or looking for a band to play with. Eventually they were all expelled for being too awesome...oh, and due to that COVID thing. Rock Therapy was born shortly thereafter. John now spends his time playing bass and guitar for Rock Therapy, proving you're never too old for rock 'n' roll. 

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Guitar / Vocals

Music has surrounded Laurie all of her life, from ukuleles to guitars to family sing-a-longs around the piano. Her mom played organ in church and for her father who was an inspirational vocalist. Her uncle was a huge influence as a guitarist and lead singer in various bands. He often left his electric guitar and amp with Laurie to experiment with. She started noodling around on an infamous family "Elvis" uke, later graduating to acoustic guitar. Through lessons with a super talented teacher Lynn Kelley, she jumped at the opportunity to join Lynn playing bluegrass guitar with a local Tidewater band Muddy Creek, who specialized in three and four-part harmonies. Muddy Creek hit the local circuit playing old favorites and updated bluegrass tunes at various Ruritan Clubs, festivals, Seal Team Reunions and eventually opening for East Virginia Bluegrass at Nauticus in Norfolk, VA. A chance conversation with a tennis friend eventually led her back to electric guitar and a new love for rock and roll. Her musical influences cross many musical boundaries ranging from John Prine, Joni Mitchell, Tony Rice, Kristen Hall, and Patty Griffin to Bruce Springsteen, Foo Fighters, and more.

Lead Vocals

Tara has loved to sing almost since she learned to talk. She got her start singing along on a microphone plugged into the family's stereo console as she played the latest 45s on the turntable. She then spent years indulging in school musicals, church choirs, community chorus gigs (from performances of Handel's Messiah to show tune medleys), and of course, karaoke. A chance conversation with former coworker, Jocelyn, got her invited to a Rock Therapy RVA rehearsal night, and the rest is history.

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Guitar

Drew is a veteran of the stage, having previously played bass with bands such as Mace in Dickson, Swelter, and Guaranteed Fresh over the past several decades in Pennsylvania and Virginia. If you ever visited a dive bar in Shockoe Bottom in the early 2000s, you probably heard his shredding skills. After taking some time off to start a family, Drew returned to the music scene as an instructor at School of Rock as a way to share his love of music. When COVID ultimately forced the school to close, Drew teamed up with some of the other members here to form a band known as Minivan Halen RVA, which eventually evolved into the current Rock Therapy lineup. The band initially had three bass players (Drew, John, and Jocelyn), and sadly audiences just couldn't handle that much low end awesomeness - people apparently weren't "all about that bass" when it threatened to vibrate out their fillings and kept triggering the Virginia Tech Seismological Observatory's monitoring equipment! As a result, Drew picked up his guitar and can be found these days strumming/shredding along to classic rock and alternative hits with Rock Therapy in bars and breweries across central Virginia. When not playing music he enjoys spending time with his family including his teenage daughter and son, who are becoming talented musicians in their own right. 

Sound Engineer

Unlike the rest of the band, Karl didn't grow up playing music. His first foray into playing an instrument was a short-lived attempt to learn piano from his wife, Jocelyn. He then thought it would be fun to learn to play guitar, so he purchased one and started taking lessons and playing with the SOR adult band. While he enjoyed the camaradarie of the band, he realized he was too much of a perfectionist to ever truly enjoy playing guitar. With a Computer Science degree from the U.S. Naval Academy and a subsequent career in tech after his time in the military, Karl naturally gravitated toward the technical side of music as well. That's where he finally found his passion - in the sound engineering side of things. This was a win-win for everyone, because when Rock Therapy formed, there was a need for a sound engineer! Thankfully, Karl quickly raised his hand to claim the role. Today you'll usually find him at our gigs with his iPad in hand (his wireless digital control panel), checking the sound mix from various points around the venue. He's the member of the band that audiences don't usually notice (which is the way he likes it), but he has the biggest impact on what you hear. We couldn't do what we do without him.