About Us
The Band
Nothing Personal delivers razor sharp, high energy entertainment. Songs spanning every decade from the present day to the birth of rock and every mood from introspective alt to giddy pop to brash in-your-face rawk. Nothing Personal will keep you moving and singing along. May be mildly addictive. Not street legal in some states. Caution: filling is hot. Avoid contact with eyes and skin and avoid inhaling fumes. Hey, it’s Nothing Personal!
Nothing Personal is an absolute musical and personal BLAST to play in. We enjoy each other, and what we do. We hope that every ounce of energy we put into our craft, will flow out, for you to enjoy and make your own. If you feel something, say something… bring all your friends. Be part of our energy. We’re here for us, we’re here for the music, and we’re here for you.
Devin Gackle—Lead Vocals and Guitar
A “Capital-I” Introvert and human with a particular brand of awkward, Devin has been playing, performing, and writing music since she was even shorter. She has an eclectic mix of hobbies and interests, including but not limited to books, coffee, writing, spooky season, thrifting, and trees. Contrary to popular belief, her name is not spelled with an o, a, or y, and is also not pronounced “Debbie” or “David.” Though she hardly ever wears matching socks (purely out of habit at this point), she is fluent in sarcasm, and in recent years has spent an unusual amount of time defending all she holds dear from the tiny demons known as “squirrels.”
Jeff Phillips—Bass and Vocals
A man with actual degrees in music, Jeff hails from the Detroit area, where his music career began with large brass instruments. However, these didn’t go low enough (or loud enough), so he moved to 6-string bass guitar, which afford him considerably lower notes, although they DO restrict his marching. Oddly, Jeff was never in a rock and roll band until 2001, when he founded one. He’s had to play catch-up, and at last count, he regularly contributes his talents to four bands, minimum. A consummate multi-instrumentalist, Jeff feels that his singing and brass playing inform his melodic bass underpinnings. But he does miss marching.
Steve Hodges—Guitar and Vocals
Steve started shredding hard and early, cranking up Deep Purple, the Stones, James Brown and so many others, burning riffs on his…ukulele. He fondly recalls enthusiastic encouragement and even participation from neighbors, though they often bungled some lyrics: “Hush, Hush! I can’t even hear myself think now!” or “Hey! You! **** off, it’s too loud!” and “Shut up and off ‘a that thing!” Encouraged, Steve quickly upgraded to 6-strings, added piano and brass, and eventually fused his love of blues, jazz, funk, and rock into a constantly evolving, unique, some say adequate, style he’s used in Kansas City and Chicago area bands for years.
John Pasternack—Keyboards
John supplies what he refers to as “bread and butter” keyboards based on his upbringing with 60’s and 70’s classic rock and believes that the collection of vibe-y electric pianos and Hammond organ sounds of that time hold just as strong a place in the keyboard player’s arsenal today. John’s overall relationship to keyboards is best articulated by a favorite quote by keyboardist Rick Wakeman, (a major influence) which goes “When I die, I’ll probably climb out of the coffin and play the organ at my own funeral!”
Tim Gackle—Drums and Vocals
Tim, the man behind the cans, was told by his parents that he couldn’t play drums because they were TOO LOUD. Thus began his love of drumming (although despite his disdain for rules imposed by authority figures, he spends a great deal of his professional time imposing “discipline” on others for large sums of money). Since 1995 Tim has drummed around Chicagoland with bands too numerous to list. Influenced by Led Zeppelin, Genesis, The Who, and Rush, Tim brings a breadth of musical styles to Nothing Personal, holding down the backbeat while bringing vocals and even guitar into the mix on occasion!