PAX217

PAX217
Origin	Orange County, California
Genres	Alternative rock, Rap rock
Years active	1995–2005
Labels	Forefront Records
Associated acts	Hawk Nelson Avner
Members
Dave Tosti Jesse Craig Josh Auer Aaron "Skwid" Tosti

PAX217 was a Christian Alternative rock band from Orange County, California. The band's music was well known in the underground Christian scene at the time for its unique sound and optimistic lyrics.^{[citation needed]} The name comes from "Pax" which is Latin for "peace" and the Bible verse Ephesians 2:17. The band's style consists of a mix of punk rock and rap with some reggae influences.^{[citation needed]} PAX217's lineup consisted of David Tosti on vocals, Jesse Craig on guitar, Josh Auer on bass and Joey Marchiano on drums. Former members include "Tito" on keyboards, Bobby "Bobbito the Chef" Duran as disc jockey, Ethan Luck on guitar, Dan Sessum on guitar, and David Tosti's younger brother Aaron "Skwid" Tosti on drums, who eventually played in Hawk Nelson. The band began in 1999 and broke up in 2005.

PAX217 was similar in sound to 311, Skindred, Christian rock peers Earthsuit and P.O.D.^{[citation needed]} PAX217 released two albums: Twoseventeen (2000) and Engage (2002), and was signed to Forefront Records. They also released an EP titled Check Your Pulse in 2004 independently. Dave Tosti's rapping was compared to that of fellow Christian rocker Sonny Sandoval.

Former members include "Tito" on keyboards, Bobby "Bobbito the Chef" Duran as disc jockey, Ethan Luck on the guitar or drums, Dan Sessum on guitar, Frank Ortiz (lead vocals), and Lance Lathrop on drums.

The band members (except David Tosti) went on to form the pop punk band Avner.

David Tosti is now pursuing photography, covering primarily weddings, engagements, and some editorial work. The name of his company is TOSTI STUDIOS.

Avner

Avner is the new band of most of the PAX217 members. Avner sports Jesse Craig on guitar, Josh Auer on bass, and BGV's, Joey Marchiano on drums. Avner also includes Todd Cooper on guitar and vocals. With the switch of vocalist, Avner has many immediately noticeable differences from PAX217: The pop/punk sound is a lot more clear, the rap is gone, and the change of the singer is obvious.

AVNER was a short lived rock band fronted by Josh Auer [also playing bass]. Jesse Craig joined the group as a 2nd guitarist [which was started by drummer Joey Marchiano and Auer shortly after the breakup of PAX217 for a few months before moving on himself. Todd Cooper played lead guitar and sang background vocals for the group. They were best known for their comical stage demeanor and their lively commercials/promotions/interactions with fans. AVNER broke up shortly after Marchiano signed on to tour as a roadie with some large-name acts and Cooper got married in '08. The band was around, in total, about 2 solid years before letting it fizzle out.

Discography

• Twoseventeen, 2000 (ForeFront)
• Engage, 2002 (ForeFront) U.S. #191^[1]
• Check Your Pulse EP, 2004 (independent)

Music videos

• Prism From Twoseventeen
• A.M. From Twoseventeen
• No Place Like Home From Twoseventeen

See also

PAX217's Official Page
Avner's MySpace

References

Footnotes

1. ^ Billboard, Allmusic

Sources

• Powell, Mark Allan (2002). Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music (First printing ed.). Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers. p. 680. ISBN 1-56563-679-1.