Three local artists combine musical forces for the sake of friendship.

Brent Sigler, Zach Zint and Jeremy Graham make up Sexy, etc., a jazz, funk infused trio that focuses on making music when they have time to let loose.

“We’re such (a) small ensemble, but with a throwback sound,” Sigler said.

Sigler, 25, plays bass and sings, while Zint, 25, plays piano and Graham, 31, plays drums.

Sexy, etc. formed in 2012, when the guys made their way to each other through Downtown Evansville.

“I met (Graham) after I graduated from UE and moved downtown,” Sigler said. “I didn’t know anyone, and I drank at the Peephole a lot, which is how we met.”

That was about a year ago.

Sexy, etc. plays locally every now and then, and wants to keep it that way, they said.

“We all pretty much have (the) mindset that we don’t want to play too many shows,” Sigler said. “We play shows about once a month, which is all right.”

Booking a show is easy for the group, mostly because friends ask them to play at events and everyone lives downtown, he said.

“I don’t think  we’ve actually had to book a show yet,” Graham said. “People pick us to play. It kind of fell into our laps.”

Before these friends became Sexy, etc., the three honed their music skills in different ways.

Sigler, who began learning guitar before switching to bass in high school, uses jazz influences to develop the band’s sound.

“Jazz band helped me develop my personal style,” he said. “It forced me to be an improvisational musician.”

Graham started on piano, but quickly changed to drums. But, he still longs for the keys, he said.

“I got to a point where I wanted to play drums,” he said. “Now I wish I’d stuck with it [piano], seeing (Zint) play all the time.”

Graham bought a drum set at age 16, and he began teaching himself.

“So for 15 years now, I’ve been teaching myself how to play drums,” he said.

Zint wanted to play guitar, but he smashed his first, and then moved on to keys when his mom bought him his first Casio, he said.

“I would learn classical songs on it with the light up keys,” he said. “It’s kind of embarrassing.”

Zint transitioned his keyboard capabilities by using other techniques, like learning video game songs, he said.

“I started playing in a reggae, jazz jam band with guys who were a lot more experienced than me,” he said. “They taught me how to play music pretty much.”

Sexy, etc. is a side project for Sigler, Graham and Zint, because they all work full time and play in other ensembles.

“We all have conflicting schedules, so it’s hard to get together,” Sigler said.

Being in a band with friends makes making music and performing go naturally, Graham said.

“I’m in a bunch of other musical projects, and as far as I’m concerned it’s being friends first,” Zint said.

Making music is fun, he said.