“I guess I’m more like a noisy prophet.” 

A poet, a musician, a songwriter, and coder, Steve and his family hail from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Equal to his passion to create is his desire to support creators. From a young age, Steve has been involved in DIY communities and arts events, driven by a desire to see artists thrive. 

It all began at the age of fourteen, when Steve traded his trumpet for a guitar. Brought up on rock and roll, Steve started a bunch of metal bands in high school, soon switching to drums when drummers were scarce. 

“God used my drummer dilemma to draw me to Him,” he explained. “I eventually started dating the woman who’s now my wife. She wanted to go to a church so we went to church. There’s more to this story, but I started drumming in this church before I even believed in God. Eventually, I did start believing. And so there’s no turning back now.” 

While Steve’s spiritual journey began behind the kit, his heart for community began at his hometown roller rink. Part indoor skate park, part venue, the rink brought in somewhat famous underground metal bands from around the country. He spent a lot of time, even enjoying time on stage with his band. Soon, Steve’s interest expanded into open mic nights and First Friday events, loving how the open door venues provide for others to make connections and talk to the artists. 

Steve Chab Band, 2022

Music

Steve is most known for his work with Steve Chab Band, a “three-piece emotive grunge band.” The trio is coming out with a new record soon, their first full-length since 2012. Inspired by bands like Deftones and Sunny Day Real Estate, Steve Chab Band is driven by lyrical and musical depth.

“As I grew up, I would see all these bands I used to like a lot. As I got older, their lyrics never changed. ‘Dude, you’re like, 25 and you’re still writing like you’re 14? Why aren’t you writing adult songs?’ I went to Carnegie Mellon University and got a degree in creative writing. And that really helped my songwriting abilities. My lyrics got exponentially better.” 

Well-crafted, meaningful lyrics are important to Steve. In a world where first person expression dominates lyrical theme, different approaches can be a breath of fresh air.

“One of my favorite things to do is when I write, I’ll [use] articles that I really like, something that was interesting or weird or makes you think. And I’ll take that article and try to pull words and phrases out of it. That’s called an erasure poetry, where you take a piece of work and erase things from it. So I’ll erase things until I’m happy with the themes and words in it. And then I’ll turn that into a poem.” 

Steve strives for lyrics that are precise and create impact. “I rarely repeat a chorus or something. And if I do repeat a section, the second time around has new lyrics. So I’m not really a verse chorus, verse chorus kind of guy. I just kind of see what needs to be said and get out. It’s also kind of a recipe to make people want to hear more.” 

Photoshop Glitch by Steve Chab

Hosting 

Like Trailand Elztroth, Steve has a dual relationship with Porchlight as both a host and an artist (as Steve Chab Band). The hosting side of his participation takes its root in the communities he grew up in, as well as a more intentional pursuit. 

“When I was at the university, and I’d gotten my undergrad, for my final project, I wanted to help enhance Christian artistry,” Steve shared. “And I interviewed as many Christian and non-Christian liberal arts organizations that try to help artists get better or support them. So I interviewed I think 40 different organizations or something, just trying to figure out what the community needs.

The three takeaways were professionalism, the quality of music and lyrics, and a platform. One of the reasons we moved into the house we’re in right now is so we have more space to host concerts,” he added. “We actually like moved for like missions work, but in the move, we wanted to make helping Christian artists part of our mission. And with four kids and full time work, we don’t get to do as much of it as we want to. We try to host at least one or two concerts a year.” 

When asked about a noteable hosting experience, Steve first pointed to Kevin Schlereth’s show in November 2023.

“Our friends came, but they’re all like older friends,” Steve recalled. “So there’s all these like, you know, 50 plus people watching Kevin perform who probably had no idea what indie rock emo is. But they all enjoyed it.”

An evening with singer-songwriter Joy Ike stood out as well. “When Joy performed, it was storming really bad and the lights went out right before they’re supposed to go on. We had just cooked dinner for them. So I was like, ‘Let’s eat and pray and hopefully the lights come back on.’ And as soon as we were done eating, the lights came back on and our first guest was at the door.”

It’s moments like these that speak to the level of interaction possible between the artist, the host, and the gathered audience. Such unique experiences are not replicable. 

For Steve, house concerts offer a more personal, human experience than large venue concerts.

“Do you remember the band Slipknot? They call their fans maggots. When you’re one of like 100,000 people at a giant venue or festival, you’re a maggot in this crowd, man. I don’t want to be just a bug. It’s a sea of bugs. I want to be friends with the other audience members. I want to get to know the artist. It’s just more intimate and more fun that way. It’s more human.” 

The Chab family are devoted followers of Christ and their faith is the root from which their heart for hospitality springs. Their perspective is rooted in the Golden Rule: do to others as you would like done for you. 

“If I showed up at someone’s house to play a concert and they invited, like,10 of their friends to come hear me that have never heard me before, and then they paid me like $300, I would just cry. When people ask about my lyrics and songs afterward, I feel important and I feel like they actually care. And so I want to return that same favor. I want to hand them a wad of cash after the show, and feed them, and make them feel like I actually care, because I do.”

And Steve’s advice for other hosts?

“Just do it!” 

“It’s super fun,” he continued.

“I know you have to get your house ready and then clean up after everyone leaves. But usually, you can just ask people to help, like, ‘Hey, would you fold these chairs for me? Would you do a sweep over here where we got some food spillage?’ I would say just do it. Because it’s like having Thanksgiving at your house or something. Enjoy something together as a community. If you want to have like a Thanksgiving with music, just have a concert at your house.”

Learn more about Steve, the new Steve Chab Band record, his poetry and more: https://stevechab.com/

Check out Steve Chab Band’s Bandcamp: https://stevechab.bandcamp.com

Start hosting Steve Chab Band (and other Porchlight artists) for a house concert today: porchlight.art

Dot Rocks 4 by Steve Chab