Hotel Gouda

Hotel Gouda takes songs people already love and puts their own spin on them. Either by taking a song that has implied dynamics between verse and chorus, and taking those dynamics and enhancing them, or by taking a song with a subtle groove, and ramping up the intensity of that groove, or taking a disco groove, and turning it into a funk groove, Hotel Gouda makes songs their own, and makes their audience fall in love with these songs all over again.

L. Roy Wooley (bassist/vocalist) introduced Sonny Orbit (guitarist/vocalist) to Chimay Bleu (drummer) in 2019, which instantiated Hotel Gouda. L. Roy and Sonny have a long history of melting the cheese starting with Hit Machine, the 70s cover band formed in the 1990’s.

Hit Machine took its name from K-Tel records and recreated rock and disco and country songs from the 1970s. Recreating in this case refers to creating art out of the songs, either through highly exaggerated performances, costumes, art and overall irreverence. Under the leadership of Hayzeus Lovesexy and Sonny Orbit, the band cycled through no less than 405 Chicago musicians in its quest to resurrect the underappreciated hits of the 70s.
L. Roy Wooley joined Hit Machine in 1998 after failing to get into a local Chicago band called the Suckmakers.
L. Roy, who is an ordained Reverend in the State of Illinois, has a long line of musical influences starting with his Dad, who was a trumpet player in the Bronx Symphony Orchestra. L. Roy has been in these musical groups:
Fort Lee High School chorus
Orchestra for the Robber Bridegroom, performed at Douglass College in 1980 (Principal Banjoist)
Dawgs, part of the New Brunswick music scene, made famous by Matt Pinfield
BBC
The Suspects
Orchestra for Hair, performed at Northwestern University in 1987 (Electric Bass Guitar)
Hit Machine
Scanning Babies
Heavy Mental
Roses for Panjo, the wonderful album created by Tanya Leah
E Pluribus Freebus
Hotel Gouda

Legend has it that when Sonny Orbit was born in 1964, he emerged with a full head of golden blond hair, so striking that his mother was reminded of the brilliance of the sun and therefore named him "Sonny." At an early age he had begun exhibiting a love of music and learned to play several songs on a makeshift guitar he had constructed using an old soapbox and fishing line from his father's tackle box. Soon, his parents bought him a real guitar, and soon he was both writing songs and playing the popular songs of the day. As a teenager, Sonny was touring the country and playing to packed houses as the "Sunshine Boy Wonder," sharing the stage with such superstars as The Partridge Family and Sonny and Cher. His musical ideas rubbed off on all he met and performed with, and legend has it he was the first to define the form "disco", years before it became a national trend.

Later, he teamed up with Hayzeus Lovesexy to create Hit Machine, a 70s band with an emphasis on reproducing K-tel classics. His flamboyant guitar and singing style caught the eyes and ears of the music scene, and soon Hit Machine was in high demand throughout Chicagoland.

After several years of performing with Hit Machine, Sonny knew that if he didn’t want his love of music destroyed by the very industry that made him, he had to step back from it. He went on to fulfill his lifelong dream, that of being a master sandwich maker.

Many thousands of sandwiches later, Hit Machine bassist (link hidden)y Wooley called with an opportunity to partner with him and his new drummer Chimay Bleu. The concept was simple: take the concept that Hit Machine originated and go to the next level; creating epic jams wherever an opportunity to melt the cheese exists.

A dynamic guitarist with the ability to range from the subtle to the bombastic, Sonny has been compared to guitarists as divergent as Jeff Beck and Frank Zappa. As a vocalist, Sonny’s lush vocal acumen gives him the ability to cover vocalists ranging from Bryan Ferry to Billy Joel. He’s excited about putting his talents to work for Hotel Gouda.

Chimay Bleu is the son of a highly-regarded cheese producer from northern Wisconsin, Chimay Bleu was named Chimay because it was one of the highest quality of cheeses, and renowned for its taste, character, and tradition. It was his father’s hope that Chimay would embrace these facets of his name and eventually take over the family business. But as Chimay’s passion for music began bubbling to the surface, it often put him at odds with his father. Legend has it that at 7 years old Chimay was grounded for creating an entire drum set made out of cheese wheels. At 16, Chimay left home and hit the road touring with a Jigsaw tribute band. After years of feeling unfulfilled, Chimay found himself waxing philosophic over a pot of fondue, and he suddenly realized he could never be free until he "melted the cheese". When (link hidden)y Wooley told Chimay about master sandwich maker Sonny Orbit, and his desire to create the perfect panini, Chimay knew he had found his new home, and Hotel Gouda was born.

Hotel Gouda is all about trimming the brine and melting the cheese. The band was formed from a government fiat to turn cheezy songs into something more useful to society. Hotel Gouda may or may not be up to the task. Come to a show and see for yourself.

Hotel Gouda can provide it's own sound, but does not provide lighting.