Sound Scene Express covers the music scene in and around Pittsburgh and is dedicated to supporting live music. We are your source for Pittsburgh music news, whether it is an album review from that new release, or a concert preview of your favorite local band. There is a lot of positive energy in the Pittsburgh music community and we want to capture that for you, with incredible photography and informative articles.
In 2017 we added The SSE Shop to our site selling music accessories, instruments and a festival collection. We offer free shipping worldwide accepting credit cards and paypal. If you have any questions about a product please contact us at soundscenesubmit@gmail.com
Randy Jarosz -Founder/Photographer/Writer
Randy’s passion for music started at a young age along with his love for photography. After studying photography at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh he landed a news photography gig with Trib Total Media where hw won a number of awards for his photojournalism. In 2014, after visiting Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival he came home with the epiphany to start a local music newspaper in Pittsburgh, similar to that of The Bonnaroo Beacon found at the 4 day festival. Taking two years to build Sound Scene Express’s online reputation, the print edition launched January 2016.
Melanie Stangl -Editor/Writer/Photographer
Melanie, 24, is a senior at the University of Pittsburgh, and has been contributing both articles and photos to Sound Scene Express since April 2016. Her work has previously been published on Huffington Post Women, feminspire.com, and in the New York University textbook Mercer Street. Her goals include diving deeper into music journalism, traveling the world, and eventually being stable enough to own two dogs.
Whitney Lerch -Photographer/Writer
I’ve always loved music and there’s nothing better than live music. There is just something so special about experiencing the music for yourself and feeling the passion that comes with a live performance. So, when I got into photography several years back, it only made sense to merge two of my favorite things in life. With no formal training, I bought myself a decent camera, after getting frustrated with the sub-par images I was getting with my point and shoot. I headed out and started shooting…it wasn’t pretty at first, but I fumbled my way through, did some google and YouTube searches and taught myself how to use my new favorite toy. I started out taking photos at concerts on my own, any time a venue would let my DSLR in to a show, but I wanted more and I wanted my photos to mean something. Sound Scene Express offers me that and offers so much to the local music scene in Pittsburgh. With all of the unbelievable musical talent in the city, as well as all of the great touring musicians that come through, I’m honored to be able to capture moments from some of the best performances you’ll find in the city, to share with the community. I spend my days practicing medicine, taking care of some incredibly sick kids and Sound Scene Express has offered me truly therapeutic outlet that I am passionate about and thankful for. There are some unbelievably talented musicians here in Pittsburgh and I’m thrilled that I get to help share their work with you all!
Zach Nellis -Photographer/Writer
My name is Zach Nellis, I am a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a bachelors degree in Communication Media. I started photographing live shows back in 2011, primarily my friend’s band Denzell. From there I began collecting photos from all sorts of different underground/DIY hip-hop, punk, and electronic acts around Pittsburgh. My photos were only being shared through social media until I found a position with Sound Scene Express, where I was given an opportunity to photograph shows as well as do concert write ups and band interviews.
Duncan H. Ros -Writer
Duncan H. Ros is freelance writer, musician and graphic artist. He received his B.A. in English from Portland State University which landed him numerous manufacturing and hard labor positions in Oregon. Besides writing for Sound Scene Express, Ros is also a writer and editor at The Know Magazine based in Bristol and has written for numerous other online and print publication covering art, music and news. He hopes to interview Iggy Pop before he dies.
Contributors
Kellie Gormly
Past Contributors
Matt Brown
Maddie Brown
Connor Hochbein
Jennifer Moore
Richard Schmid
Reina Peli
Josh Reardon
Paige Suvick
Ken Kerr
