'Bike' musicians ride more than a decade of friendship

In kindergarten, Mike Reed met Travis Dopp. Their new friendship was not cemented by crayons and action figures, but rather by a small Matchbox car.\nReed, who is now lead singer and guitar player of Small Brown Bike, remembers a time in elementary school when it was Travis' birthday, and as a last-minute present wrapped a Matchbox car in toilet paper and gave it to Travis.\nFrom there, the friendship was sealed and has since grown into more of a brotherhood, which now includes drummer Dan Jaquint, whom Reed met in fifth grade. Add in younger brother Ben Reed on bass and percussionist Jeff Gensterblum, and the Bike was completed.\n"Being in a band, skating…they're all auxiliary to being friends," Reed says, who added that tight friendships establish the personal and truthful nature of Small Brown Bike's music, which can be heard at this year's BloomingtonFest.\nHailing originally from Marshall, Mich., the members of Small Brown Bike have made a name for themselves nationwide. Though they have toured the country, they still take a certain pride in their Midwestern roots.\n"When we go to bigger cities, we definitely feel like we're from Michigan," Reed says. "Probably at some level it's contributed to the band, but I don't know if it's conscious."\nBecause the band members have a history together, they draw influences from life's experiences. As a result, the music and lyrics reflect this aspect of the band.\n"Lyrically, personal things motivate us. That's what we're comfortable with and that's what comes naturally at this point," Reed says. "The band reflects who we are as people."\nMusically and lyrically, the band tries to avoid planning and refuses to stifle themselves by trying to force their music in any direction. \n"We try to stay away from making conscious decisions toward the band," Reed says. "We don't say, 'Today we're going to write a love song.' It feels 20 times better to just be practicing and see what comes out, see what happens naturally."\nWhat happens naturally is incredibly energetic, honest and open.\nSmall Brown Bike will make its third appearance at Bloomingtonfest this year. Whether 200 people are crammed into True Skateboards or hundreds of people strive to get as close as possible to the stage in Rhino's, the band's shows are always energetic, something Shane Becker, of the local band rise over run, has seen firsthand. He has attended two Bike shows at the old True Skateboards.\n"Imagine over a hundred kids packed into that place, all screaming along like their lives depended on it," Becker says. "I like their CDs, but I don't think they can capture their live shows."\nBrad Wilhelm, director of Rhino's, also attests to the power of their performances.\n"They're an amazing act live," Wilhelm says. "It's almost like the band and the audience are in something together."\nThe source of this energy is the music. But not all performances run like clockwork -- when someone might feel he lacks the energy required to play a show, the music pulls him through.\n"Sometimes on the road or at a local show, you'll think, 'I don't know how the hell I'm going to do it tonight,'" Reed says. "But, once that first note kicks in, I know I can do it." \nAnother motivating force in the band is the deep comfort level that Reed says stems from the members' friendship.\n"It allows you to be more honest when you're practicing, and when you're writing music, it definitely comes out," he says. "If you want to try something in a song, for example, you don't have to worry about what the rest of the band is going to think. You can be totally honest about stuff in a good way or in a bad way."\nBut Small Brown Bike has also encountered several obstacles. Dopp left for about a year, and was replaced temporarily by Scott Flaster. During Dopp's absence, he and Reed remained friends and talked almost every day. Recently, original drummer Jaquint left the band. \n"He was honest with us, and he was honest with himself," Reed says. "Small Brown Bike wanted to do so many things, and it became difficult for Dan to balance with his job. He currently drums in a different band that fits better with his lifestyle.\n"It's hard to watch a friend you've known since you were 11 leave the band," Reed says.\nThe two remain friends with no hard feelings about his departure, and it didn't throw the band off course. With another friend waiting in the wings, Small Brown Bike continued on. Jeff Gensterblum, who also drums for Biddy Biddy Biddy, immediately volunteered for the job.\n"Jeff just offered. He was confident that he could do it," Reed says. "We knew it would work, and he's really creative when he's working with songs."\nCurrently, Gensterblum is working with the band on new material, some of which will appear on a split 7'' with friends the Casket Lottery later in the fall. \nAs with the Casket Lottery, Small Brown Bike has befriended many bands such as Cursive and Hot Water Music. Often familiar with only their music first, through a few strokes of luck Small Brown Bike has been able to meet some of the musicians they look up to the most. \n"Most of these bands I never knew as people first. Just by sheer luck or coincidence we got to meet," Reed says. "Once we get to know them as people, the music becomes that much more amazing."\nWhen Hot Water Music asked Small Brown Bike to tour with them, Reed says it opened their eyes to possibilities of what they could do with the band. He felt confident that they would accomplish a lot by simply doing what they loved. \n"It fired us up to do more touring," Reed says. "We know we have to keep stuff organized. We've all kicked ourselves in the butt and made sure we have all of our stuff together. And then we can have fun." \nSince 1996, Small Brown Bike have been having fun making music and meeting new people. \n"Three years ago, I couldn't have predicted where we are now," Reed says. "We'll know when we've taken it as far as we can go"