Originally hailing from the Naperville/Downers Grove area, Starter Kit offers unique music with a punk and hard rock feel.

The band began with drummer Chris Javorski, guitarist/backup vocalist Emo Manuel and guitarist Ryan Aquino. They filtered through lead singers, genres of music and band names for several years.

Three years ago, lead singer and bass player Michael Perez permanently joined the group and helped settle the band into its niche.

“We were going through different singers and different styles so once we found Mike we settled down with a hard rock punk feel,” Aquino said.

Once they decided on a genre, they settled on a band name. Previous names (Jump Off Of A Building, Falling Forward, Unsung Hero) were abandoned one night when the members discovered a box with the name “Starter Kit” printed on it in Javorski’s basement.

With a complete lineup, developed style of music and a finalized band name, Starter Kit began performing shows across the Midwest.

Although self-classified in the hard rock/punk genre, Aquino admits to combining several genres in one song.

“We almost take four different songs and four different styles and mash them together into one,” Aquino said. “It still makes a cohesive song. Instead of making a bunch of songs that sound the same we make them a little different.”

All the members write the songs and music collectively and enjoy incorporating catchy guitar sounds into their music.

“We’re big guitar geeks, so we like to incorporate a lot of technical guitar stuff,” admits Aquino. “But we try to keep our music hard enough that you can rock out to but poppy enough that it sticks in your head.”

Ranking at the top the band’s list of accomplishments is when it was asked to open for My Chemical Romance at the House of Blues in Chicago, where it made a lot of new fans.

“I got so nervous I puked before the show,” Aquino said. “That was the most amazing show. Those kids really liked us.”

Currently, the band is continuing to tour the Midwest on the weekends while completing its first full-length CD.

Despite the band’s past successes, Aquino believes the most important part of being in Starter Kit is having fun.

“I just don’t see the band as a job. It’s really something just to have fun with,” Aquino said. “If it’s not fun, you’re not going to be making music that other people will see you enjoy. They want to see you have fun. If they see you enjoy it, so will they.”