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STEVE VANSAK'S MYSTERY MEN: No Mystery Why This Party Band Is In Demand!

by Tom Lounges

      Like rock 'n' roll itself, the swelling 60-plus song repertoire of N.W.
Indiana's Mystery Men, spans a breadth of time from the early 1950s to
today's hits.

     That variety, plus their focus on songs that were "gold sellers",
explains why this year-old ensemble -guitarist/vocalist Steve Vansak, drummer
Mike Sluga, bassist Aaron Yakovetz and soulful sax blower, Vincent Conner -
have become one of the area's favorite party bands!

      "For me, playing with Mystery Men is all about having fun. It's going
on a stage, playing my butt off and having people get up, dance and have a
good time," said Vansak, who enjoys a simultaneous career as an original
music artist with two full-length CDs to his credit.

     "I have a small studio where I still write and record my own songs," he
continued. "But sometimes you tend to go a little stir crazy sitting in a
studio playing to four walls. This band gives me the chance to get out and
jam with some very talented musicians on a bunch of great songs that
everybody loves. Mystery Men isn't pushing original music on people, it's
about playing the songs they love to hear."

     While some newer fare (i.e., like Lenny Kravitz) may pop up in a set,
the combo is rooted in the vintage rock and soul music of a bygone era. "We
primarily focus on older music, said Vansak. "We go from the rock 'n' roll by
Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry and Elvis, to the old soul sounds of Otis Redding,
Wilson Pickett and Solomon Burke."

     Growing up in a virtually non-musical world and occupied with sports and
comic books as a child, Vansak got a late start as a musician. After
discovering rock 'n' roll at a record shop while on vacation, the teen did
some fast catching up. Today, Vansak is an accomplished guitarist and a
versatile singer capable of going from the soulful rumble of a Fats Domino,
to the chirpy sounds of female groups like the Crystals and the Ronettes.