By RANDY GONZALES
Special to Hays Post
Tens of thousands from many states and foreign countries visit Fort Hays State University’s Sternberg Museum of Natural History each year.
They come to see the dinosaurs, reptiles, fossils and to soak up some history.
Last week, some visitors from Colorado and California came to Sternberg for a different reason: to record music under the sea.
Recording sessions were conducted on three nights in the museum’s undersea diorama, where music reverberated in the dark, enclosed space with rounded walls.
Jeff Berkley, a singer/songwriter who is also a music producer, heard about Sternberg while listening to National Public Radio shortly before coming through town on one of his many treks across Interstate 70 for a music gig in 2023.
So, Berkley decided to visit the museum when he pulled into Hays. He was astonished by the acoustics when he suddenly felt the urge to sing in the undersea diorama’s cave-like enclosure that represents the Western Interior Seaway that covered much of Kansas 66 million to 80 million years ago.
“The reverb in there, I was blown away,” Berkley said. “I just thought in that moment I would love to bring some amazing artists to Hays and record them in there.”
Berkley emailed Sternberg Director Reese Barrick soon after his visit.
Barrick gave the green light, and Berkley contacted three groups of recording artists who all immediately said “yes” to what would become known as the Paleoverb Project.
“I thought it was a weird request but really awesome,” Barrick said. “It is a cool space, but I didn’t know how they were going to make it work.”
Barrick, who played the trumpet in high school, also marveled at the acoustics.
“The way the room is shaped and covered up, the walls bounce everything back and forth. It’s really cool,” Barrick said. “It does reverberate some. It’s not crystal clear. It’s sort of unique in that way.”
The original plan was to have one group record on Sunday, another on Monday, and then the final one on Tuesday. However, as the artists congregated in the recording space, they all joined in on some songs each night, with Berkley serving as the sound engineer with his portable studio equipment.
“There’s no headphones, no overdubbing, no tuning software,” Berkley said. “You just go into this weird room and kick (tail) and be really good. That’s why I chose them.”
Berkley and two of the three groups are from San Diego. Veronica May and Hanna Doreen Brown, both from Fort Collins, Colorado, recorded on Sunday.
The duo Stucky Leigh, composed of Will Stucky and Lauren Leigh, was in the spotlight Monday. Tuesday evening, it was Marlo J. Smith and Joshua McCleskey, joined by bandmate Sean Cox Briar, from the group Please ask for Paul.
“They all have amazing melodies and harmonies and songs,” Berkley said. “That’s why I chose them.”
There was no hesitation in agreeing to become part of the project.
“Jeff is this lovely, sweet, weird figure where we live, but also has quite a list of accomplishments,” McCleskey said. “We love and respect him. It didn’t take much arm-twisting.”
“It just sounded weird and fun and beautiful,” he added. “When we found out who was getting involved, it just kept getting bigger and bigger. Just so much excitement.”
The three groups bring an eclectic blend of an indie-alt sound, with some folk thrown in. Each artist was amazed by what they encountered in that special space with a surreal atmosphere.
“The reverb in there, you throw your voice and it just stays,” May said.
“What they learned was how long the reverb would last,” Berkley said.
Performing in a dimly lit space with an otherworldly vibe was special.
“I feel like that was the best part of the magic,” Brown said. “It was so fun to sing.”
The recording artists all agreed they did not choose music for their path; music chose them. One artist’s mother is a concert pianist; another was inspired to pursue a life in the arts by watching a performance of “A Christmas Carol” when she was young. Another had a teacher who recognized her musical potential, while yet another took piano lessons.
Different paths, same destination.
“It’s been my only path,” Briar said.
McCleskey knows nothing else.
“Creativity is my biggest asset in this life,” he said. “It was never about getting rich or famous. It was just making music. There’s never been another option for me.”
“I was raised around musicians,” Leigh said. “I tried my best to not do it.”
“I had to have it in my life,” she added. “I’m much happier for it.”
Smith knew she wanted to make music her life. She became a music therapist in a hospice setting.
“I knew I wanted to make a living making music,” Smith said. “I couldn’t imagine living my days without having music in my life every day.”
Each group has tour dates throughout the country. In addition to a Paleoverb Project album, each artist will have their recorded songs featured on their own albums.
With their albums, Stucky and Leigh collaborate in turning thoughts into songs.
“Our process feels more like tossing wet noodles against the wall and whoever has the perfectly-cooked noodle, we move on from there,” Stucky said.
The artists moved on to their next gigs on Wednesday. It was Hays one day, performing in New Mexico or Wyoming the next.
“What I feel lucky about is being surrounded by people like I’m surrounded with right now,” Stucky said. “That has pulled me into being courageous and wanting to share, create.”
Barrick said that while the museum will get some exposure from the project, that was not the guiding force for him.
“I don’t know if it has to help the museum,” Barrick said. “It’s just a cool form of art that our building can add to creative performers. … We’ll get some good advertising out of it, but it’s more about helping people do something that’s cool and creative.”