About Us

Vocal Chaos: a Brief History

In 1996, a few graduates of the Kellogg Graduate School of Business at Northwestern University started talking at a holiday party. "Wasn't it fun when we all used to sing together at Kellogg? Aren't most of the guys still in town? Why don't we do that again?"

And with that thought, a new a cappella music group appeared on the Chicago scene. Seven guys (all consultants, all but one with their MBA) started congregating in an apartment in the Lincoln Park neighborhood for 2-3 hours every Thursday night after business travel flights had returned home, and started building a repertoire of classic rock and pop songs.

Today, Vocal Chaos is award-winning, all-male a cappella band performing classic rock and popular music from the past four decades, including hits from the Jackson 5 and the Rolling Stones, to MatchBox 20 and the Dave Matthews Band, with everything in between. Our semi-pro group of consultants, actors, programmers, marketers, teachers, service reps, and map-makers by day, performs throughout the Chicagoland area at corporate events, charity functions, and a host of other public venues where people like good music with a unique sound. You can check our website for upcoming gigs, or you can just hang out around Chicago and catch one of our random "guerilla singing" mini-concerts.

The Incarnations of Chaos:

Being around for over 13 years and made up of folks who all have "real jobs," Vocal Chaos has seen its share of turnover. Guys retire from Chaos as life events pull them in other directions. Some for jobs, some for humanitarian causes like the Peace Corps, some for higher education opportunities (read: getting their PhD), and some for unsympathetic wives who just don't understand the need to sing with a bunch of guys every week. (See "Chaos Widows.")

Fortunately, new guys always seem to turn up, and as they do, they update and change the group, always for the better. The group has had as many as 15 members at a (brief) time, and managed to stay together with as few as 4. We're always seeking new members.

Out of respect for our Brethren in Chaos, we fondly name these new groups like software. The Chaos Alumni are:

Vocal Chaos 1.0 (beta)

  • John "Trees" Rountree
  • John "Springo" Springsteen
  • Sean Foley
  • Dave Kalis
  • Brad Adamzcek
  • Blasko Ristic
  • Mark Jamison
  • Paul Peterson
Vocal Chaos 2.0
  • John "Trees" Rountree
  • John "Springo" Springsteen
  • Sean Foley
  • Dave Kalis
  • Brad Adamzcek
  • Blasko Ristic
  • Mark Jamison
  • Paul Peterson
  • Josh Towle
  • Gordon ???
  • Nathan Landis
  • Joe Caruso
Vocal Chaos 3
  • John "Springo" Springsteen
  • Sean Foley
  • Dave Kalis
  • Paul Peterson
Vocal Chaos 4
  • John "Springo" Springsteen
  • Sean Foley
  • Dave Kalis
  • Paul Peterson
  • Cooper Olsen
  • Chuck Finkelstein
  • David Houggy
  • Todd Richards
Vocal Chaos 5
  • John "Springo" Springsteen
  • Sean Foley
  • Paul Peterson
  • Scott Townsend
  • Jake Bartalone
  • Scott Bowers
  • Scott Davis
  • Pat MacCleamy
  • Micha ??? (ask Ant, he probably knows)
Vocal Chaos 5.1
  • Paul Peterson
  • Scott Townsend
  • Jake Bartalone
  • Scott Bowers
  • Pat MacCleamy
  • Tim Gallagher
  • Mike (what's his last name?)
  • Nathan "nate-THAN" Green
  • Jeff Swearingen
Vocal Chaos 8.3 SP2: The current membership

With a name like CHAOS, it had better be good:

  • CHAOS actually stands for: Chords Harmony And Outrageous Sound
  • With so many guys named "John" in the group, and our collective inability to keep them all straight, the group originally went by the name, Seven Guys Named John. When we took on our first "new guy" we contemplated calling the band: Seven Guys Named John, and Steve. The name quickly died as we realized that changing the name of the band every time someone joined would be confusing and impractical. Who would ever put something on their marquis saying: "Playing Tonight: Seven Guys Named John, and Steve, and Brad, and Dave, and Chuck, and…"?
  • Other names previously considered, and subsequently rejected:
    • Tonal Chaos (which led to Total Chaos, which led to Vocal Chaos)
    • A Lotta Guys Who Sing A Little
    • 7 Guys – No Rings (my how THAT has changed!)
    • Streetcorner Jukebox
    • Random Toast
    • Blask-o-ristic!
    • Scene-Fo-Lay and the Beefsteak Tomatoes
  • At one point, the group membership was nearly outnumbered by guys named "Scott" and once they all left, we contemplated changing the name to "Scott Free."