The Schomberg Fair at Sneaky Dee’s

Matt Bahen of The Schomberg Fair

For two years, once upon a time, I went to high school with a guy by the name of Matt Bahen. He was kind, soft-spoken, and popular, with shoulder-length dark hair and a guitar slung over his shoulder. These days, Matt looks pretty much the same as I remember him, although he has less hair on his head and more on his face, but he isn’t as quiet as he used to be. This is a good thing. Matt grew up in a little town called Schomberg. There isn’t much to do there most of the time, so the residents look forward to the annual Schomberg Fair. There were animals and a demolition derby, music, rides, and endless drinking, partying and good old-fashioned debauchery. Like the event, the band is worth traversing the country side to see, and like the fair, their show is memorable, musical and full of surprises. Matt is the lead vocalist, but the true wonder of his performance is his instrumentation on both the guitar and bango. With precision and grace, he belts out both high-speed riffs and beautiful melodies to enhance the slower tunes. The bass player has a voice to match his instrument, which contributes to the rich and powerful overall sound. At first, they reminded me of a punk version of the band “System of a Down”, but their diversity impressed me as the show went on. The first ballad is full of soul and the band plays it beautifully, a sure sign of a great rock band. They follow that up with a country tune. Matt and the bass player are perfect for it vocally. I am not a big fan of country music, but the take The Schomberg Fair has on the genre is far more enticing than I have grown to expect. They take something that would be whiney and twangy and rock it right out, proving that, just because you live in the country doesn’t mean you can’t be hardcore!