No snooze The Insomniaczzz in rehearsal
Mattress industry rockers the Insomniaczzz are making their fourth consecutive ISPA EXPO appearance in New Orleans this month on Wednesday, March 26 from 5 to 6:30 at the ISPA EXPO 2014 Welcome Reception.
Made up of bedding executives—including three past ISPA chairmen—the Insomniaczzz bring the industry together for a bit of fun and dancing.
The six-man band includes:
- Keyboards: Paul Block, vice president of sales strategy and product planning for Carthage, Mo.-based Leggett & Platt’s Global Systems Group.
- Rhythm guitar and backup vocals: Gerry Borreggine, president and chief executive officer of Therapedic International in Princeton, N.J.
- Bass, acoustic guitar, vocals: Jim Malkiewicz, president of Blue Ocean Sleep in Sacramento, Calif.
- Drums: David Orders, VP / COO for Park Place Corp., in Greenville, S.C.
- Trumpet, percussion and backup vocals: Sandy Van Dyke, president of Interwoven Group LLC in Austin, Texas.
- Lead Vocals and percussion: Don Wright, chairman of the board and chief marketing officer for Wright Global Graphic Solutions in Thomasville, N.C.
The band got its start nine years ago at a cocktail party at an Industry Conference in Florida, when several of the current members began talking music and someone threw out the idea of starting an industry band, “to perform at events and bring people together under the common love of live music,” says Orders.
That’s all fine while everyone is together at a conference, but with band members spread out from New Jersey to California, regular practices can be a challenge.
“All the guys have to commit some time and expense to travel on their own and Jim (Malkiewicz ) is always coming east from Sacramento. It’s a big commitment,” says Orders.
Once they know they have a show coming up, the band generally tries to get together and rehearse either at Las Vegas or High Point—sometimes both. Then they schedule one more rehearsal at another location somewhere they can all meet up. This year it was Chattanooga, but in the past, they’ve gotten together in Atlanta and High Point.
Those meetings are important, but four years ago in Atlanta, the rehearsal turned into something special.
“We were in this industrial area at an old warehouse converted into recording (and) rehearsal space,” says Orders. “There was only one other band in there at the time. We were setting up and tuning and one of the guys said, ‘Hey, you need to come next door’ to the next studio room. We went in and there was Justin Bieber with his entire entourage—band, dancers, choreographers, rehearsing for a show. He was only 15 or 16 then. We got to watch and meet a few people.”
While their Chattanooga rehearsal may not have been quite as exciting, Orders says the Insomniaczzz have added five or six new songs to the mix for EXPO—all easily recognized covers sure to be crowd-pleasers—and a “special ending.”
“The most important thing is to play music that people know and enjoy,” he says. “…At EXPO, you’ll hear some Doobie Brothers, Black Crowes, Dr. John, Roy Orbison and McCartney. That’s a pretty good mix.”
Orders says playing in such a musically important city as New Orleans is an added benefit psychologically.
“We tried putting in some Orleans music, but ended up with ‘Black Water,’ which will be fun,” he says.
After nine years, the original six members of the band are still together, and still going strong.
“I believe (the band) brings people together in a way,” says Orders. “We’ve had so many people tell us they enjoy the shows, and it builds some camaraderie at some small level. We need more of that in our industry…I’d like to think we bring some fun to the industry, if only for a brief time.”
