BENEFIT IN CLEVELAND Stealing Heather makes a heartfelt connection

The band will headline a benefit next week in Cleveland.
By KELLIE JONES
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
"It's a moment in time you better dare to be great ..."
Thus reads a line from "Empty Space," one of the tracks from the newly released "6 Minutes to Somewhere" from Cleveland-based band Stealing Heather. The band is ready to do just that: Take that moment, be great -- and succeed.
With a sound that's been compared to Coldplay and Stereophonics, the trio has carved out a niche for itself in the Cleveland music scene, but isn't stopping there.
The CD, which will be performed in its entirety at a benefit Wednesday at Peabodys Downunder in Cleveland, has been five years in the making. Band front man Joshua Aaron explained why: "I will never try to write. I don't force a song, they just come to me. If I try to force it, it's always less than it should have been and is a throwaway. The five-minute stuff always makes the record."
With 90 or so songs the prolific Aaron wrote for this record, he undoubtedly had a large pool from which to choose. The Cleveland native, who first took a crack at the guitar in sixth grade but returned it and tried again a few years later, is self-taught in reading music. He took lessons but after learning the basics, stopped to develop his own style. Aside from guitar, he also handles keyboard duties and lead vocals.
Aaron, the band's chief songwriter and composer, is pleased with how "6 Minutes" turned out. "At some point, you have to say, 'This is where I'm at in my life, this is the job that was done and is the best at that point,' then you move on. I have no complaints."
Fans' response
Neither do Stealing Heather fans, which Aaron's been pleased to find out. With more than 8,500 fans on its Web page, (www.myspace.com/stealingheather), the band is gaining fans. Targeting geographical areas there has worked well for Aaron, as has the personal touch. He makes time to keep in touch with fans -- a practice the genuinely sincere guy intends to continue.
"As much as I love writing the songs and being in the studio, there's nothing better to me than an audience response -- if I can look out and connect with someone on that level, where they know the lyrics and songs, it's so gratifying. There's nothing like it."
The band was recently contacted to headline The Angel of Hope Benefit, something Aaron is happy to do. The event will raise funds for LifeBanc, the federally designated, nonprofit organ procurement organization for Northeast Ohio, and the family of Trevitt Pierson, a 14-year-old who was recently killed in a vehicle accident who donated his organs.
About the set
So what can concertgoers expect with Stealing Heather's set?
"I'm big on theatrics, but I don't like when someone just plays the record," Aaron said. "I stick to the CD sound and switch some things around but I want a really good stage show. Everything we play live is played to a click, but everything we're doing is live. I try to engage the audience."
Two big crowd-pleasers that draw the biggest reaction, he said, are "Maybe It's Nothing," and "Better," a Beatles tribute that ends the show to which he'll add a speech tailored to the occasion. Lyrically, those two songs truly represent the positive message the band exudes.
As for the future, the band -- which includes Morgan Ellington on bass and Ricky Exeter on drums -- is setting up tour dates and looking into national and international appearances. With its solid debut and a penchant for helping worthy causes, Stealing Heather should have no trouble stealing the attention and winning the hearts of a growing number of fans.
XTo donate to the Pierson family, send a check or money order made out to Mary Pierson to Peabodys Downunder, c/o Jonny Vegas, 2083 E. 21st St., Cleveland Ohio 44115. All donations go directly to the family.