FlipSide are (left to right) John Cadarette and Derek Ventilato (photo by Donna Ventilato)

When you’ve spent most of your musical life performing as a member of a full-fledged band, the idea of an “acoustic duo” can seem a bit… well, underwhelming.

John Cadarette (acoustic and electric guitars, lead and harmony vocals) had a long history of guitar and vocal work before he was ever faced with this decision.  From his days in the United States Coast Guard until fairly recently he plied his trade with numerous Country and Classic Rock bands, often serving as “second guitar”; not for lack of skill did he exist in systems where the “other” guitar player would perform a bulk of the lead work.  Still, he was able to refine his style such that his influences are easily recognizable to those steeped in musical history, and his talents obvious even to the casual listener.

Derek Ventilato (acoustic and bass guitars, lead and harmony vocals) had a shorter, if not equally arduous, musical history; heavily influenced by the “hair metal” sounds of the 1980’s his path took him through numerous pop and alternative rock bands primarily as a lead and harmony vocalist.  While he worked on his guitar techniques out of the public eye, necessity forced upon him the need to bring his skills to his later groups where he further shaped his sound.  Vocally, he found himself imitating a wide variety of styles – most of which are difficult on a less-than-professionally-trained set of vocal chords.

 The two were more acquaintances than friends when a chance meeting occurred in the waning days of 2006.  Their discussions quickly revealed that they were “musically unemployed” and “creatively dissatisfied” with their recent musical endeavors.  Frustration soon turned to something much different at the suggestion that, after discovering similar musical tastes and diverse yet complimentary backgrounds, their impromptu “jam sessions” might just be the prelude to something more commercially viable then originally planned.

In short: On the eighth day they created music; it was good, and they were satisfied.  FlipSide were born.

Since the decision was made to pursue FlipSide as a full-time project, John and Derek have created for themselves a unique situation: they found that, harking back to their own musical backgrounds and history, they could literally bring ANY song to the table, isolate the “meat and potatoes” of the song, work out arrangements for their guitars and vocals, and get this diverse mix to mesh well utilizing their own “signature sound”.

As a result, their set list is as eclectic a group of songs as you can find short of a Time-Life “Hits” collection.

Theirs are melodies that are instantly recognizable, vocals that are easily understandable (a rarity in today’s music), and harmonies that border on the effortless; all delivered with a sense of humor and easy-going personalities that shine though and invite their audience to take a more active roll in the evening’s entertainment.

When FlipSide is viewed as the sum of its considerable parts, the picture that emerges is so much more than the typical acoustic duo.  But words often fail where music tells the story…