When I started playing music with other people, we spent a lot of time in rehearsal spaces. Large warehouse buildings with dozens of practice rooms on each floor, each room an oasis of creativity for those locked inside. It was exciting to be in a place with so much energy, spawning countless ideas and connections.
Given the high prices and limited availability of real estate in Key West, such places are a rarity. But if living here teaches us anything, it’s that you just gotta poke around.
Jerrod Isaman is helping to create just such a spot. Best known as the energetic frontman of the local rockabilly band Jericho, he seems a jack of all trades. I met him at a restaurant, where he was making pasta. While cleaning up, he told me he has lived here for 15 years and boasted about his wife and two young sons.
Having grown up with an uncle in the silk-screen printing business, Isaman seized on an opportunity to acquire some used equipment from the family enterprise. He brought it to Key West and started Mad Jack Screen Printing. But it’s the room next to their storefront that’s of particular interest.
It’s filled with musical gear that’s ready to be played. It immediately took me back to the warehouses where I had learned. The space is paid for by several different musicians and used collectively. “It’s a collaborative thing. I wanted to have a place in town to make it easy for musicians to come in, plug in and play,” Isaman said. “A place where musicians feel like they have a space to rock out without forcing the neighbors to hear. A place to record their sessions and encourage each other. It’s everything I would want in a rehearsal space.”
Perhaps the most important thing happening in this space is the free music lessons Isaman has been offering local kids. Twenty students are currently enrolled, all instructors are volunteers and there is no cost to the families. The lessons are designed to help families that can’t afford them. The weekly lessons, which often start with kids as young as 6 learning ukelele chords, have been met with gratitude and enthusiasm.
“We wanted to make a spot where kids could get music lessons when, for whatever reason, those lessons are otherwise unavailable to them,” Isaman said. “Musically, we are just chipping away at the basics. Sometimes learning music is learning songs and applying them. That’s always been my approach, at least.”
The CoLab Studio hosts an open house every third Thursday of the month as part of the Walk on White art stroll series. See for yourself what a vortex of creativity a room can be. Oh, and there’s always a food truck on the patio during Walk on White.
To learn more about the studio or its music lessons, or to volunteer to teach, stop by the CoLAb, 917 Frances St. or email madjackkw@gmail.com.
