Josh started playing the piano at age 6, building a solid foundation with noted jazz pianist Milton Krauss. He later went on to study classical music with former Royal Academy of London instructor Josh started playing the piano at age 6, building a solid foundation with noted jazz pianist Milton Krauss. He later went on to study classical music with former Royal Academy of London instructor Bernard Scott. Josh also played the violin from the ages of 7 - 15 or so.

He played in the school orchestra and sang in the high school chorus, but was eventually kicked out of both for talking too much: "I was a bit of a wise-ass," Josh notes. In order to fully prepare for his duties as lead singer, in 1994 Josh began intensive vocal training with world-renowned vocalist Tony Harnell of TNT.

As far as some background info, Josh explains: "I was influenced as a person by the music that happened to be around in my house growing up, and I always was partial to music and lyrics that challenged my thinking and playing in some way."

"As a kid, I grew up on classical and film music more than anything else, having played classical piano since I was a kid, and having been an avid movie fan for as long as I can remember. I remember being inspired by things like John Williams' "Star Wars" score, and Bill Conti's music from "Rocky." I was fascinated by the power they had to change my mood almost instantly, exactly according to the intention of the music.

My first introduction to rock was through older albums my parents had around the house; things like Simon and Garfunkel's "Sounds of Silence" and "Bridge over Troubled Waters," Bob Dylan, and Harry Chapin, among others.

The other thing that was so great about this music is that the lyrics were so poetic and powerful - even as a young teenager I was forced to think about life in a different way. Then, some years later, I overheard some guys in school reading a review of Rush's "Signals," so I ran out and bought the cassette, and was absolutely blown away by the combined power of the music, the playing, and the thoughtfulness and depth of the lyrics."

Neil Peart has been a musical hero of mine since then, and I am continually amazed at the consistent strength and professionality of his writing. That was really my introduction to heavy rock, and I was hooked. Later on I got into heavier music like Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and early Rainbow, as well as more progressive stuff like Styx, Kansas, Yes, and Journey."

"I never really played in bands until I got to college, and that's where I met Jimmy. We've been playing together now for a good long time now, and that's why we work together so well.

As far as the lyrics, my main goal is always to try to strike as many emotional chords as possible, so a lot of the time the words end up being dangerously personal. I'm fairly introverted, and that leads me to spend a lot of time pondering and observing things, and that sometimes translates into some pretty heavy, often sad, but I think ultimately optimistic lyrics."