PHOTOS
Randy Shemanski
Mike Mizwinski's musical career - and his life, for that matter - could have wound up in a lot of different places. The 24-year-old Scranton native has ridden a tumultuous wave since his formative years.
But, there has always been one constant no matter what Mizwinski went through - his ability to do things with a guitar that few can match.
After a successful start to his career with the Appalachian Barnhouse Band, Mizwinski has recently launched a solo career, in addition to his work with the local bands Morning Pride and Trippin' On Nothin'.
But, it was a show at the River Street Jazz Cafe in Plains a few months ago that sent Mizwinski's career to another level. He was playing on a split bill with Trippin' On Nothin' when the other band noticed his skills and took interest.
That band was Gongzilla, an internationally recognized rock band that has played all over the world. Following the show, the band expressed some interest in Mizwinski, who wound up eventually accepting a full-time spot with the band.
"I remember my first instinct in meeting them was they were really nice guys ... The weird thing was I didn't really know who they were until we got there," Mizwinski said of Gongzilla. "Then we got to talking and I started realizing who they actually were and the people that they've played with. They've toured all over the world and done some amazing things.
"Right before I was leaving that night, those guys were like, 'Great job, you sounded awesome.' And the bass player (Hansford Rowe) said 'Give me your contact. I need your number and your e-mail. I need to talk some business with you.' I didn't even know what that meant. I knew they had a record label, so I was thinking maybe it had something to do with that; maybe they wanted to sign me. They called me pretty much the next day and asked me right there, do I want to come sit in on the new album, record some tracks on it?"
In the typical whirlwind fashion of the music industry, Rowe stopped at Mizwinski's house (he now lives in York) two days after the show and practiced with Mizwinski, a process he figured out was a feeling-out situation.
Two weeks later, Mizwinski got the call - did he want to join the band?
"The funniest thing about all this is I actually was hesitant to join because I had my solo career and Morning Pride going really good, or pretty good, I thought," Mizwinski said. "I really wanted to put all my heart and energy into that, but then obviously everybody was like, 'Dude, you have to take this opportunity. Some of the stuff they're doing is amazing.' What sealed the deal for me was when they said think about it and I was thinking about it and in about a week they called and said my first gig was going to be in L.A. at The Troubador with all these special guests that I look up to, all these famous groups. That's when I thought, 'I have to do this.'"
Mizwinski calls that show at The Troubador in January his favorite show of his career, and rightfully so. He was on stage with members of Umphrey's McGee, Particle, Zappa, moe., and Crosby, Stills & Nash, among other bands.
The one drawback, Mizwinski says, of his recent success is that it has slowed the progress of Morning Pride, which consists of Mizwinski, guitarist John Canjar, bassist Jason Chase and drummer Matt Kester.
Bumpy ride
While Mizwinski has seen his career take off in the past 12-18 months - he also finished his first solo album
The Madness In My Mind - there was a time in his life when he admits he almost blew his chance at musical success.
While living in Florida, he battled a five-year addiction to heroin, a habit he kicked in October of 2006. During that time, he says, he never completely blew off any musical commitments, but the addiction kept him from putting in the work he now knows would have been beneficial.
"It totally sidetracked my career to the point where I wasted probably years just wasting away, not writing any music, being late for gigs, just being irresponsible," he said.
Not long after the addiction begin, Mizwinski knew he had a problem, but finding the solution was not as easy.
"Within three months of me doing heroin, I knew that I wanted to stop," he said. "One day I woke up and I said, 'What the hell am I doing?'
"One thing a lot of people don't understand, once you're on that shit - I was in rehab several times - it's just so extremely hard to get off it. It just totally consumes you. I had the honest desire to stop for four years until I could finally do it. It took me so many tries. You really can't give up on yourself when it comes to that."
After overcoming the addiction, Mizwinski said the newfound focus helped him get his career back on track, which ultimately has led him to where he is today.
"Once I got clean, that's when I wrote that whole album,
The Madness in My Mind," he said. "I wrote that whole album within three months of getting clean. I went from just being a waste of space to getting sober and writing 10 songs right off the bat. The creativity went nuts."
The burst of creativity may have been linked to an overall improvement of Mizwinski's quality of life after beating the heroin addiction. He said his recovery also improved his relationships with his friends and family and allowed him to enjoy concerts, music and everyday life much more.
Eye on the future
With the addiction behind him, Mizwinski is quick to point out that he now wants to be a role model for young musicians. He hopes kids looking to get into the music industry can learn from his mistakes.
"One of my dreams is to be able to do entire tours that fund good causes and help young people to realize that music doesn't have to be about drugs," Mizwinski said. "You name any big bands and usually you have this guy that got messed up or stoned or that one's in recovery or had a drug problem. Young kids growing up think, 'Oh, we better take drugs and get high so we can experience what these guys experienced.' "
While Mizwinski is in no hurry to have his gig with Gongzilla run full circle, he does have a plan for his future, and it's an ambitious one.
"Ultimately, definitely, without a doubt, what I want to end up doing is having my own band," he said. "I'm doing good with 30 songs written already and I'm still writing. At the moment, I have five songs that I'm at work on that aren't done yet. ... I would like to have my own band that's solid and does all my tunes, and ultimately be the front man. Recently, everybody's been telling me I just have to find my own band. And I think I'd be pretty good at it."
For those who haven't seen Mizwinski in action, his work with a guitar is among the best in the 570. He has done some experimenting with looping at live solo shows (including an opening gig for Rusted Root's Michael Glabicki at the River Street Jazz Cafe back in January) and his performances with Morning Pride and Trippin' On Nothin' satisfy even the most diehard jam band enthusiasts.
He lists Ryan Adams and The Cardinals as probably his favorite band, while Bob Dylan, The Band, The Grateful Dead, Phish, Steely Dan, and moe. are his biggest influences.
"Ultimately in the long wrong, I'm glad I've gone through (the drug addiction) now," he said, "instead of possibly getting more successful - I hate using the word big because I don't see myself as the next John Mayer. But I know I'm talented enough to do a Ryan Adams kind of thing."