LIFEFORCE CD RELEASE PARTY - APRIL 11, 2009
by: Paul Braun

Jim Peterik's Lifeforce, the new Smooth Jazz/New Age project from a man who's traditionally a rocker, is picking up momentum.

Most recently, Lifeforce wowed the audience at College of Lake County on March 14th.

The band, with special guest Nick Colionne, just make it look so effortless. The band features some familiar faces to World Stage and Pride of Lions fans: Mike Aquino on guitar, Klem Hayes on bass, Ed Breckenfeld on drums, along with new faces Jeff Lantz on keys and the legendary Steve Eisen on sax. And the audience loves them.

What about that audience? For a guy who's known for songs like "Vehicle," "Eye Of The Tiger," and "Rocking Into the Night", how does smooth jazz play to his fans?

"It's great. Quite a few of the traditional fans are following us," said Peterik, "but I've started to notice more and more new faces. People who come up to us after a show who heard about us on WGN radio or through the smooth jazz outlets, people who have never heard "High On You" or "Caught Up In You."

"I love it. I'm finding yet another new audience for my music," Jim said. "Some of them are amazed to find out I'm the same guy who wrote "Vehicle"."

Up next for the band is the official CD release party at FitzGerald's Nightclub in Jim's hometown of Berwyn, Illinois on Saturday, April 11th. Actually, it's a very special night, since it will also serve as the official CD release party for Lobster Newberg's new album "Actress". Lobster Newberg, for those of you who may not be aware, is Jim's son Colin's band.

The Boys From Lobster will open the evening with a set of their own brand of psychedelic neo-vintage classic prog-rock (hey! It's hard to pin them down!), after which the Boy from Berwyn will take the stage with the band and the lovely Lisa McClowry.

"This will be a very great event for me. To have our CD release celebration as well as my son's in my hometown is like coming full-circle. It should be a pretty magical evening," Peterik said.

"To make it even cooler, your $15 admission not only buys you two great performances, but also your choice of either the Lifeforce or the Lobster cd. Think of it as 'Buy a cd, get a free concert,'" joked Peterik.

Of course, there will be a merchandise table if you'd like to pick up the other cd, t-shirts, whatever -- music makes a great gift. Spread the joy to all of your friends. This is an exciting new direction for Jim, one that he hopes you will enjoy as much as he does.

"Of course, writing rock comes naturally to me," according to Jim. "But I've been amazed at how natural the LIfeforce music feels to me as well. Not just the reworking of some of my earlier rock numbers, but also the brand-new jazz compositions. Lisa's contributions, both in songwriting and in her gorgeous vocals, are amazing. I'm really enjoying this, and can see carrying on both musical lives for a long time."

For more details, see the FitzGerald's website at www.fitzgeraldsnightclub.com.