The Koz Band Members
Jim Cornelius - Keyboard/Vocals
Jim is a seasoned keyboard player specializing in synthesizers, which lay the foundation for the majority of the arena rock and pop songs spanning from the 80’s to the present. He began working as a professional musician in Southern California in the early 80’s performing with several local Rock bands in the area including Millennium, No Quarter and Import until 1984, when he decided to explore life as a musician on the road.
Jim made a trip to Canada with some friends and fell in love with the country and people he met there. He returned home, loaded up his keyboard rig in his van and headed for the Great White North. He immediately found work with a Rock touring act and traveled the country.
Returning to the US in 1992, Jim settled down in Eugene, Oregon, where he continued his role as a Rock and Roll keyboardist. He joined the band “The Element” out of Eugene where he met his fellow band mate Mike Harrison. The band did extremely well at local venues and cut their debut CD during this time.
When that project came to an end Jim answered an ad for a new Rock band and “The Symptoms” were born, where he met another current band mate Andy Ward. “The Symptoms” entertained venues around Oregon for 14 years until the band decided to call it quits.
Out of the blue Jim was approached by Mike Harrison who wanted to start a Super Band that would bring back the large production, visuals and music of the 80’s. Thus “Sonic Storm” hit the scene. After almost 3 years they have evolved into “The KOZ”.
As a child of the 80’s Jim enjoys taking the extra time to program the proper synth patches to authentically reproduce the keyboard sounds that are prevalent in the music of the 80;s as well as the current sounds of today.
Jim’s keyboard rig includes a Korg Triton Studio, Yamaha S80, Roland XV5080 and a wireless Roland AX7 Keytar
Mike Harrison - Lead/Rhythm Guitar/Vocals
Mike Harrison has been surrounded by music his entire life, from a toddler sitting on the bar at his fathers jazz club, listening to jazz and watching him play guitar, or dancing in his mother’s arms in the living room. In grade school he picked up the saxophone and played it for a couple years. Until he took a trip to Venezuela to live with his dad for the summer, where he heard his first Beatles Album, Sgt. Peppers…from then on he knew he wanted to play guitar and sing.
His mom bought him a record player and Steve Miller Band and Doobie Brothers albums for Christmas. From that point on, he wanted to expand his knowledge of music and would listen to music for hours over his head phones, just soak in the music until he knew every word, every band name and song.
When Mike was 13, he took beginning guitar and a year later had his first les paul copy. When he was 17, he sat in with many local bands in the Salt Lake area including the ‘Bush Brothers Band’. He started off reading music and found that he could learn guitar faster by ear than by reading music. Mike has the ability to pick out harmonies in the music.
Mike moved to Eugene in 1987 and joined ELEMENT in 1992 where he met fellow musician Jim Cornelius....together the band cut an original cd and were a popular touring act on the west coast
Mike has sat-in with several local bands for the last 10 years in Eugene, including ‘Hard Drive’ and ‘Rockit’.
In 2008, Mike had an idea for a super group, so he called Jim Cornelius to ask if he wanted to form a new band to cover 80’s arena rock. After acquiring other musicians for this new band, the Sonic Storm Band was formed and three years later the band has transformed into “The Koz Band”.
Mike prides himself on covering artists that are hard to copy, or that most bands aren’t willing to spend the time it takes to do an authentic reproduction.
Mikes Guitar rig consists of a Gibson Les Paul Axcess, Gibson Les Paul Studio, Fender Stratocaster, Sigma 12 string, Marshal JMP, Line 6 pod XT Live and Digitech Jam Man Stereo Looper.
Andy Ward - Lead/Rhythm Guitar/Vocals
Andy Ward started off his musical journey as a drummer. Andy’s father and brother both played the guitar and needed a rhythm section, so for his 7th birthday he got a snare drum. When he was 13 he got a drum set and played that for about a year.
In the summer of 1974 after attending a church camp east of Klamath Falls, Andy began to pick up his dad’s acoustic guitar and thanks to some of his sister’s chord charts and music, he began to learn some guitar. It seemed more natural to him, and by this time he was wanting something to accompany his voice.
Shortly before graduating from high school, Andy joined some schoolmates in a project and from then on he was hooked. He played in a couple of projects around Klamath Falls in the mid 80’s, before moving to Eugene.
In 1995 Andy and a fellow musician put an ad in a music store for a keyboard player. Jim answered the ad and they ended up forming an 80’s rock band called the Symtoms. The Symtoms became a regular act in venues like the Ramada Inn and Yukon Jacks around the Eugene area for about 10 years.
In 2003 Andy’s “real” job relocated him to Coos Bay where he joined a couple of local musicians there to form Fat Chance. Fat Chance played the Coos Bay / South Coast area venues for a couple of years until 2008 when the opportunity presented itself to rejoin Jim, along with Mike and Ken in an 80’s arena rock project called Sonic Storm.
The Sonic Storm band focused on keyboard / vocal based rock which was the type of music Andy grew up on and had always wanted to play. They played some venues around the Willamette Valley and South Coast areas for about 3 years and began to acquire somewhat of a following during this time.
In 2012 Sonic Storm morphed into the Koz, where Andy shares lead guitar and vocal responsibilities with fellow guitarist Mike Harrison. “I believe that this is the most talented group of musicians I have ever played with, and I am having the most fun ever” says Andy.
Andy plays a PRS McCarty, a Gibson Les Paul and a Yamaha SB400 electric guitars through a midi controlled Marshall half stack and a Takamine acoustic guitar through a Vox acoustic amp.
Andy’s influences are The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Ozzy Osbourne, Rush, Journey, Dokken and many others too numerous to mention
Ken McGinley - Bass Guitar/Vocals
Ken McGinley was born in 1961 as an accident waiting to happen. It wasn’t until February of 1970 when his mother advised him to go play on the freeway. Taking his mother’s advice, he travelled throughout Southern California’s freeway system for several years before finding a home in an abandon dumpster in an ally way of Belmont Shore.
It was there that he ran across an old guitar that was missing two strings. That was the beginning of his musical career. His made enough money serenading the wealthy residents around Naples and Belmont Shore neighborhoods late at night. They paid him out of pity or sometimes just to go away so they could get some sleep.
During the recession of the 1980s many of the wealthy residents of Naples fell upon hard times. They could not afford the monthly slip fees for their sailboats and yachts. Many of them gave their boats to the local Sea Scouts or anybody that could take over.
One of Ken’s most generous customers gave their 40’ Catalina sailboat to Ken and told him to “go away and find your father”. Ken thought “what a great idea”, so he sailed solo up the California Coast and finally pulled into port in wonderful Florence, Oregon. He hitch hiked to Eugene and found his father, who reluctantly took him in.
He joined his first band “Fallstarr” in 1981 and performed with them until they finally kicked him out of the band in 1983. He then bounced around from band to band until joining “Rival”. In 1985 they kicked him out. He joined “Eastman” and after a year, they kicked him out. He bounced around from band to band until joining “Stepping Out” which later morphed into “Taylors Crossing” which played country. In 2009 they kicked him out.
Finally, he answered a local Craigslist ad “Sonic Storm” is looking for a dynamic bass player. Ken responded to the ad and surprisingly passed the audition. Ken performed with Sonic Storm for three years. In 2012 “The Koz” was started with some of the former members from Sonic Storm.
I hope they don’t kick him out.
Roy Eggleston - Drums/Vocals
I was born and raised right here in the Willamette Valley, and started playin drums in middle school at the age of 12.
Formed our first rock and roll band in high school, our influences were: Metallica, Rush, Boston, Aldo Nova, Triumph, BOC, Foghat, Van Halen, Billy Squire, and most other popular bands from the 80's!
I've played locally with such bands as Steppin Out, On the Rocks, Happy Daze, Remember When (a buddy holly and Elvis impersonators show) Johnny Law & the Rebels, Coupe de Ville, Rock it, Hard Drive, and Larry DeReux.
My passion and musical drive has always been focused on the big hair band rock and roll from the 80's and 90's, so when the opportunity presented itself to play that kind of venue with such talented musicians as Jim, Mike, and Andy ( I'm still tryin to decide on ken) I jumped on board, and it's been a kick every since!!
We view our "KOZ" to replicating the authenticity of the music from that era very important, but we have a lot of fun doin it, and it comes across in our shows!
We are here to make a statement: "good rock and roll never gets old, it gets better as time goes on" I love this music and the guys in this band!!
P.S....don't tell ken the bass player but, I think he's getting fired!! Just sayin.......shhhhhh, let’s keep it our little secret, ok??