My name is Jonathan, the cello player in this group. The other two in THE UNBANNED are Noah Figlin, our fearless leader, and Erek Kapusta, another fearless leader. I moved up to State College, Pennsylvania in 2012 leaving behind Austin, TX where I was active performing and recording for about 10 years. Noah and Erek were already here in central PA making lots of music in various bands and together in The Nightcrawlers (check them out here). And get this, by "lots of music", I mean these two guys have averaged around 175 gigs each per year for the last decade. For you Broadway players out there, I know, I know…no big deal…but for people playing bars 10p-2a…that’s a lot of bars!…well not always bars, because the first time I saw them was at an outdoor event entertaining an enthusiastic 1000+ audience and it was fantastic! So, to join forces with performers the likes of Noah and Erek is special. We’re pushing for something we don’t get musically or creatively anywhere else. Please join us from time to time at shows…or all the time!
NOAH FIGLIN: GUITAR AND VOCALS
A staple in the State College music community, Noah Figlin is the founding member of the Nightcrawlers, and currently also performs with the Earthtones. His original music has been featured in national commercials for AT&T and Adidas, as well as the ABC drama “That Was Then” and the award-winning web series, Anyone But Me. In addition to performing and composing, Noah has produced and recorded albums for Pure Cane Sugar, The Strayers, The Tommy Roberts, and The Nightcrawlers.
EREK KAPUSTA: KEYS, GUITAR AND VOCALS
Multi-Instrumentalist and composer Erek Kapusta has performed with a myriad of musical acts. He is currently a full time-member of the Nightcrawlers, The Insomniacs and the Cavetones, and has worked with many others including fusion outfit Megalodon, Atlas Soundtrack, the Perkolators, and countless jazz and funk groups.
JON DEXTER: CELLO
Jonathan has performed on The View, The Jimmy Fallon Show, Fox and Friends, Rachael Ray, and with artists such as Grammy winning jazz artist Billy Childs, Broadway's Megan Hilty, David Amram, the TransSiberian Orchestra, and Mannheim Steamroller. Jonathan has also been featured on film soundtracks such as Bernie (2012) starring Jack Black and Shirley MacLaine, Nobelity (2006), and A Scanner Darkly (2006). As a home studio engineer and recording artist, Jonathan created strings for the NBC’s series Smash and produced his original score to the short film Recess; official selection of the 2012 Cannes Film Festival.