Shaffer Street frontman Chris Shaffer can trace a direct path from his Ball State degree in marketing, sales and promotion to his career as a musician.
"You're marketing a product, and what better product to have than yourself?" Shaffer said. "You can believe in it."
Shaffer, who graduated in 1990 and played golf for the Cardinals, led local favorites the Why Store for 11 years, scoring a hit nationally in 1996 with "Lack of Water," before the group's dissolution a year and a half ago.
After the Why Store's demise, Shaffer needed only to look as far as his own family for his next musical partnership. Shaffer Street, which includes lead guitarist Keith Scooglund, bassist Dan Dolan and drummer Gonzolo Dies, also features Shaffer's wife Heather on vocals.
"It's just magic, really," Shaffer said of their vocal combination. "It's something that's so natural for the two of us."
Shaffer Street's sound, a mixture of pop, classic rock and psychedelic, is not a great departure from his previous band, due to the fact that Shaffer was the prime songwriter for the Why Store as well. Shaffer's trademark gravelly baritone and 12-string acoustic guitar playing also are as identifiable as ever.
"It's really not that different," he said. "I've just continued writing songs and putting them together."
Heather Shaffer also contributed to the songwriting process; she shares writing credits with her husband on three of the tracks on the band's upcoming album, its second.
Shaffer realizes his band's musical style is a far reach from the mixture of boy bands and rap-metal acts that have dominated the charts recently.
"We are so out of touch with what's going on," said Shaffer with a laugh. "I really don't know what to call us. We're 'dirty, sexy pop' ... I don't know."
When the band first formed, Shaffer was faced with the difficult task of selling his new group to Why Store fans.
"In the very beginning, after the Why Store broke up, it was really hard," Shaffer said. "And now people are starting to get more accustomed to the new stuff, and it's really paying off."
Shaffer Street independently released a debut album last year, titled "Four Walls." The band is finalizing the artwork for its new album, "No Way Back," which will hit stores in late March/early April.
The band is searching for a major record deal, but Shaffer is cautious not to get ensnared in the bureaucratic mess that led to the Why Store's departure from mega-label MCA. They had originally signed with a smaller label, but were faced with a tough decision when the owner of that label sold it to MCA.
"We had the option to go with MCA or not have a label, and we decided to try MCA," Shaffer said. "It just didn't work out."
"We're shopping (the new album) right now to some labels," Shaffer said, "but we're not in a big hurry. The way I operate, it's got to be a pretty big record deal. I'm not going to make the same mistake I made with MCA."
Shaffer Street will play tonight and Feb. 14 from 8:30 to 11 at Dill Street Bar and Grill in the Village.
"Just the fact that Muncie's opening up to original music is a really neat thing," Shaffer said.
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
