Interview with Beyond From Within (Pittsburgh, PA)

Beyond From Within is the brain child of founder, lead singer/songwriter, and single member Steve Andrews. The musical genre of Beyond From Within is a mixture of psychedelic folk, pop, and rock. The psychedelic edge isn’t dominant but has a mellow presence in the music. Elements of synth are also added into the musical mixture to round it out and give a little of something for everyone.

Andrews calls Pittsburgh home and his music (Beyond From Within) is his one man creation - he writes the songs, plays all of the instruments (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums), and sings all of the vocals. Andrews talked about his one man project, saying “The concept and name of Beyond From Within came about when I was writing the deep, psychedelic song 'Seven Strangers.' Beyond From Within is original, clever, creative, and unique. The unique melodies and thoughtful lyrics take you on a soul searching journey."

After pausing, he mentions his influences. “The biggest influences on Beyond From Within are the Doors, Rolling Stones, and the Who. Jim Morrison's deep lyric verse has been a great influence on my writing. Their music is fantastic!!," he says. "Some of my favorite songs are, 'Paint it Black,' 'Light my Fire,' 'Street Fightin Man,' and 'We Don't Get Fooled Again,' etc... [They] are songs that have influenced my melody writing."

Andrews continues: “My first experience with music came when I was a vocalist in a grade school choir. I started playing and creating music about fifteen years ago. At first, I didn’t know what a chord was, key signature, bass clef, treble clef, etc...I started as a lyricist. Then, I took some guitar lessons, and everything else has evolved from there. I am considered a self-taught musician."

Andrews’ Beyond From Within project can be seen as a flashback to the past. The songs have a '60s psychedelic feel, mostly thanks to the guitar parts found on them. The lyrics have an underlying spirituality, not heard too often in this day and age.

Beyond From Within has an album out by the same name. The tracks that stand out due to being acoustic guitar driven are, “Forever Road/Lonely Penny,” and the Dylan-ish folk pop song, “Between the Rain." Andrews comments on his self-titled album (reviewed in the latest issue of Origivation): “Beyond From Within was created with the objective to encourage and take listeners on a journey that they will want to take over and over again." The final outcome of Andrews' debut CD is a solid gold hit for those music lovers wanting to experience something different.

When asked what was in the future for Steve Andrews and his Beyond From Within one man project, he thought a moment and then said, “Beyond From Within is on a timeless journey searching to explore and conquer minds, which it has yet to conquer and discover.”

If you would like to find out more about Beyond From Within and experience it’s timeless journey go to http://www.beyondfromwithin.com. -Crazy John Kerecz