Issue date: 9/20/07 Section: A&E

Media Credit: Robert Mullen Alex Ray (left) and Adam Nergenah (right), two members of The Alex Ray Band, strum their guitars at rehearsal in Evergreen Hall Tuesday night. The Alex Ray Band will perfrom at 3:20 p.m. Sunday at Cicero's, one St. Louis venue hosting bands in "play: STL Music Festival" this weekend.

Since January, The Alex Ray Band has been playing in coffee houses, Relay for Life events and even in what guitarist and sophomore Adam Nergenah refers to as "basically cornfields."

Performing as part of "play: STL Music Festival" on Saturday is a step up for two of the four band members.

Ray, a sophomore majoring in jazz performance and Nergenah, a junior year majoring in music business, submitted the band's creations online at the festival Web site this past summer.

"I didn't think much of it at first," Ray said. "I saw that people all throughout the St. Louis area could enter, but I checked it out anyways. The next week I was sitting in my basement working on some recording, and I checked my e-mail and was selected to play in the festival. I basically jumped out of my chair."

The band, consisting of four members, Ray, Nergenah, Dave Ruvolo, and Austin Ray, will feature acoustic guitarists Ray and Nergenah at the festival.

"I am excited to be able to play music I have written out in St. Louis, (in front) of new faces and have the chance to connect with a new audience," Ray said.

The two will be playing only original songs at the show, such as the band's best-known song "Sarah," "Simple Words," "One Too Few," "My Saving Grace," "Follow Me," a piece only on piano titled "Covered" and many others.

Ray and Nergenah formed the band when they first met in an SIUE guitar course and planned to perform at The University Center together.

"Adam and I have been playing together for eight months, and the way that we have clicked in the past couple months isn't like anything I ever experienced since I have been playing with other people," Ray said. "I think we mesh well together and know that the other person's going to play before they play it."

Ray, who was raised in a musically-oriented family, first began his musical journey playing the piano. He then moved to the bass, and then delved into the guitar.

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