By day, John Salka looks like every other legislative assistant at Meyer, Suozzi, English and Klein, a law firm in downtown Albany. Clad in business attire and working in legislative and governmental affairs, Salka is every bit the professional.
But when night falls, he’s more commonly known as “Johnny” and a guitar and microphone replace yellow legal pad and pen. Salka is frontman of the rock band Hard Soul, which recently released their debut EP “Love Eats The Young” and premiered the music video for the first single, “You Broke Him.”
“It’s a cool dichotomy and I think people appreciate that,” said Salka, who is backed by his college roommate Eric Hoehn on drums. “I’ve played in front of legislators and it’s very funny to run into them in a professional setting.”
He said he tries not to bring his nightlife into the office, but sometimes, the office follows him and they become one in the same.
“He’s fortunate that he’s got that huge talent and skills as a musician and he’s able to parlay that into celebrity and make him some money,” said Richard Winsten, Salka’s boss and a familiar face at many of his shows. “I think it’s just fabulous. I’m able to enjoy his music.”
To most people, government lobbyist and rock star don’t fit together. But surprisingly, said Salka, melding music and politics isn’t all that unusual at the state Capitol.
“You’d be surprised at the number of guitar players and singers that are elected officials and like to do it casually for fun,” said Salka.
What sets him apart from the hobbyist musicians, though, is that Hard Soul is something of a job in itself.
Salka is not just another young professional chasing a far out dream that’ll never emerge. He and Hard Soul play gigs around the Capital District and beyond. They already have a record available for purchase and a music video on YouTube racking up views (as of this writing, it had 237 hits). Relentless Aware, a local media firm, handles the band’s publicity. Oh, and he has every intention of someday making it big.
“I love my job and politics is a big passion of mine but music is just as big, and in some cases, bigger,” said Salka.
Salka played in his first band in high school. Back then, he picked up guitar “because of girls,” but soon discovered his musical talent went far beyond scoring dates or looking cool.
“I realized music was a lot more fun to just play and I started writing my own music,” said Salka.
His songs used to mimic his nine to five job, laced with politics and social commentary. But the tracks he now pens for Hard Soul take a different angle and are more personal.
“They’re more about relationships and conceptualize longing; not quite despair but second chances and redemption,” said Salka. “A lot of songs are about actual people I know. They might not know songs are about them but I’m inspired by certain situations I’ve been involved in or seen my friends go through.”
Salka describes Hard Soul as having an “old school rock and roll sound” and a cross between Led Zeppelin, Foo Fighters, the Beatles and Thin Lizzy, mixed with some modern rock.
“We’re very guitar and vocal oriented,” said Salka.
Hard Soul will turn 1 years old in September but they already have a strong following and broad fan base.
“We’ve had some really good shows where they keep asking us to come back, like Bayou Café on Pearl Street … and Villa Valente in Troy,” said Salka. “(The audience) runs the gambit. We play generally in front of a younger crowd but I think everyone finds enjoyment. At the end of the day, it’s about the songs and the music.”
The Capital District has a healthy rock scene, which is why Salka said he consciously tries to make Hard Soul “as legitimate as possible” to stand out from the pack. From regular performances to the band’s online presence to the music itself, Salka gives it all he’s got.
“Whenever I’m writing songs nothing is ever good enough. Some songs on the EP have been around for four years because I was never happy with (them),” said Salka. “It’s been an effort to be the best as possible and I’ve always strived to be professional and worked at it.”
Hard Soul will hit the road for a show in New York City on Friday, July 20, but will be back in Albany on Thursday, July 26, at The Bayou Café at 8 p.m. and Friday, July 27, at Bobby T’s Sports Grill at 9:30 p.m.
To learn more about the band and their EP, visit www.thehardsoul.com or keep up with them on Facebook and Twitter (Facebook.com/thehardsoul and Twitter.com/thehardsoul). View the music video for “You Broke Him” at www.youtube.com/WatchHardSoul.
