-In their hometown, they have to turn people away because bodies already are covering every available inch of floor space. When band members of My Fifth of Paradise came to DeKalb to play, they did not find the crowd to be the surging mass of bodies they were used to, but the reaction was enough for this Naperville band to blaze through 15-minute blues anthems.

“We’re coming into this blind,” said Jason Paradise, guitar player, harmonica player and singer for the band, about his expectations of the crowd’s reaction to their show last Saturday night at Otto’s Underground, 118 E. Lincoln Highway.

The five-piece band’s stew of blues style went over well with the seated but cheering audience. The band seemed to appreciate the noise that the less-than-thick crowd poured out over extended versions of The Band’s “The Weight” and Booker T and the Mg’s “Green Onions.”

“It feels very good,” Paradise said about playing the bar scene with My Fifth of Paradise.

Paradise considers his playing style to follow the southern tradition of blues, while Brian Wright stays true to the Texas blues style on a teal-green Stratocaster and jet-black Les Paul guitar. Andrew Syrios rounds out the trio of guitars pounding through an amalgamation of blues and metal licks.

“The rhythm section is just incredibly tight. It makes it fun for the three of us on guitar to improv and go nuts,” Paradise said about bass player Matt Storrie and drummer Ryan Hammer, an NIU history major.

-With a full-length album in preproduction and a semester left of school for several members, conquering the Midwest’s bar scene seems only months away for My Fifth of Paradise.

“[Touring] is a stretch down the road, especially with these five guys; we’ve only been together six months,” Paradise said about the prospects of touring after graduation.

“[Jason] has a better chance of being successful than I do as an athlete getting into the pros,” said Ryan Paradise, an NIU basketball player, about his brother Jason’s capacity for major success. “I love the [Fifth of Paradise]. I’ve known the band since they were practicing in my basement.”

Fifth of Paradise will continue playing the DeKalb-Naperville area during breaks and weekends. The band is working on its debut album in preparation for the full-time commitment it plans on making after college. If they can generate a fan base in other college towns similar to their fan base in Naperville, My Fifth of Paradise just might be able to make a grab at notoriety.