Candice McMahon
For The Morning Star
Radioactive’s extensive repertoire of musical styles and genres, ranging from all your favourite classic hits of the last five decades to today’s current hits, guarantees a night to remember.
Performing at the Vernon Jazz Club (VJC) is their seven-piece configuration, which features the instrumentation and huge sound usually offered only by 10-piece bands: three lead singers, three-piece horn section, guitar, keyboards, bass, and drums with energy to spare.
The three lead singers in Radioactive, Jen Lewin, Goby Catt, and Jon Roper, are accomplished instrumentalists, as well.
Born and raised near Vancouver, Lewin is an experienced pianist and vocalist, having played genres ranging from classical, to ragtime, to jazz, to pop, rock, funk, and beyond. She studied jazz piano at Vancouver Community College (VCC) with a minor in jazz voice in her second year. Since graduation, she’s performed all over the world with the cruise industry, as well as private functions, clubs, and other venues.
“We are all very close friends and we love performing together,” said Lewin. “Our camaraderie and the fun we have together is easily evident when the seven of us are onstage. A few of us have performed at the Vernon Jazz Club in the past with various other groups, and we have unanimously loved the experience. Vernon’s audience is always fun, appreciative, and engaged, and we are so very excited to be coming to the VJC with this particular lineup.”
Catt was born and raised in Sydney, Australia, where he was a respected bass player and vocalist in the city’s jazz scene for more than a decade.
Now living Vancouver, Catt continues to entertain crowds with his cool swing and his take on classic standards by the greats.
Vancouver guitarist Roper has been teaching since 1993. He has a diploma from VCC and has studied performance, theory and composition at Simon Fraser University and Capilano University. Over the past decade, Roper has toured Canada, the United States, Australia, The United Kingdom, and Japan with various projects.
The three entertaining horn players feature Jim Hopson on trombone, Dominic Conway on saxophone, and Mark D’Angelo on trumpet.
Hopson is equally at home playing jazz, classical, pop, and world music. He completed a bachelor of music in trombone performance at the University of Victoria and has established himself as a first-call soloist, sideman, and arranger in the city of Vancouver.
Conway, who started playing saxophone when he was just a kid, is a natural born performer, a thunderous soloist, and a permanent live-wire. Graduating from VCC, he adds charisma, energy, and class to the horn section.
D’Angelo, a native of North Vancouver, holds a Master of Music Degree from the University of McGill. He currently holds the position of second trumpet with the Vancouver Island Symphony, and he is a session trumpet instructor at Capilano University in the music diploma program.
Last, but loudest, is versatile drummer Kyle Radomsky, who has 25 years of playing experience in just about any setting you might imagine, and even some you might not. He has toured internationally with a variety of bands including performances in Canada, the United States, United Arab Emirates, Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Bosnia, New Zealand, and Poland.
Radioactive will be onstage at the Vernon Jazz Club (3000-31 Street) on Saturday, May 20 at 8 p.m. Doors open at 7:15 p.m. Tickets are available for $20 online at vernonjazz.com and at Expressions of Time (2901-30 Ave), with a $5 rebate at the gig for VJS members.