The sweetest gifts oftentimes arrive through great challenges and changes.
Melissa and Matthew DeOrazio met in Austin in 2005 at a Songsalive! music showcase that Melissa was hosting and organizing.

Melissa had lived in Austin since ’95, and was active in the music community, performing as well as organizing music showcases such as Writers Who Rock, Songsalive!, and GoGirlsMusic Fest. Melissa was a solo performer at the time, although she had experience with previous band incarnations.
Matthew, a proficient and prolific musician, had been performing since his teens, and was based in New Orleans. He was in flux, still reeling from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Through a series of shifts, tides, and turns post-Katrina, Matthew ended up moving to Austin, reluctant to leave home, but looking toward the future.

Soon after, the two began collaborating musically and began to forge a great sound and friendship. After spending a great deal of time recording and touring together as band mates, the two found a bond much deeper than ever anticipated. Marriage and a move back to New Orleans turned a new leaf for the couple on many levels.

They performed together as ‘Melissa On The Rocks’, with Melissa on vocals and guitar and Matthew on drums and guitar, up until 2008.

  Sweet Jones is their latest collaboration, as they meld their musical backgrounds of blues, rock, roots, and americana.  Details on this new music journey will unfold organically, as does life in it's process.  Check the events calendar for upcoming performances.

The record 'Wiser Cause', originally recorded in Austin under the name 'Melissa On The Rocks', will be revisited after the release of the Sweet Jones: Le Grande Soiree (a live DVD/CD to be released in Spring 2010)