STEPHEN
KOHLER

Stephen Kohler

Growing up in a musical family, Stephen holds art and performance in his core, being influenced by: his father an amazing trumpet player and choir singer; three brothers with trumpet, piano, and guitar between them; a grandmother who was a published author and actress; and a grandfather who painted beautiful landscapes.

Stephen started his musical journey on on trumpet at the age of 12 when he began playing within classical orchestras, marching band, and jazz ensembles, touring Europe along the way. Guitar, piano, vocals, and various other stringed instruments eventually joined his repertoire, igniting a life-long passion for rock and pop styles.

Inspired by everything from Abba to Van Halen to Ben Folds, Stephen loves to blend melodic hooks with a rhythmic punch. For the next 30 years, Stephen went on to compose, record, and perform in numerous original pop/rock bands including Onyx,

and the buzz-worthy Delusions of Grandeur with his good friend Steve Frisbie, playing the historic Metro, Lounge Ax, Double Door, SPACE and many others. Some of the well-loved musicians he has shared the stage with include Jason Narducy (Verbow, Bob Mould, Superchunk) Frisbie, Nora O’Connor (The Flat Five, The Decemberists, Mavis Staples) and Aaron Whisnant (Albert Hill, Dezeray’s Hammer).

When the world stopped amidst the COVID pandemic, Stephen found himself at home surrounded by a bevy of instruments, a basement full of studio recording equipment, and a strong desire to creatively reflect on what we were all going through. As he laid the groundwork for a new album, he reached out to Liam Davis, a long-time friend/producer/composer with over 15 years of production experience and five GRAMMY nominations. The result of that collaboration became "Daydream," Stephen's first solo endeavor released in June of 2022.