Akron natives Jaded Era perform at Peabody’s in Cleveland tomorrow night. PHOTO COURTESY OF JADED ERA

Credit: Carl Schierhorn

Patience is a virtue. Especially when it comes to Jaded Era.

After spending nine years touring and playing over 700 shows, opening for bands such as Maroon 5, Evanescence, Alanis Morissette and The Flaming Lips, the Akron natives were rewarded by scoring an opening spot fans voted on for Bon Jovi’s 2004 “Have A Nice Day” tour, playing in front of 16,000 people.

Kira Leyden, lead singer and former Kent State student, described the experience as “something (we’ll) never forget.” Although nervous, “Once we hit the stage, it was like home,” she said.

The group began in middle school when they would spend their time covering Green Day and No Doubt songs. Since then, the band’s sound evolved into a mixture of radio-ready pop-rock combined with the fun of ’90s alternative and the energy from ’80s bands such as The Bangles and The Cars.

Jaded Era’s work ethic has helped sell over 6,000 albums out of its minivan, land gigs in places such as Los Angeles’ coveted Viper Room and airplay on both independent and mainstream stations such as WMMS. And they have done this all on their own.

Leyden said the band’s philosophy is to stick to what the members believe in. “We’re not going to let anybody tell us who we’re going to be,” Leyden said.

It appears this philosophy seems to be working. The band has been flown out by big record companies in attempt to strike a deal, but they balked due to the artistic sacrifices the labels wanted in order to make it less rock and more pop.

“Right now, we’re just doing our own thing,” guitarist Jeff Andrea said. “It’s not about the (record) label.”

The band has found a new way to market itself through sites such as Purevolume and Myspace.

“We realized ‘Wow! This is great! Who needs distribution?’,” Leyden said.

Jaded Era’s upcoming shows at Peabody’s in Cleveland tomorrow and Jillian’s in Akron Feb. 15 are expected to be as energetic as its previous gigs.

As Andrea said, “This year, we’re going to be testing a lot of waters.” Music fans looking for something new can check out the band’s new EP when it drops this spring.

Contact ALL correspondent Andrew Gaug at [email protected].