Help the Dream Tellers replace instruments lost in burglary

It’s every musician’s worst nightmare. The Dream Tellers, an Oakland-based rock n’ roll trio, had almost $20,000 worth of instruments and gear stolen from their secure practice facility near Jack London Square.

Around 2 AM on April 23, an unknown burglar forced entry into Jack London Rehearsal in Oakland. The burglar, over the course of over two hours and joined by two accomplices, then stole eight guitars, two bass guitars, two keyboards, and multiple effects pedals and accessories, totaling $20,000 in instruments and equipment. Two lost instruments of note are the band’s “Beatles” instruments, including an Epiphone Casino guitar and a Hofner bass; the Dream Tellers are known for their note-perfect Beatles covers, and using the same instruments as the Fab Four is essential to their act.

“On one hand, it is just material stuff,” said drummer, guitar player, and vocalist Alex Scot Hall. “On the other hand, what they took was as personal as it gets. In some cases, we’ve sweat, bled and cried into these instruments for decades.”

Though the band has cooperated with law enforcement, no arrests have been made and recovery of their equipment is unlikely. Local music stores were notified and were incredibly helpful and sympathetic, but the instruments did not surface there either. (Shout out to Oakland Guitars in particular for notifying the band of instrument listings online that matched our equipment!) Insurance claims were made, but unfortunately the policies covered very, very little.

In order to record their upcoming debut EP, the Dream Tellers are raising money to replace the stolen equipment via GoFundMe. They hope to raise $9,000 -- less than half of the loss -- to pay for the most urgently-needed replacements.

This is a heartbreaking loss too many musicians are familiar with. The three Dream Tellers are proud Bay Area residents who find joy in sharing music with their community – and rely on the work for needed income. We hope that friends, family, and fans can all pitch in a few bucks to help keep the rock n' roll going!

YouTube: The Dream Tellers discuss the burglary

https://youtu.be/mlmvrbRyrxI