by L. Jeanette Strole for Amorphous Media Agency
John Bonaventura: lead/rhythm Stratocaster guitar, lead vocals
John Natelli: the Yamaha drum set (and cymbals)
Jack Hoopingarner: rhythm self-painted green guitar, backing vocals
Luke Snell: electrical four-stringed Mexican Fender jazz plug-in bass guitar
Though three of the Swiss Auto Club members have unusual last names, (Bonaventura, Natelli, and Hoopingarner) they seem to make up for it by having All-American first names like Jack, John, and Luke. However, Swiss Auto Club’s music is not as apple-pie as their first names might suggest. Their influences call to mind such foreign heavy-weights as Catherine Wheel, Stone Roses, Kent, Muse, and Oasis. Of course, American glints of rock filter their way into the music, as well: Velvet Underground, Television, Nirvana, Sunny Day Real Estate, even some Guns ‘N’ Roses. No matter the foreign influences, and the name Swiss Auto Club - which seems to imply swanky Euro-cars cruising around the winding roads of the Alps - Swiss Auto Club in any language, is bound to become synonymous with the words “Rock and Roll.”
To that end, Bonaventura contends that what they have to offer is distinct. “Rock bands are carelessly copping the music of both the older, influential acts and even each other. Our music effortlessly cuts through all else by nature; we cannot help but to write our own material.”
What brought them together was a chance meeting in a coffee shop. Bonaventura and John Natelli had met once or twice during a year’s time, and their interests in music gave them incentive to start a band. “Jack Hoopingarner, who introduced us originally, was asked to join six months later.” Even though he had brought his brother Luke Snell on board, original singer, Jason Snell left, leaving a slot for Bonaventura to step up to the microphone.
While their first show was only in April 2002 at Vassar College, they’ve quickly amassed several gigs since their inception. All four of the band members are seasoned musicians, with plenty of experience under their collective belts. Just a few months after their first steps into rock-and-roll territory, Swiss Auto Club recorded and self-produced their first eight-song album Esplosione, which is packed with eight high-octane songs. It is emphasized that “even without the lyrics, [their] music tells a story.”
Their aspiration to “be adored as every other band without sounding like any other band” is not as tall of an order as one might think. As Bonaventura proclaims, “We place greater emphasis on sonic clarity and on the arrangements of our songs with more complex transitions and atypical structures. Being selective listeners pushes us to write music that speaks to an audience that expects more from a rock band.”
Swiss Auto Club makes every effort to be thought-provoking in their creative pursuits. Striving for musical cohesiveness and lyrical depth, is revealed in the songs. “I generally write when I’ve had a bad or negative experience with someone or something. When I’ve been wronged, I right the situation by resolving the differences lyrically. I tend to be cynical, yet logically hopeful in dealing with subjects of personal importance. On the lighter side, John Natelli and I like creating fictional un-named characters involved in various plots (i.e. ‘Explosion’ and My Middle Name is Warren.)” Natelli adds, “My lyrics are a string of unrelated phrases that, once assembled, create a unified meaning or statement.”
“Our primary goal with songwriting is to never have a boring moment of music; every bit is as important as the last.” In a nutshell, their goal is to make Rock and Roll.