A.J. Krawczyk of Greenfield knows the meaning of the saying “When one door closes, another one opens” firsthand. That’s exactly what happened when the band Community Smokes, for which he played drums, called it quits.
But Krawczyk didn’t waste time mourning the past. He quickly moved forward with forming a new band in which he was the frontman, something he had never done before despite having played in various Pioneer Valley bands over the years.
The result was No Lens, and even though the band has only been together for a year, it has already made its mark on the local music scene.
No Lens will play The Rendezvous, 78 3rd St. in Turners Falls, on Saturday at 9:30 p.m. in a lineup that also features Whalom Park, a funky group out of Orange, and Metazoa, an indie R&B band that features three musicians (Andy Stewart, Marina Connor and Evan Prokowich) who were in Community Smokes. Admission is free.
Community Smokes was a reggae rock band led by Stewart and based in Montague that played locally for a little over five years, including at events like the Charlemont Reggae Festival, the Upper Valley Music Festival and the Great Falls Festival. When Krawczyk got the sense that his bandmates were getting ready to move on, he started wondering what he would do if Community Smokes ended.
“I got to thinking to myself, ‘If the Smokes do split up, what will I do now?’ This is what I’ve known and done for the last four to five years,” Krawczyk wrote in an email exchange.
No matter what happened, he knew he wanted to keep making music and performing.
“It is what I love more than anything in the world,” Krawczyk said. “I had always talked about wanting to front a band, but just never had the opportunity due to being so busy with Community Smokes. So once the Smokes booked our final performance and it was set in stone that we would be splitting up, I decided, ‘Now’s the time. Life is handing me an opportunity to do something I’ve always dreamt of and I’m not going to waste it.’”
Community Smokes played its last show in February of 2018. The group parted on good terms and on the night of the last gig, Krawczyk went home and wrote a heartfelt song called “Oz of My Being,” in which he gave thanks to his former bandmates. (The song would later be performed by No Lens.)
From that point on, Krawczyk’s focus was on getting No Lens off the ground.
The band consists of his old childhood friend Wil Seaman of Bernardston, with whom Krawczyk had played music on and off for years. Seaman was the first one on board and is the band’s lead guitarist, mandolin player and backup vocalist. Next up were some musicians who both Krawczyk and Seaman had met while attending the music program at Greenfield Community College. Ryan Micelotta of Pelham signed on as the band’s bassist and Ben Becker of Amherst came aboard as the drummer.
“Two weeks after the final Smokes performance, No Lens was in its very first rehearsal, and I was on a brand new journey with a brand new group,” Krawczyk said. “I was in a brand new role and quickly falling in love with it.
Being the frontman of a band seemed like the natural next step after playing in other bands for so many years, he noted. However, it did require an adjustment period, given his new responsibilities leading the band, handling the vocals, and playing guitar and keyboard.
“There was a small moment where I was like, ‘What am I doing? Where’s my drum set?’ This is so different, I hope I made the right decision to start this project,” Krawczyk recalled. “But it didn’t take me long to fall into a groove and get comfortable. Once we got rolling, all feelings of discomfort left me and the journey really began. Now, being up there with the guys just feels like home.”
The band played its first show at The Rendezvous last May and found the venue to be extremely welcoming, coming back numerous times since.
“We consider The Voo our ‘home base’ as it’s where we played our very first show,” Krawczyk said. “We absolutely love it, and they are extremely supportive of what we do.”
No Lens’ music is folk-infused reggae rock that’s uplifting both musically and lyrically. Songs like “No Ending,” which is about not waiting until it’s too late to live life to the fullest, has a great made-for-dancing groove. “Kings,” which encourages us to ignore those voices in our head that try to hold us back, benefits from some nice mandolin work from Seaman.
Krawczyk writes the majority of the band’s material.
“Once I have the basic form of a song and the lyrics, I bring it to the group and then it becomes a very collective writing experience from there,” he explained. “The musicians I brought into No Lens … I brought in because I trust them completely to bring their own personal style and influence to songs I’ve written.”
The band hopes to head to the studio this summer to record a debut album, but until then, its members have plenty to keep them busy. During the band’s first year, it has played shows at the Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center and The Root Cellar in Greenfield, as well as at The O’s Music Bar in Sunderland. No Lens is looking to bring its music to as many new venues as possible in the upcoming year, and also recently shot a video for the Valley Advocate Sessions stage music series that can be viewed at valleyadvocate.com starting Friday.
Some of the biggest news is that No Lens is on the ballot for the first phase of the Wormtown Battle of the Bands competition. If the band receives enough votes, it can participate in the competition for a coveted spot to play at StrangeCreek Campout in Greenfield from May 24 to 27. Online voting is going on now at strangecreekcampout.com/battle-vote.
No Lens is definitely a new band worth keeping your eye on. The band will appear at the 13th Floor Music Lounge in Florence on Saturday, Feb. 2, along with Whalom Park and Mister Right Now. It’s also performing at Hawks & Reed on March 1 with Rhythm Incorporated and DJ I-Ganic.
Sheryl Hunter is a music writer who lives in Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and national magazines. You can contact her at soundslocal@yahoo.com.