Isaac James is an American rock band, with roots based in both

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

and

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

, United States.

History

Isaac James was formed in the summer of 2008 by members Blackie Starks, Gil Cole,

Joel Ekman Stone Sour was an American rock band formed in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1992. The band performed for five years before disbanding in 1997. They reunited in 2000; since 2015, the group has consisted of Corey Taylor (lead vocals, guitar), Josh Rand ( ...

(formerly of Grammy-nominated

Stone Sour Stone Sour was an American rock band formed in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1992. The band performed for five years before disbanding in 1997. They reunited in 2000; since 2015, the group has consisted of Corey Taylor (lead vocals, guitar), Josh Rand ...

), and John Lillard.

had originally parted ways with

in 2006 to take care of his son, Isaac James Ekman who had been diagnosed with cancer. Isaac soon died, and Joel suggested using Isaac James as the band's name in memory of their son. The band agreed, and in January 2009 the band officially took on the name Isaac James.

Too Much Horsepower (2008-2009)

After writing heavily in the fall of 2008, Blackie had contacted major label producer and long time friend, Scott Spelbring ( The Speaks, Plunge (band),

SR-71 (band) SR-71 was an American rock music, rock band formed in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1998. They are best known for their 2000 single "Right Now (SR-71 song), Right Now", their 2002 single "Tomorrow (SR-71 song), Tomorrow", and as the original authors o ...

, Field of Grey to produce their debut record, Too Much Horsepower. The 5 song EP was recorded in both Scott's studio in Virginia and in Kansas City studio, Cypher Sound with major label producer Aaron Connor (Black Diamond) engineering. Before the EP's release, the buzz about the new band featuring an ex Stone Sour member, started circling the globe and soon after the band would be doing local and international radio and print interviews and secure distribution in major media outlets including media moguls Best Buy and

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

With the help of Protocol Entertainment, Too Much Horsepower yielded three singles in regular FM and Satellite radio rotation. Home, Hey, and Satisfied.

Shut Up And Listen (2011)

The band's first full-length record titled 'Shut Up And Listen' was written by Isaac James and produced by Larry Gann. The album released in April 2011, pushed three singles to Fm and Satellite radio carrying on its momentum previously gained from Too Much Horsepower. The Rain, The Real Me, and Save My Tomorrow are currently still in rotation on several stations both in the United States and abroad. The whole album is available for download on the Isaac James website.

Return

After a hiatus that lasted over a year, the band returned to the stage on 3 October 2015 at Wooly's in Des Moines, Iowa. The reincarnation of Isaac James came with two new well-known and respected Iowa musicians, Rich Cantrell and Mike Ruby and now call Des Moines, Iowa home. The band is also currently writing new material.

Endorsements

The band was recently picked up by Jesse James American Outlaw Bourbon as an American Outlaw band and has been performing under the American Outlaw Bourbon umbrella across the country

Band members

;Current * Blackie Starks - lead vocals, occasional guitar (2008–present) * Mike Ruby - guitar, backing vocals (2015–present) * Rich Cantrell - bass guitar (2015–present) *

- drums, percussion (2008–present) ;Former * Brian Wayne Strawn - drums, percussion (2013) * Gil Cole - guitar, backing vocals (2008–2013) * John Lillard - bass guitar (2008–2015)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Isaac James (Band) Rock music groups from Iowa Rock music groups from Missouri Musical groups from Des Moines, Iowa Musical groups from Kansas City, Missouri Musical groups established in 2008