ABOUT THE BAND

Michael Shapiro was born in San Jose, raised in Las Vegas and now resides in San Rafael, Ca. He picked up his first guitar at age 13 and trained hard in guitar, vocals, piano and trumpet and attuned his ear to classical opera as well as rock. A chance encounter with a family friend struck the right cord and paved Shapiro’s way into music. At age16, he had the opportunity to jam with Bruce Springsteen. The rocker’s energetic marathon performances spurred Shapiro to develop a taste for a raucous stage presence. After stints in various cover bands in his teens, Shapiro formed the band Trip, released a few CD’s and toured. Being part of the VH1 Rock Across America Tour, Trip opened for such artists as Edwin McCain, Duncan Sheik, The Romantics, and Cheap Trick. It was during an ill-fated gig opening for Great White when a tragic fire struck, that moved Shapiro to deeply reflect on life’s vagaries and whims.

He bounced back, releasing his first solo album, Somehow, Someway and toured nationally opening for the band Live. After moving to San Rafael, Ca., he formed the power trio, Reckless in Vegas.

There are several influences that peer through his music, for example, the raw and unyielding guitar riffs of Jimi Hendrix, Journey’s Neal Schon and Carlos Santana, as well as the melodic and powerful vocal styling of U2's Bono. In fact, it is "Hendrix's bluesy style" and wild "manipulation of the guitar" that Shapiro credits as a major early influence.

Ryan Low (a.k.a. Dr. Fu) born in Chinatown, San Francisco is a high visibility drummer who is remarkable, not only for his showmanship, distinctive and varying styles and driving rhythm, but also for how often he is seen playing with various artists. Ryan's unique approach and explosive energy onstage, brings him to the forefront with the rest of the band. Besides being a performer and session player, Ryan is a committed teacher of drums and music. He applies his classical music training to his teaching along with his love and passion for drumming to his students. Although Ryan is a true lover of rock and funk drumming, he has explored a variety of musical styles from hip-hop to country, Latin jazz to R&B; always looking for a challenge to expand his musical repertoire. Over the last 20 years Ryan has performed everywhere West of the Rockies, and remains a solid Bay Area performer. He also has extensive recording experience, with almost thirteen records under his belt to date. Ryan has also expanded his drumming credentials by working as co-producer on one of his recent projects. He is currently writing, recording, and touring as the newest member of Reckless In Vegas.

Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay area, Brian has been making a contribution to the local music scene for the past few years. He began developing his skills at the age of 12. With no formal schooling in music until the age of 21, he honed most of his chops early on through various jam sessions with some aspiring young bay area names and a few private lessons from Bay Area greats Bruce Gapinski and Josh Needleman.

Drawing influence from a wide and diverse range of artists, Brian is capable of molding technically and personally into many different musical situations. His bass lines can be heard on recordings from artists such as The Sean Pagelow Band, Vile Conundrum, Citizen Disguise as well as various other session work.