Jay "Taz" Kuzara- Drums

VOTED "BEST ROCK DRUMMER" - 2010 BUFFALO NIGHTLIFE AWARDS
Endorsed by Regal Tip Drum Sticks

Taz A late bloomer, by some standards, Jay didn't pick up a drumstick till the age of 16. Back then just to be able to get through any song off of Def Leppard's Pyromania album was a huge accomplishment. Using the U.S. Savings Bonds he received from year's of, "we're building his future" gifts from family and friends, Jay bought his first drumset. It was used. It was loud, and it was big! 9 pieces - all open end toms and kick drums. That's right, don't start small like the rest of the world and build up, just jump right in literally two feet first.

With a brand new drumset, and an ambition to play, Jay retreated to his parents basement. Playing everyday after school and weekends for as long as his Mom could take it, Jay finally mastered his first song, Shot In The Dark by Ozzy. A real no-brainer when you look back at it. "I played it so much, that my Mom and dog could have played the song note for note."

By the age of 17, Jay was in his first band Blue Unicorn. "It was awesome. We'd get together at my buddy Jim's parents house and jam KISS, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, you name it. We were Metal". Jay's first real playing gig came by his marketing genius, he called a local church doing a lawn fete, and got in the beer tent. Picture if you will, a nice old school Polish neighborhood turned into chaos. "It was really funny. We opened with KISS, did Maiden's "666" and then all hell broke loose. "I'll never forget the looks on people's faces when the bass player ripped into Hendrix's version of the National Anthem and let the last chord ring till there was nothing but feedback. People were just pissed."

Nothing is really as funny, or entertaining, as the first few years. Time went on and Jay jammed with bands in the area, Glam Slam, Safire, Widow, Sweet Revenge, Burn, Unleashed, Fat Brat, Sawdawg, High Wire, Hit N Run and a group that remained nameless in which he met his wife to be who was the singer. After a not-so-humbling experience, Jay packed it all up back in 1996. "Let's just say I'd had had it with the music, the people, my playing, the scene, just everything. It wasn't fun anymore."

3 years would pass before Jay would pick up a stick again. "A longtime friend (DD) finally kicked me in the head after pulling it out of my ass." After months of practice, Jay was ready to play again. He joined up with a bunch of guys from different bands to form the bandUnleashed. "This was the shit. I mean here you have 4 musically talented guys literally jamming their asses off!! Music was fun again." The fun lasted less than a year and everyone went their separate ways. sweetrevenge1

"I received a phone call from an old friend Mike Schill, to go and tryout for a classic rock band called Fat Brat. 2 weeks later I'm on a boat playing with them." Talk about landing a gig with a major player in the area, Ken Wilczak, a Buffalo Music Hall Of Famer, and 20+ year veteran to the scene. Fat Brat would do the usual grind of shows thruout the Western New York area. "Weekends were a blur at times. You'd just get up from the night before, still tasting the Labatt's, and you were just about out the door for the next gig." At that time Fat Brat would be Jay's longest run with any band to date playing an estimated 120 shows in 3 years, and it was the most demanding. "Ken was a pain in the ass at first. I mean this guy was a stickler for feel, groove, and most of all tempos. But I'll tell you this, looking back, no one has made me a better player than my time playing with him and Fat Brat."

Like all good things, they eventually must end. Jay was growing tired of playing classic rock and the Metal Head inside was starting to scream louder and louder. "I needed to play heavier material. It's like Ken from Fat Brat always said at least once a night on stage....You can take the boy out of Metal, you just can't take the Metal out of the boy." Nothing proves this statement louder than Jay being nominated, and winning "Top Hard Rock Drummer" in 2002, while playing in a classic rock band.

In 2002 Jay went back to his Hard Rock roots and joined up with a band named Sawdawg. The band was relativley new and it was a chance to rock the harder songs again. "Joining Sawdawg was a breath of fresh air. I mean the minute Rich said they did Godsmack, there was no way I was gonna blow this audition. Hell I remember seeing Ezekial yeeeeears (ahem) ago and remember saying I gotta jam with this dude." Sawdawg would run for 3 years and swept the 2003 People's Choice Awards with the band, and all it's members winning in every category they were nominated.

In 2004, after leaving Sawdawg for a brief stint with High Wire, Jay packed up the family and moved to Richmond, Virginia. "Richmond was a chance to start over - ya know get my life and family in order after years of playing in bands and neglecting them." It was the end of the line for Jay's music career. It was time to settle down and become sawdawg1

a family guy. Little did Jay know that it was going to really be the end of the line with playing the drums forever.

4 months after relocating to Virgina and getting settled into a new home and job, Jay broke his back. Jay crushed and shattered 3 discs in his lower back and would spend the next 2 years in bed. Refusing to have back surgery, Jay went through every non-surgical procedure known to man. Some helped, some didn't. The bottom line was a spinal fusion would be the only way to properly fix the problem. So in 2006 Jay moved back to the Buffalo, NY area. "You don't make a lot of new friends when you're laying in bed, and everyone that was calling were from back home." In late 2006 Jay finally had the spinal fusion surgery and was looking at a year or more recovery time.

Around mid-2007, history repeated itself with another phone call from Mike Schill about an opening in a band. The band was Hit N Run and it was one of the top bands in the Buffalo area. Jay had not played the drums since July of 2004 and was nearing the end of recovering from surgery. The audition date was set and a CD was dropped off. After another 3-year absence from playing, Jay would have to pull it all together. "It was really hell-ish at times. You would think it's like riding a bike, but it's not. I had to basically re-learn how to play the drums all over again... and I only had 2 weeks to do it." Jay got the gig with Hit N Run, and stayed with the band for almost 3 years playing over 300 shows with them in that time.

Jay left Hit N Run in 2010 and it didn't take long to get a new band formed. Teaming with former Hit N Run members Mike Schill and Bruce Decker, they formed the band Breakaway with Jeff Kocher and Scott Panfil.

While Jay is still bothered by back pain and was told in January 2010 that another surgery was required, he still does not want to stop playing the drums. "The new band is great! We're all a little older, and a little wiser. Music isFUN again and this will be my final ride."

Jay is married (Patty) with 3 children (Austin, Kayla, & Kaitlyn). "They are my strength.....and in some ways my weakness. I mean c'mon, who can turn down those puppy dog eyes when they ask for 15 cookies in an hour....and that doesn't even include the kids."

JAY WOULD LIKE TO THANK: My Mom because without her initial support I wouldn't be playing the drums today. I miss you! My wife and kids for putting up with some of the most outlandish shit anybody could dish out. I love you guys. Jay and the guys over at REGAL TIP. "Double D" for the kick to the head. Ken, Mike, Bobby and the gang of Fatbrat. Johnny (r-r-r-roastbeef) & the guys from Flipside, Jimmy and the gang at Club Paradise, Phil and Angela (thanks for the use of the couch and your shoulders), numerous babysitters, countless bartenders, Fred (it's like Africa hot in here dude) Gravius, Joey D, Kook, Phil and the crew at Macaroons, anyone who loaned me money over the years, Jimmy Wynne (bonehead), Jina Foxx (I think you'd look good blonde), Joe Dzialak, John Walker, the boys from Machu Picchu, Pauly the bartender everybody knows, Art Kubera for my first real drum set, Duck and the crew at Guitar Factory, Only Frank, Rob, Chris, Tom, and Carl over at 97 Rock. Paul Cullen, Scott Nichols Sound, Donnie & the crew over at The Aud, Dave Mucha, Sean, Richie, Dennis and John from Sawdawg, Kevin, Rick and Kenny from Highwire, Joe Tall (SOUND GOD!) for the loaner sound gear, Jesse (now Jerome!), and anybody else I left out - you know who you are. Thank you!

INFLUENCES: Tommy Aldridge, Tommy Lee, Mikki Dee, Tommy Stewart, Shannon Larkin, Mike Portnoy, Steve Smith, Lars Ulrich, Deen Castronova, Scott Travis, Vinnie Paul.

YEARS PLAYING: 24

ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Voted "Top Hard Rock Drummer" 2002 - Buffalo Music Awards, "Hard Rock Drummer" 2003 - People's Choice Music Awards, "Top Alternative Rack Band" 2003 (Sawdawg) - People's Choice Awards, "Top Rock Drummer" 2008, 2009 - Buffalo Music Awards. Drum stick endorsement from Regal Tip - 2009, Best Rock Drummer - Buffalo Nightlife Awards 2010, Best New Band (Breakaway) - Buffalo Nightlife Awards 2010, Best New Group (Breakaway) - Buffalo Music Awards 2010.

FAVORITE BANDS: Godsmack, Racer X, Disturbed, Ozzy, Van Halen DLR DAYS!, Iron Maiden, King Diamond, All That Remains.

FAVORITE FOOD: Filet Mignon and chilli (not together)

FAVORITE BEVERAGE: "Throwback" Pepsi (with the real sugar) / Labatt's Blue Light / Grape flavored water (not particularly in that order)

FAVORITE BUFFALO RESTAURANT: My kitchen

FAVORITE PLACE FOR WINGS: Roz's

FAVORITE MUSIC STORE: Guitar Factory

FAVORITE NON-MUSIC STORE: Anything online that has a valid coupon code

FAVORITE BAR TO PLAY AT: Crazy Jakes

MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT ON STAGE: While playing with Fat Brat in the early stages, I forgot the beginning of "Sun Spot Baby" by Seger. It took a lifetime to get to the meat of the song. Major train wreck! Next gig I had a variety of sun block products to choose from from all the guys.

GEAR: Yamaha Stage Custom 5-Piece. DW 6-Piece. DW "Edge" Snare Drum. DW Turbo 5000 double kick pedals and hat stand. Gibraltar rack systems. Sabian cymbals. Regal Tip drumsticks. Evans Genera HDD 2 ply snare heads and Remo drumheads.