James Sonefeld, or Soni, as he's know by many, started his music career playing drums in the basement of his childhood home in the Northern State of Illinois. He was musically influenced by a variety of classic rock and R&B bands ranging from Marvin Gaye, Blood, Sweat, and Tears, Led Zeppelin and even Elton John. Although intensely interested in music and drumming, Sonefeld's talent and dedication to sports kept him from playing in bands till he was well into college.
At age 21, Soni joined his first band. Armed with what Soni describes as "his flashy mullet and challenged fashion sense," he played in various bands in Columbia, South Carolina from the mid to late 80's until he met and then joined a couple of college friends who had a cover band called Hootie and The Blowfish. The band toured bars and fraternity houses in the Southern states of America for many years before striking a record deal with Atlantic Records.
Sonefeld later became one of the main songwriters for Atlantic recording artists Hootie and The Blowfish and has contributed to their commercial success with over 25 million albums sold and prestigious Grammy's to his credit.
During his time with Atlantic Records, Sonefeld was introduced to label-mate Francis Dunnery, who was paired to tour with Hootie and The Blowfish during their rise to the top of the charts in the mid 90's. Francis and Sonefeld toured together and stayed in touch throughout the 90's, but it wasn't until a Francis Dunnery House Concert in 2006 that they reunited and considered the idea of working together on an independent solo album.
Sonefeld's solo project started in the Spring of 2007 in New York City with several songwriting sessions. Over the course of the next 10 months, Sonefeld and Dunnery continued writing and recording at Smash studios in NYC, Blue Ridge Mountain Studios in West Virginia, and finally at Dunnery's home studio in the Pocono mountains. The album is aptly titled, 'Snowman Melting' and tells the story of a man's journey through love, hurt and new found freedom.
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