"2007 National Artist Ovation Champions!"

Nitengale is a piano based rock band formed in Fairbanks, Alaska. This summer we will be performing shows in as many different venues as possible throughout the state.
Coming from different backgrounds, each band member makes a unique contribution to the sound of Nitengale. The bassist, Sean Lovegrove, originates from Illinois, but most recently moved from Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. He has played in numerous bands in Illinois, South Carolina, and Prince of Wales. Sean refines his skills by practicing compositions from artists such as Victor Wooten, Les Claypool, Jaco Pastorious, and Flea from the Chili Peppers. Sean brings creativity and vision to the bass line on every song, delivering each with skill and precision.

The drumming by Joe Snow pulls influences from 30 Seconds to Mars, Anberlin, Muse, Sanctus Real, Coldplay, Underoath, and others. With that standard set before him, Joe has developed his own flavor, keeping us on our toes with time signature changes, breaks, and dropped beats. Joseph Snow's creative and well thought out rhythm brings strength to each musical piece.

Josh Baumgarter, who spearheaded the creation of Nitengale, leads the band with piano, vocals and some acoustic guitar. Drawing on previous experience with the band "Mercier", a former local band with Joe Snow, and "Limberloss", a band out of Phoenix, he has discovered a new freedom to create original songs from the piano. Josh is primarily responsible for writing our original melody lines and chord progressions. He presents a song idea to the other members of Nitengale, and the song is completed with input from the full band. Josh shoulders the responsibility of writing the lyrical content of each song, a task he does not take lightly. Lyrics usually take several weeks to solidify as Josh puts much time into crafting the words for each melody line. Josh's style can be traced to influences such as Phil Wickam, Muse, Coldplay, DC Talk, The Chili Peppers, Death Cab for Cutie, and U2. Drawing from his influences, Josh has dedicated himself to extensive song writing and piano composition practice to further refine his creativity and talent.

Our electric guitarist, Stephen Pettyjohn, brings a creative sound to the Nitengale pallet by implementing a variety of tools. Pettyjohn uses several rare and unique effects pedals, boutique tube amplifiers, and vintage guitars. When Stephen is not playing straight rhythm guitar he engages in "Sound Painting". Some say Stephen plays his guitars more like a keyboard, creatively compiling sounds with swelling and vibrant atmospheric tones that are original in their own right. Stephen is also owner and engineer of North Sound Studios, an professional Alaskan based recording studio.