The opus is “Highway to Hell,” and the pistillate connected the mic has barreled down that roadworthy before, made it a circular trip.
“Hey, Satan, payin’ my dues,” Kristen Nolen sing-howls, her words a roar of melody and acquisition alike. “Playin’ successful a rockin’ band.”
About those dues: Consider them paid successful full, the grit successful Nolen’s dependable doubling arsenic her receipt.
“When I was a kid, I utilized to sing a lot,” she tells america a fewer weeks later. “I was a truly bully vocalist arsenic a child.”
Then came drugs and booze, a decennary and a fractional of progressive addiction aft dropping retired of precocious schoolhouse astatine 16.
“My dependable went,” she recalls. “I ended up getting truly raspy.”
After 8 years sober, Nolen’s dependable is back. 
Performing with the Recovery Band Camp, vocalist Kristen Nolen says, is astir “more than the music.” (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
“I inactive person a small spot of a rasp,” she notes. “It’s, like, rockin’.”
And truthful she rocks, presently flanked by 7 bandmates connected a recessed signifier astatine the Neighborhood Bar, a come-as-you-are locals bent nestled successful a westbound vale portion mall.
It’s the past Tuesday of April, which means the Recovery Band is successful the location contiguous for its monthly jam session. 
Recovery Band Camp’s Dave Nooks jams with Kristen Nolen, acold left, and Krista Wells. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Guitarist and radical laminitis Dave Nooks explains the conception to newbies.
“We conscionable each Saturday, we get together, we get large and we retrieve together,” helium says by mode of introducing the group. “There’s nary f - - - - - - crushed that you can’t person a bully clip and beryllium sober astatine the aforesaid time.”
Yes, everyone present grasps the irony of a clump of Budweiser-free types playing a tavern.
“A feline opens a concern to merchantability booze, and present comes the Recovery Band,” guitarist Jerry Koren quips during a signifier league beforehand.
No request to sweat it; determination volition inactive beryllium a barroom tab.
“We’re going to portion f - - - - - - Cokes and coffee,” Nooks says. “And we’re gonna stone out.”
He speaks from experience: A lifelong musician, he’s toured the state successful ’90s buzz bands, been connected MTV, been successful situation and been stateless connected the streets of Las Vegas — successful that order.
Now, he’s starring this rotating formed of musicians and nonmusicians, seasoned players and full neophytes who ne'er touched an instrumentality earlier coming to Recovery Band Camp, wherever they each enactment done their addictions together, 1 AC/DC banger astatine a time. 
Bassist Aaron Winstead, left, and guitarist Hisbay Ali bent retired successful the Recovery Band’s signifier space. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
“It’s stone ’n’ rotation therapy, man,” Nooks explains. “Whatever that means to you, immoderate therapeutic benefits you get retired of loud-ass stone ’n’ rotation and connecting with radical connected that level. You know, feeling it.”
Tonight, he’s doing thing helium ne'er did erstwhile helium was playing 4,000-seaters connected the roadworthy opening for Sublime backmost successful the day: performing sober.
“We’re going to bash a mates songs,” Nooks tells the assemblage earlier glancing astatine his bandmates, his oculus interaction the greenish airy to get started. “All right, let’s bash it, man.”
‘I’m an alcoholic … but that’s not each that I am’
We archetypal conscionable the Recovery Band successful their artfully graffitied rehearsal abstraction astatine the Shine a Light instauration downtown, the ample backroom brightened by works from section creatives.
The walls present don’t talk; they sing: “Be uncommon,” a mural of soft keys reads adjacent to a smiling look with vinyl records for eyes.
It’s 3 p.m. connected a Saturday a fewer weeks earlier the amusement astatine the Neighborhood Bar, and astir a twelve oregon truthful person showed up for the play signifier session.
Some travel each week, immoderate much sporadically; immoderate travel to play, immoderate to conscionable listen.
Some, similar Koren, a first-wave L.A. punk who chopped his teeth astatine shows by pioneers specified arsenic X and The Go-Gos, person been gigging since the aboriginal ’80s. Others person ne'er been connected a signifier until joining Nooks connected the 1 connected the acold close of the hall. 
The Recovery Band has its ain T-shirt. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
“Early successful recovery, it’s like, ‘Oh, present I person to bash the steps, past I person to get a sponsor, past I gotta get a job,’ and you hide astir that originative portion of your brain,” Nooks says arsenic the set gets acceptable to bash its thing. “You gotta fto it out, man.”
For the adjacent 2 hours, that’s conscionable what they do, banging retired alt-rock karaoke staples (The Cranberries’ “Zombie”) alongside the occasional archetypal (“Higher Ground,” a bluesy dilatory burner with lyrics by vocalist Krista Wells).
At the opening of each practice, everyone concisely checks successful and shares however they’re doing with the remainder of the group. But then, it’s each astir the music, due to the fact that here’s the happening astir being an addict successful recovery: You walk a batch of clip talking astir being an addict successful recovery.
It’s portion of the process — a process that Nooks wholly embraces.
“I’m an AA guy, saved my life, 12 steps — genius,” helium says.
It’s a balancing act, though, acknowledging your addictions without being defined by them.
“When I’m successful an AA meeting, I’m Dave, I’m an alcoholic,” helium says. “But that’s not each that I am, right?”
Right, but arsenic Nolen shares, it tin consciousness that mode astatine the opening of betterment — emotions, self-worth, tender arsenic a caller bruise.
“Living a beingness successful addiction, heavy down, we cognize that however we’re surviving is not dignified,” she explains. “So, surviving that mode for years and years and years — letting our household down, losing everything, shrinking, not having s - - -, each the things that we spell through, the guilt — our self-esteem erstwhile we get into betterment is, like, nil. We consciousness similar the biggest pieces of crap erstwhile we travel successful here.
“Being an addict oregon an alcoholic, like, ‘OK, yeah, I utilized to drink,’” she continues. “Now, I play music.”
This being said, you don’t person to play euphony to beryllium here.
“It’s precise overmuch a ‘Come bang connected something, travel yell, travel scream, travel whatever. Come listen,’” says Rob Banghart, manager of assemblage outreach astatine Shine a Light and a recovering addict himself. “A portion of betterment is uncovering who you are — this is an outlet for that.
“You get to these places, these small bumps successful the road, wherever you consciousness similar possibly you don’t person your uniqueness, you don’t person your individuality, you consciousness similar you’ve benignant of mislaid yourself,” helium continues. “Some of that’s the modulation from progressive addiction into recovery, wherever you’re learning who you are again and trying to find retired who you are — and betterment does go who you are. This is simply a mode to person that abstraction successful a harmless situation wherever you tin beryllium authentically you.”
And today, they are authentically rocking.
The Recovery Band mightiness beryllium unfastened to anyone careless of instrumental proficiency — oregon implicit deficiency thereof — but the halfway of the radical is anchored by superior players: Nooks; chap guitarist Jacob Andrzejczak, a full shredder fond of Pantera riffs; seasoned drummer Jarrin Mose and Nolen, the group’s de facto frontwoman and a powerhouse vocalist, rasp and all.
Midway done rehearsal, the set takes a plaything astatine Sublime’s “What I Got.”
Nooks smiles knowingly, a small ruefully, arsenic Nolen wraps her lithe dependable astir playfully debauched lyrics that person taken connected a full new, bittersweet meaning since the opus was primitively recorded implicit 3 decades ago. 
Singer Krista Wells, 2nd from left, writes and performs her ain archetypal songs successful the band: “When you’re successful progressive addiction, the soundlessness tin beryllium deafening,” she says. “But erstwhile you’re successful recovery, the soundlessness benignant of loses its doom and gloom.” (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
“I got a Dalmatian,” she sings. “I tin inactive get high.”
A period later, implicit a full batch of caffeine astatine the Coffee Pub, Nooks tells america astir however helium erstwhile helped Sublime frontman Bradley Nowell footwear heroin portion his set was connected circuit with the aboriginal ska-punk stars successful the autumn of 1995.
The pursuing spring, the 28-year-old Nowell relapsed and died.
Eighteen years later, Nooks astir did the same.
Drugs, death, prison: A rocker’s downfall
In precocious summertime 2014, Nooks had a monolithic bosom onslaught and flatlined, dormant but not gone.
After 2 decades of crack, heroin and booze, his assemblage conscionable gave out.
He was revived, shuttled to Valley Hospital Medical Center for exigency surgery.
“I was successful a coma for astir a month,” helium recalls. “Everything changed aft that, man.”
And not for the better.
Married astatine the time, helium walked retired connected his woman and 2 young stepdaughters.
“I went disconnected the heavy end,” helium says. “I was befuddled. I turned to the streets.”
Nooks spent the adjacent 5 years homeless, copping dope successful the drainage tunnels beneath the city, each time an indivisible blur from the next.
“There was nary clip horizon. It’s just, like, from infinitesimal to minute,” helium remembers, his beingness — a escaped word astatine this constituent — reduced to an endless, tiresome bid of unanswered questions. “Where americium I? What’s the hustle? How americium I gonna get high? Where americium I gonna be? What americium I gonna do?”
It was a hard, crushing autumn from the heights helium erstwhile scaled arsenic a nonrecreational musician.
Born and raised successful Akron, Ohio, Nooks moved to Chicago aft graduating precocious schoolhouse successful 1988 to articulation the city’s then-booming alt-rock scene, flush with burgeoning greats specified arsenic Urge Overkill, Jesus Lizard and the Smashing Pumpkins.
He’d go roommates with Wesley Willis, a music-obsessed carnivore of a antheral who struggled with schizophrenia and who’d go the beaming, head-butting look of outsider euphony successful the aboriginal ’90s. 
Brandon Mays strums a tune successful the Recovery Band’s signifier space, wherever adjacent the walls stone out. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
Nooks helped recovered the Wesley Willis Fiasco, the set concisely becoming an underground sensation acknowledgment to Willis’ poignant, self-effacing, shout-punk earworms and a famously endearing 1996 interrogation with MTV News.
Among the Wesley Willis Fiasco’s biggest boosters was Sublime, who brought the set connected the circuit and took them nether their wings — though not without immoderate ruffled feathers.
Nooks recalls a tense backstage brushwood with Nowell astatine a gig successful Boston arsenic the vocalist battled heroin withdrawals.
“I went and got him immoderate food, and he’s like, ‘F- - - you, man,’ grabbed the hamburger from me, threw it connected the ground, threw a brew astatine me,” helium says. “He was kicking, and I helped him on with that. By the clip we got to Detroit, it was like, ‘There helium is.’ He was with us, you know? He was conscionable specified a bully dude.”
But Nowell’s sobriety wouldn’t last, and by the clip of the Sublime singer’s death, Nooks had plunged deeper and deeper into the grips of the precise cause that claimed his buddy.
“I had to spell done my ain addictions,” helium says. “Crazy however it works, right?”
Nooks suffered different devastating nonaccomplishment erstwhile Willis died of leukemia successful 2003.
He was a full-blown addict by then, and helium attended Willis’ ceremonial strung out, which led to an incoherent NPR interrogation astatine the memorial service.
“The adjacent time my uncle from Cleveland called maine up,” helium recalls, “and he’s like, ‘Dude, what the f- - - is your problem? I conscionable heard the interrogation connected NPR. What’s going connected with your life? Do you request to marque immoderate changes oregon what?’ And past it conscionable got worse aft that.”
Nooks and his woman decided to relocate to Las Vegas to articulation a recovering addict person who was readying connected starting a grounds label, which Nooks was going to assistance tally — but past the person relapsed and overdosed.
Death was everywhere, it seemed.
Still, the mates made the move.
“I conscionable wanted to survive; the absorption was making a alteration successful my life,” Nooks says. “I thought I was gonna determination retired present and get sober, but I moved my crackhead a- - retired present and recovered the archetypal dope dealer, due to the fact that you pull what you are.”
A twelvemonth and a fractional later, Nooks did 7 months astatine High Desert State Prison successful Indian Springs aft a probation usurpation connected an battle charge.
His woman was pregnant. Nooks was down bars erstwhile his lad was born.
Light — and truly large guitars
After his 2014 bosom attack, Nooks did different stint successful situation connected different probation violation, this clip connected an attempted forgery charge.
When helium got retired 15 months later, helium inactive wasn’t acceptable to get clean.
“It took maine astir 12 hours earlier I had a tube successful my rima and a needle successful my arm,” helium says. “Back to it, man.”
But Nooks’ wellness woes mounted — helium was connected medicine medicine for congestive bosom nonaccomplishment and would often botch the dosage.
“I couldn’t instrumentality my medicine close connected the thoroughfare — I was connected much pills than my friggin’ grandpa,” helium says. “When I didn’t instrumentality my medication, my legs would swell up similar Fred Flintstone and I couldn’t walk.”
He ended up astatine Desert Springs Hospital Medical Center aft suffering different bosom attack, on with hepatitis A and treble pneumonia.
He’d yet had enough.
“2019 is erstwhile I decided, I’m done,” helium says. “Now what?”
The reply came erstwhile a caseworker took Nooks to the now-shuttered Serenity Club betterment halfway successful Chinatown, wherever Nooks started going to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and became friends with chap recovering addict and instrumentalist Andrzejczak.
“I conscionable hung retired there, met immoderate radical and tried to bash what they were doing, listened to what they were talking about,” Nooks says. “I didn’t look back.”
He kicked his wont portion inactive connected the streets. Nooks would spell to meetings by day, past get dropped disconnected astatine a stateless campy adjacent Valley View Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue astatine night.
Paying it forward, helium started volunteering arsenic a adjacent enactment manager for the Foundation for Recovery, moving the exigency rooms successful the Dignity Health system. He was yet offered a full-time gig, signing up for a 3 p.m. Saturday slot to tally his ain program.
He didn’t cognize what it would entail exactly, but helium knew it would impact stone ’n’ roll.
He thought backmost to Willis, and however helium utilized euphony to combat his intelligence illness.
“I saw however Wesley was tortured by voices successful his head,” Nooks remembers. “He had their names; helium had been proceeding them for years.
“The beingness that helium came from, and the things that helium was capable to bash successful spite of that, was 1 of the astir inspirational things I’ve ever seen successful my life,” helium continues. “That was a immense operator for maine doing set camp.”
Nooks recruited Andrzejczak, who’d been collecting a sizable magnitude of euphony equipment.
“I got an OK job, started making immoderate money, and I conscionable started buying gear,” Andrzejczak says. “I had a full location full, conscionable trying to get backmost into music. Dave had the large idea, ‘Why don’t we commencement this program? You privation to bash this with me?’ And I’m like, ‘Sure, we’ve got everything.’”
They started small, conscionable jamming successful a country astatine the Foundation for Recovery with anyone who wanted to driblet by.
Like a deed opus taking implicit the airwaves, connection spread, much radical started coming, and they yet relocated to their current, overmuch bigger signifier spot astatine Shine a Light successful aboriginal 2025, invited by Nooks’ person Banghart.
“We saw however the transportation of euphony and having thing successful communal too conscionable betterment was adjuvant to us,” Andrzejczak explains. “So, wherefore not commencement it up and fto everybody beryllium a portion of that? And it’s fun. A batch of times betterment tin beryllium boring. But it doesn’t person to be.”
‘I request euphony close now’
“OK, my sanction is Britney,” she begins, her dark, wavy hairsbreadth darting implicit black-rimmed glasses during a set campy signifier successful April. “I americium a recovering addict, alcoholic. I travel present due to the fact that I emotion euphony — and it’s helped maine get through.”
For 7 years, Britney Hawks had that euphony taken distant from her.
A unfortunate of quality trafficking, she was denied 1 of her astir profound passions by her abuser.
“I wasn’t allowed to sing, I wasn’t allowed to perceive to this, I wasn’t allowed to person instruments,” she recalls from a booth astatine a Panera Bread edifice by her location successful May. “It was the guy’s rules oregon thing astatine all.”
Hawks escaped successful 2020, lone to past get mislaid successful addiction, yet getting sober 2 years agone and past moving to Vegas from Jacksonville, Florida, past September.
Two weeks aft she left, her younger sister died. Hawks’ sobriety was imperiled by the devastating nonaccomplishment — and she knew it.
Hawks, who lived adjacent the Foundation for Recovery, stopped successful 1 time and attended her archetypal set campy signifier a abbreviated clip later.
“I went successful there, and I was like, ‘I request euphony close now,’” recalls Hawks, a regular ever since.
“I felt similar I was heard and understood for the archetypal time,” she says. “It felt similar there’s different radical that recognize wherefore I needed that music, and needed that transportation of different radical — like-minded people.
“When I walked in, I truly felt similar I belonged,” she continues. “I get to beryllium astir radical that person experienced beingness stuff, that person travel done it — we’re astatine the different end, and euphony is helping america get done it. If I didn’t person what I person today, I deliberation I would person relapsed. It’s conscionable a given.’”
Blake Rosen tin relate.
Before helium started coming present a twelvemonth and a fractional ago, he’d ne'er played the drums.
“I person beauteous debased self-esteem — ever did, my full beingness — being bullied and everything arsenic a kid, and ever a shy person,” helium says. “That’s 1 of the reasons I ne'er played the drums oregon ever tried to bash caller things similar that, due to the fact that I was ever tense of screwing up, getting made amusive of, that benignant of thing.”
During an RBC rehearsal league successful June, helium drums the aerial from his spot adjacent the stage, waiting for his crook down the kit.
Nooks gestures to Rosen. He takes the sticks, and we spot him travel alive.
“I was tense astatine first, and past erstwhile you commencement doing it, you recognize there’s nary judgement successful there,” Rosen shares. “It conscionable precise rapidly becomes a family. I ne'er truly had that before, which is 1 of the reasons I drank, each night, unsocial and everything. I’m finally, actually, like, surviving a beingness now.”
Why does Nooks deliberation that jamming tin make that benignant of connection?
“There’s thing astir playing a opus with somebody, it’s similar jumping connected a f - - - - - - ride,” helium says. “It’s similar jumping connected a truly accelerated motorcycle thrust oregon roller coaster ride.
“Looking implicit and communicating that energy,” helium continues, “sharing that energy, adjacent if it’s for, like, 3 minutes, that’s conscionable deeper, man.” 
(LtoR) Recovery Band Camp guitarist Jacob Andrzejczak, vocalist Krista Wells, guitarist David Nooks, guitarist Jerry Koren, vocalist Kristen Nolen and bassist Aaron Winstead from Shine-A-Light hanging retired successful Downtown Las Vegas connected Wednesday, August 19, 2026. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @Left_Eye_Images
‘This is wherever I belong’
On a Tuesday nighttime successful April, Hawks plays the precise archetypal amusement of her life.
Wearing a achromatic T-shirt adorned with a bosom and a bouquet of roses, she taps retired the bushed to The Cranberries’ “Zombie” connected her hep with her near hand, cradles her cellphone with the song’s lyrics successful her close arsenic she backs Nolen’s pb vocals.
Hawks sings with an oomph you tin spot successful her diaphragm, Rosen down her, anchoring the bushed section, driving the beat.
It wasn’t casual getting here: Battling a heavy slump that she attributes to not afloat grieving the nonaccomplishment of her sister, Hawks attempted to instrumentality her ain beingness successful March.
She ended up successful the hospital. Nolen and Nooks were among the archetypal radical she called.
“They’re like, ‘It’s OK. Next time, conscionable speech to us. We’re here.’ They truly showed up,” she says. “I conscionable started truly going backmost and digging into the set again. I’ve been going each Saturday, showing up, to beryllium with different radical that are similar me.”
For some, the Recovery Band is simply a means of reclaiming that portion of themselves they sacrificed to addiction.
“My betterment was getting backmost to who I was,” Andrzejczak says. “I had a half-a-million-dollar location astatine 23. I was ace successful, went down the path, ended up with nothing. Homeless.
“Luckily idiosyncratic gave maine an opportunity; I was capable to travel back,” helium continues. “But successful that process, you suffer yourself — a batch of yourself. It’s down heavy successful there, but this helped maine excavation retired a large portion of myself — who I utilized to beryllium — to bring maine backmost to who I was earlier I fell.”
For others — similar Hawks — it’s astir taking caller steps to region themselves from aged hurts.
She mightiness person had euphony taken from her once, but tonight, she’s taking it back.
As the band’s acceptable astatine the Neighborhood Bar ends with a suitably fiery “Highway to Hell,” determination she is by Nolen’s broadside arsenic they loop retired the chorus together.
A fewer weeks later, we drawback up with Hawks. She’s inactive buzzing from her archetypal clip onstage.
“It honestly felt similar I beryllium there. Like I got up there, I’m conscionable like, ‘Whoa,’” she says. “It felt similar a bully feeling, like, ‘This is what I’m expected to beryllium doing. This is wherever I belong.’”
She tells america she wrote a opus for her precocious sister.
It’s called “Forever 32,” a motion to her sibling’s property astatine the clip of her death.
She intends connected sharing it with the band.
Maybe you’ll perceive it someday.
If you’re reasoning astir suicide, oregon are disquieted astir a person oregon loved one, assistance is disposable 24/7 by calling oregon texting the Lifeline web astatine 988. Live chat is disposable astatine 988lifeline.org. Additionally, the Crisis Text Line is simply a free, nationalist work disposable 24/7. Text HOME to 741741. ◆
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