Acoustic duo talks about cover songs, the Beatles, playing local shows

Ozone does it all

Two local musicians joined forces to form the acoustic duo, Ozone, six months ago. In the daytime, Paul Nunez works at the S.C. Aquarium and coaches his daughter's Summerville softball team "The Pink Ladies," while Aaron Levy teaches music lessons at Music Unlimited in Mount Pleasant.

The duo covers favorites like The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood," Pearl Jam's "Better Man" and Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline," and they also perform original songs. Occasionally sharing anecdotal music trivia with the crowd, they're more than just a cover band, but you can catch their upcoming shows at 7 p.m. Dec. 12 and 26 at Rendezvous in North Charleston, to hear for yourself.

BAND NAME: Ozone.

THE BAND IS: Paul Nunez, djembe drum, vocals; Aaron Levy, acoustic guitar, vocals.

HOMETOWN(s): Vallejo, Calif.; Charleston, S.C.

WHAT'S WITH THE NAME: Our life philosophy is that everything in life is in the spectrum of the universe. We wish we had an earth-shaking answer, but it is still very mystifying to us. Ozone is powerful, resides mostly in the stratosphere, has good and bad effects, but is always necessary and relevant.

WHAT'S YOUR MUSICAL PHILOSOPHY: Music is therapeutic. Regardless of the situation you're in, music will make you feel good. People just want to escape, especially in these tough economic times. Even if it's only a few hours, we take people to their happy place ... at least that's our goal. You might call us purveyors of happiness.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR SOUND?: We're very harmony-driven, with a lot of diversity. We play everything from Stevie Wonder to Supertramp, it's a very eclectic mix.

WHO/WHAT ARE YOUR INFLUENCES?: The framers of our musical constitution … all the forefathers of Rock and Soul: The Beatles, Prince, The Police, Joni Mitchell — all the great story tellers.

MOST LIKELY TO BE PLAYING AT: O'Lacy's in Summerville, the Break Room in Mount Pleasant, Rendezvous in North Charleston

UPCOMING PROJECTS: In 2009, we hope to get into the studio and work on our original recordings together.

IF YOU COULD SING THE WORLD A SONG WHAT WOULD IT BE?: "All You Need is Love." It doesn't matter how rich or how poor you are, if you have love then you are powerful and secure. Love of family and friends is far more valuable than anything tangible or material.

WHAT SETS YOU APART FROM OTHER LOCAL COVER BANDS?: We like to open many of our songs with an anecdote, like something interesting about the background, how it came to be, or was written. Paul has this book called "Revolution in the Head" by Ian MacDonald, that documents the inspiration behind every Beatles song. For example, a common misconception is that "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" was a title inspired by LSD, and it was actually based on a picture that Sean Lennon's kindergarten classmate drew and his father hung it on the refrigerator. The picture was titled "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." So we do that. But, we're just proud to be part of the Charleston music scene, among all those other great bands out there.

TYPICAL SHOW: Is highly interactive. We like to think of shows as social events, and we're part of the party, but we just happen to have instruments in our hands. People come out to have a good time, and we're just there to celebrate with them.

IF THERE WERE NO MUSIC IN THE WORLD WHAT WOULD YOU DO:? Write, maybe? Maybe short stories … just as a creative outlet, or a reason to create thoughts and ideas. Music is such an outlet, and if music didn't exist there would have to be another release.

Are you in a local band? We want to know who you are. E-mail localbands@postandcourier.com.