Tomas Kalnoky

Tomas Kalnoky(born December 24, 1980) is aCzechoslovak-born American musician. He is the lead singer/guitarist and songwriter of the bandsStreetlight ManifestoandBandits of the Acoustic Revolution,and goes by the pseudonymToh Kayas a solo performer.He is the former lead singer/guitarist for3rd-wave ska bandCatch 22,but left the band after making only one album (their debut,Keasbey Nights) to attendSavannah College of Art and Designin Savannah, Georgia, for visual art. According to the booklet ofSomewhere in the Between,Kalnoky attendedRutgers University.He is the owner ofPentimento Music Company,a record company.

Tomas Kalnoky
Kalnoky performing in Cincinnati, Ohio with Streetlight Manifesto on their Summer 2019 tour
Background information
Also known as	Toh Kay
Born	(1980-12-24)December 24, 1980 Prague,Czechoslovakia
Origin	East Brunswick, New Jersey,United States
Genres	Ska punk,punk rock,world,folk
Instrument(s)	Guitar,ukulele,drums
Years active	1995–present
Labels	Victory,RISC,Pentimento
Member of	Streetlight Manifesto Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution
Formerly of	Catch 22 Gimp
Website	www.tohkay

Biography

Raised inEast Brunswick, New Jersey,he graduated in 1997 fromEast Brunswick High School.

Tomas Kalnoky performing live in 2008

Kalnoky's first foray into the music world began with the punk bandGimp,with whom he released one cassette,Smiles for Macavity,before moving onto Catch 22 (with fellow Gimp members drummer Chris Greer and bassist Jason Scharenguivel). It was in Gimp that Kalnoky first wrote the song "Supernothing" which later appeared on the Catch 22 demoRules of the Game (EP)and the albumKeasbey Nights.However, the original version is a much slower acoustic song, which features Kalnoky's brother Achilles on violin (Achilles would later appear on the BanditsEPA Call to Arms,as well as on the first volume of "99 songs of Revolution" ).

After Kalnoky departedCatch 22,three ex-members of Catch 22, Tomas Kalnoky,Josh Ansley,and Jamie Egan, joined with three ex-One Cool Guy members, Stuart Karmatz, Dan Ross, and Pete Sibilia, to formStreetlight Manifesto.Despite the horn section, Kalnoky is hesitant to brand them "ska"saying," Ska is something that you have to tread so lightly with because there are so many, ironically, Nazi-like purists out there who will rip you apart because you don't fit the part of the 'ska band' ".

Kalnoky's influences are many, the blending of which creates Streetlight's signature sound. Kalnoky citesThe Driftersas a favorite band. Other musical influences includeBad Religion,Nirvana,The Suicide Machines,Squirrel Nut Zippers,andThe Dead Milkmen.He has mentioned Czech folk singerJaromir Nohavicaas one of his musical heroes.During one of his early interviews, Kalnoky cited American pop-folk singerMason Jenningsas one of his current CDs playing in his car. Streetlight Manifesto recorded Jennings'Birds Flying Awayas a track on "99 Songs of Revolution."

During the2009 Van's Warped TourKalnoky fractured his arm in a bicycle accident, rendering him incapable of playing guitar. While his arm healed, Kalnoky continued to take up the microphone and sing the band's set, with Sean P. Rogan ofBig D and the Kids Tablefilling in on guitar.

Kalnoky is a self-proclaimed perfectionist, explaining the persistent delay of Streetlight Manifesto's second original album,Somewhere in the Between,and the next album by theBandits of the Acoustic Revolution,which he said in 2007 "will be released by the end of this decade."As of 2024, said BOTAR album has not been released.

In 2010,Streetlight Manifestoreleased the first volume of99 Songs of Revolution,the first of "...8 or so records that focus entirely on playing music that other musicians have written." One of the songs however, "They Provide the Paint for the Picture Perfect Masterpiece that You Will Paint on the Insides of Your Eyelids," is originally written by Kalnoky and performed by his "side project,"Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution.The project/record was originally planned to be solely by Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution, but, as time went on, it faded into a project containing both Streetlight and BOTAR, as well as 2 other potential bands. For this reason, BOTAR has been called "the single least prolific musical group on the face of the planet," by the Pentimento Music Company, a member ofthe RISC Group.Also in 2010, Kalnoky released a split CD with Dan Potthast ofMU330entitledYou By Me: Vol. 1,under the pseudonym "Toh Kay."The first official Toh Kay music video is his interpretation of "I've Set Sail," originally by Potthast, animated byEric PowerofInked Reality.

On January 29, 2013, Kalnoky announced that he would perform seven shows as part of The Revival Tour alongsideChuck Ragan,Dave HauseofThe Loved Ones,Jenny Owen Youngs,Rocky Votolato,Jenny O.,andTim McIlrathofRise Against.He would later announce 5 additional dates.

Discography

Gimp

• Smiles for Macavity(Cassette) (1996)

Catch 22

• Rules of the Game(EP) (Cassette) (1997)
• Keasbey Nights(1998)

Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution

• A Call to Arms(EP) (2001)

Streetlight Manifesto

• Streetlight Manifesto Demo(EP) (2002)
• Everything Goes Numb(August 26, 2003)
• Keasbey Nights(March 7, 2006)
• Somewhere in the Between(November 13, 2007)
• 99 Songs of Revolution: Vol. 1(March 16, 2010)
• The Hands That Thieve(April 30, 2013)

Toh Kay

• You By Me: Vol. 1(With Dan Potthast ofMU330andThe Stitch Up) (November 16, 2010)
• Streetlight Lullabies(November 22, 2011)
• The Hand That Thieves(April 30, 2013)
• You By Me: Vol. 2(with Sycamore Smith, formerly of the Muldoons) (August 12, 2014)

External links

• Streetlight Manifesto
• Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution
• The Work of Tomas Kalnoky