Regulars of Evil Horse Brewing Co. have come to know the classic rock cover band RetroActive, which has performed at the Crete venue since 2017.
Three of the group’s five members will be back at the craft brewery on Dec. 23 for an acoustic show.
“It’s always a good, friendly crowd. People come and enjoy the beer. They order food from the restaurant upstairs. It’s a nice open space so we’ve always been very comfortable there,” said Bob Johnson, who co-founded RetroActive with Tom Spisak and the late Don Fencl.
Patrons can order food from The Loft, which is located above fellow Crete Area Chamber of Commerce member Evil Horse Brewing Co.
The full RetroActive lineup features Johnson (vocals, rhythm guitar) of Orland Park, Spisak (vocals, lead guitar, harmonica) of Tinley Park, Drew O’Connor (drums) of Plainfield, Scott Kappmeyer (keyboard, vocals) of Tinley Park and Ray Hubert (bass, vocals) of Summit.
“Being in a band now is a tough thing to do especially with COVID and the fact that several of us are still working full time. A couple of guys are retired. We get along well together,” said Johnson, who has played guitar, keyboard and drums for several bands through the years.
“Scott and I actually started singing together in church back in the 1990s. We both went to a church in Flossmoor and started in a group back then. Scott and I have been singing together on and off since 1992.”
That church was Infant Jesus of Prague, which was unified with Park Forest’s St. Irenaeus and Matteson’s St. Lawrence O’Toole as St. Veronica Parish in Flossmoor in November.
RetroActive’s December gig at Evil Horse Brewing Co. features just Johnson, Spisak and Kappmeyer.
“It’ll be more acoustic and vocal-based versions of many of the same songs we have been doing, which includes The Beatles, The Beach Boys and Creedence Clearwater Revival,” Johnson said.
“Then we’ve added some of the new stuff like Tom Petty, like John Mellencamp. There’s even some Bob Seger songs and a wide variety of songs from the 1960s to the 1980s.”
RetroActive’s lengthy list of possible songs includes “Back in the U.S.S.R.,” “Bad Moon Rising,” “Barbara Ann,” “Do You Wanna Dance?,” “Eight Days a Week,” “Fortunate Son,” “409,” “Get Back,” “Green River” and “A Hard Day’s Night.”
“My favorite song is ‘Ticket to Ride’ by The Beatles. It’s a fun song to sing. Also, when the harmonies kick in they really feel good,” said Johnson, who worked as a recording engineer in the 1970s in a downtown Chicago studio.
His work at Mantra Studios included being recording engineer for Foreigner, Iggy Pop and Atlanta Rhythm Section performances for three separate broadcasts of “Studio Jam Radio Network,” which was recorded like a concert and aired shortly thereafter on WKQX.
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“We have enjoyed playing music and we find that people that come out to see us are fans of the music just as we are,” Johnson said.
“Everyone’s singing and dancing in their chairs. It makes it a lot of fun.”
Some of RetroActive’s bigger shows have included Evil Horse Brewing Co.’s October event named Rocktoberfest, which was billed as featuring two stages, eight performers, three bars, a biergarten, a food truck court and artisan vendors.
The band also performed for the first time at Midway Airport in Chicago on Veterans Day in November.
“The music of the ’60s and ’70s is all about memories,” Johnson said.
“There weren’t too many videos associated with songs so you basically made up videos in your head and that’s what sticks with you longer and that’s why I think that music is so popular.”
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RetroActive
When: 7-9 p.m. Dec. 23
Where: Evil Horse Brewing Co., 1338 Main St., Crete
Tickets: free
Information: 708-304-2907; evilhorsebrewing.com
Jessi Virtusio is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.