STRATA
STRATA gets people moving right from the start with great hits from rock and roll’s amazing history (50’s thru current). Our tight and energetic shows get the crowd involved and bring rave reviews from those in attendance. If you love to sing along, dance, or just watch the show STRATA is the band you’ll want to see or hire!
(Established 2011)
The Band
Welcome to STRATA. We are Chicagoland's premier classic rock cover band, dedicated to bringing you the true essence of rock and roll.
Our humble beginning started back in 2011. At that time the band was called 60 Carat Rock, featuring of course, 60’s rock hits. Somewhere along the way, realizing that we loved music hits as far back as the 50’s all the way to the current date, we changed our name to STRATA. If you look up the definition of strata, you’ll find that it means “a layer or series of layers of rock.” That made perfect sense to us, and it remains our name to this day.
Bud Carlson
lead vocals / percussion
Bud came from a singing and dancing family. His three older sisters were always singing and harmonizing at family events and the seeds were deeply planted. Early on he played drums in a garage band and also took guitar lessons. Although he is currently the lead singer for STRATA, he has always had a natural gift for harmony and background vocals. His early influences included bands such as the Beatles, the Monkees, and Chicago just to name a few. Later, 70’s rock became his passion. His public performances began with contemporary Christian music in church in the 80’s and eventually he was reunited with his roots when he joined STRATA.
George Lisle
lead guitar / backing vocals
George has been playing the guitar since the 60's with bands like The Henchman (surfin' music), Danny and the Twisters (oldies), Chasin' Time (blues), and Professional Confusion (originals). George has now come full circle musically by joining STRATA.
Anthony "TC" Carlson
bass guitar
TC started out young by banging on pots, pans, and buckets to the songs on the local oldies radio station. Oldies, along with classic rock have remained among his favorite genres of music. He has played a number of instruments over the years, but his journey with the bass guitar began at age 14. After some years away, he is once again thrilled to be laying down the bass lines for STRATA and playing the music he has always loved with the same feeling and intensity as the musicians who first played them.
Tony Heredia
drums / backing vocals
Tony grew up on a steady diet of 90’s Alternative Rock and Grunge, but at the end of the day, he just loves to play. In college, he played with bands that shared the stage with nationally recognized and touring Indie rock bands. More recently, he has backed bands of all different styles: Big Band/Swing, Alternative, Funk, Soul, Pop, and now, STRATA! Tony took a shine to learning the drums at age 12 and taught himself how to harmonize vocals, in addition to playing a little guitar and bass. He ultimately stuck with the drums and is perfectly content with laying down the groove and hanging in the background.
Alex Falls
keys / backing vocals
Alex grew up in a musical family; his parents signed him up for piano lessons at a young age to learn classical music, but he dreamed of playing rock and roll. He followed his dreams and studied Commercial Music at Millikin University and Jazz at UIUC, playing and singing in the recording studio and jazz clubs every chance he got. Today Alex works as a worship director and music educator, and he hopes to add his own brand of soul to STRATA.
Songs & Artists
A glimpse into our layers of rock history.
? & The Mysterians
Altered Five Blues Band
Alvin Lee
American Breed
Animals
Archie Bell & The Drells
Arthur Conley
Bachman Turner Overdrive
Beach Boys
Beatles
Bill Withers
Billy Joel
Blues Brothers
Bob Seger
Bobby Fuller Four
Bread
Buddy Miles
Chi-Lites
Chris Montez
Chris Stapleton
Chuck Berry
Climax Blues Band
Crazy Elephant
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Danny & The Juniors
Dave Clark Five
Del Shannon
Dion & the Belmonts
Doobie Brothers
Doors
Eagles
Eddie Floyd
Eddie Money
ELO
Elton John
Elvin Bishop
Elvis Presley
Eric Clapton
Everly Brothers
Four Seasons
Four Tops
Frankie Valli
Free
Gentry's
Georgia Satellites
Grand Funk
Grass Roots
Guess Who
Hall & Oates
Hank Ballard & the Midnighters
Hollies
Ides of March
INXS
Jackie Wilson
Jerry Lee Lewis
Joe Bonamassa
Joe Cocker
Joe Walsh
John Lee Hooker
John Mellencamp
Johnny Rivers
Journey
Kenny Wayne Shepherd
Loggins & Messina
Los Bravos
Lynyrd Skynrd
Marvin Gaye
McCoys
Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels
Monkees
Music Explosion
Neil Diamond
Norman Greenbaum
Orleans
Outsiders
Paul Anka
Paul Revere & the Raiders
Procol Harem
Queen
Rare Earth
Rascals
Ray Charles
Rivieras
Robert Palmer
Rolling Stones
Roy Orbison
Sam & Dave
Sam Cooke
Santana
Shadows of Knight
Shocking Blue
Sly & the Family Stone
Spencer Davis Group
Spiral Staircase
Spirit
Steppenwolf
Steve Miller Band
Stevie Ray Vaughan
Stevie Wonder
Stray Cats
T. Rex
Temptations
The Mavericks
The Romantics
The Wonders
Tim McGraw
Todd Rundgren
Tom Petty
Tommy James & the Shondells
Van Morrison
Walk The Moon
Wilbert Harrison
Wild Cherry
Wilson Pickett
ZZ Top
Media
Event Photos
Live shots from our latest gigs. Follow us on Facebook!
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Upcoming Gigs
Rock The Suburbs Fest
Naperville, IL
Book STRATA
Get in Touch
Ready to bring layers of rock history to your venue or event?
- Phone: 708.267.0855
- Email: info@stratachicago.com