THE EMPTY POCKETS
Chicago blues-rooted rock & roll with big harmonies, sharp songs, and the road-tested chemistry of four friends who’ve played a thousand shows together.
Adam Balasco | Josh Solomon | Erika Brett | Nate Bellon
The Empty Pockets are four people who have spent a very long time in vans together.
Based in Chicago, Josh Solomon, Erika Brett, Nate Bellon and Adam Balasco have built their band the old-fashioned way: writing songs, making records, playing more than 1,000 shows, mailing an extraordinary number of CDs, and finding their people one listener at a time.
Somewhere along the way came two #1 Billboard Blues albums, recording sessions at Abbey Road, years touring and performing with Al Stewart, and stages shared with artists including Kenny Loggins and Simon Kirke.
But the center of it has stayed pretty simple: four musicians in a room, three voices finding a harmony, and songs they actually want to play together.
1,000+ SHOWS
and a lot of miles
2 #1 BILLBOARD BLUES ALBUMS
Gotta Find the Moon + Outside Spectrum
ABBEY ROAD
Records made inside Studio Two + Three
100,000+ CDS MAILED
Yes, really.
INDEPENDENT
No record label required
The Empty Pockets have always been independent. That means making the records, building the tours, packing the orders, answering the emails and figuring out how to keep a band moving without waiting for someone else to choose us. It can be messy. It also means the relationship between the band and the people listening is unusually direct.
COME HANG OUT
See Us Live | Listen to the Music | Join EPIC
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PROUD PARTNERS OF WILL'S PLACE
PROVIDING MEANINGFUL EMPLOYMENT TO ADULTS WITH DISABILITIES
Will is our biggest fan (and also Josh's younger brother)
But this world isn't always designed for people like Will who have a disability.
That's why The Empty Pockets partner with Will's Place; a Skokie, Illinois-based café offering a chef-driven, ingredient-focused sandwich menu while providing employment opportunities to adults with developmental disabilities.
Will's Place is a nonprofit dedicated to creating a positive, safe, and inclusive workspace for a portion of our population that too often gets overlooked in the job market.
