An enduring local duo releases a new album

Local musicians Tyler Meloan and Aaron Marcus-Willers are, according to Meloan, both products of the Rhoten Summer Camps, as well as the Sonoma Dance Academy's ‘School of Rock’ camp.

These camps are two of the Valley of the Tunes’ youthful proving grounds for dancers, musicians and actors. The time spent in these organizations has certainly served them well.

Years later and still making music together, Meloan and Marcus-Willers have a new album called “Two Perched.”

The two young campers were drawn to each other by a common love for music. The pair teamed up after school and on weekends to jam and find their musical direction.

Those sessions allowed them to gather confidence, courage and momentum and led to memorable performances at the Sebastiani Theatre holiday shows.

In a wide-reaching phone conversation and a few emails, Meloan said, “We started out playing our K-8 school talent shows and the Sonoma Fourth of July parade.”

He added, “In 2012, we won the Sonoma County Fair Battle of the Bands. As teenagers we played the Sonoma Farmers Market, the Vintage Festival, then headlined at the Phoenix Theater in Petaluma.”

Meloan and Marcus-Willers released an EP of original music while still in high school. At the time they were a pop-punk/alternative band called “Heroes Turn Human.”

“Toward the end of high school, we renamed ourselves Aquamarine, adjusting our style to match our changing musical tastes and influences,” Meloan said. “Groups like The Beatles, Grateful Dead, CSNY and Pink Floyd, as well as newer acts like Mac DeMarco, Mapache and Turnover.”

With the assistance of bassist Ben Koler, the trio soon released their EP, “Bluesberry Jam.” The band followed up with a full-length album, “Scuba Jive,” in 2018.

Still making music together after all these years, Aquamarine released a 14-song album late last year. Meloan said, “Our new album, ‘Two Perched,’ is our first release in over three years, and our longest album ever.”

How they evolved over a decade proves their persistence, aided by the study of technology.

Both Meloan and Marcus-Willers are 2017 graduates of Sonoma Valley High School. From there, Meloan enrolled in Santa Rosa Junior College’s digital audio program and received an Associates of Arts in 2020. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Sonoma State University in 2022.

Marcus-Willers ventured a bit farther, graduating from New York University’s Abu Dhabi campus in 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts in music.

If a young adult can identify a life purpose, these guys got an early start choosing a deeply personal musical trajectory.

During these years, the pair remained close friends and musical collaborators, despite some 8,000 miles separating them.

To beat the distance, a little technology entered the equation. Meloan said, “Aaron and I FaceTimed and shared Google Docs and demos back and forth over the last year.”

The pair recorded parts on their own and together, reworking songs they’d written as far back as three years ago in the height of COVID-19. They polished tracks in preparation of Marcus-Willers’s return to Sonoma for summer break, so they’d be ready to dive into work.

“For the new album, we used our multi-instrumental abilities as well as recording and audio skills we've acquired in college and from previous recording sessions to complete the project in an entirely DIY fashion,” Meloan said. “Writing, recording, mixing and mastering all of the songs ourselves at our Sonoma homes.”

Addressing the duo’s persistence, he added, “We were in the same rooms where we'd been making music together since we were kids.”

Since he is a young person and a musician, I asked how he listens to new music. Meloan replied, “I tend to stream it. I usually use Spotify. But if it’s a local artist, I buy the stuff on Bandcamp.”

These are local artists, so visit https://bandcamp.com/ to purchase Aquamarine’s new album, “Two Perched.” Its gentle and ethereal sound, modern and indie yet familiar, will get you through these winter days quite nicely.