From Led Zeppelin to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Chase Barron had mastered songs by several famous bands by the end of middle school. By the time he entered high school, he decided it was time to ditch the Guitar Hero controller to learn the real thing.

Since then, Barron, a junior multimedia major, hasn’t regretted his decision. He has honed his guitar skills and started his own band, Chase and the Barons, who have played shows around the Pittsburgh area and in his hometown of Dubois, Pa.

“In elementary school I played so much Guitar Hero, like 100 percent on every song.” Barron said. “I was in the leaderboards and everything, then thought it would be a lot cooler to play real guitar in high school.”

After making that decision, Barron took a few guitar lessons, but ended up just teaching himself to play the way he wanted. He said at first he wanted to ‘shred’ like some of his favorite guitarists but realized that he didn’t have to write good songs. He has never had any vocal training but said that singers such as Jason Mraz and John Mayer influence his singing style.

Barron said his parents always had good music taste, and although not musically inclined themselves, first got him into music through piano lessons at a young age.

“I love music. I brought him up on old classic rock like the Talking Heads, AC/DC, Foreigner and stuff like that,” Rich Barron, Chase’s dad, said about his upbringing.

The influence can be heard in the band’s original material which combines two guitars, a bass, a saxophone and drums for a twangy sound, with groovy rhythms and occasionally melancholy melodies. Barron’s vocals alternate between a melodic ramble and a crooning swing that both help capture the essence of each song. Barron, who writes most of the lyrics, said his songs cover personal themes and troubles, while they also convey a message of social consciousness.

Barron utilized all of this during a solo show in Lawrence Hall’s multipurpose room, beginning several songs by knocking out a beat on his acoustic guitar, which he then played through a looper to keep a steady beat while his fingers danced on the neck.

“It’s a mixture between island funk and indie rock; his band is very funky with a lot of jazz influence and Chase has more of a jazz voice too,” Gabe Reed, junior musical theater major,  local musician and friend of Barron, said about his music.

Barron said that although he likes to take any opportunity he can to play shows, he enjoys playing with his whole band more than playing alone.

“I was playing on a solo album, and I needed proficient members so it went from a solo effort to a whole band,” Barron said. “They ended up being phenomenal musicians and it’s a lot of fun to play and write for the group.”

The members include part-time student Jake Stretch on drums, Jake Rieger on bass, Tyler Handyside, a student from Duquesne majoring in saxophone and Mike Saunders on lead guitar. They all collaborate when writing songs and Barron said they practice together every weekend in Stretch’s basement, which they have converted into a recording studio.

“It’s rock and roll,” Stretch said. “We incorporate other elements but we don’t really deviate the base.”

“Everyone is just talented, the possibilities are just endless,” Rieger said. “It’s not every day that a classically trained saxophonist comes to play in your garage band.”

Barron said that the first show he played with Chase and the Barons was on New Year’s Eve. Barron said that although he is the band’s namesake, he does not consider himself the most important member and actually dislikes the name.

“I was against Chase and the Barons,” Barron said. “I didn’t like the idea. It’s a cool name, but it’s just my name which is a little weird.”

Over the summer, the band recorded original songs in a cabin owned by Barron’s family, which they are currently mixing and are planning on how they want to release it.

“We have 16 songs that we’re happy with, but we don’t know how to release them yet, maybe four sets of four or four and twelve,” said Rieger. “We’re going to have the first one out around Christmas though.”

Barron said this was one of his favorite experiences with the band.

“We were there for a few days and we all really just clicked,” Barron said.

The band also created their own all-day music festival called Woodland Ruckus, which was booked in a barn near Barron’s hometown. They hope to have it become a yearly event that could grow every year. Barron recalled one of his favorite memories from the festival.

“It was raining super hard, so at one point our drummer started jamming so the rest of us could go outside in the rain to get soaking wet, so for the next hour we just played soaking wet,” Barron said.

“It was so hot,” Reed said. “I was playing with my shirt off, but the crowd was really into it and it was just a great time.”

The band has also played in venues around Pittsburgh, such as The Smiling Moose, as well as bars, cafés, a nursing home and the golf course where Barron previously worked.

“The best thing is getting onstage and having people singing along and then asking to buy a CD, but then telling them we don’t have any yet,” Stretch said.

Barron, Rieger and Stretch all agree that they would eventually like to play in other cities or states for the opportunity to spread their music. They said that they would like to be a part of other music festivals as well.

Outside of music, Barron pursues other interests such as filmmaking, which he plans to pursue after graduation. Previously a cinema major, he switched to multimedia because he realized that a multimedia major’s portfolio would still be a good asset in finding a job in the film industry.

“It’s a very broad major and it’s a good portfolio to have,” Barron said.

Barron also enjoys longboarding and snowboarding, which he said he participates in several times of the year.

“Chase is very light hearted, non-judgemental and very humble, he’ll be the first guy to invite you somewhere even if you don’t know anyone,” Reed said.

Barron plans to continue pursuing his musical interests as long as he can. He said his parents have been supportive of his musical interests.

“He’s got a gift but he’s very humble about it, he doesn’t realize how good he is,” Rich Barron said.