Eric Roth has led a lifelong love affair with music. He grew up listening to 70's soft rock -and later immersed himself in progressive and alternative rock. He also explored several instruments during his childhood, including the saxophone, trombone, and the guitar, which would later become his master instrument.

A graduate of Stevenson High School and the University of Iowa, he learned songs by Rush, U2, and REM before his own style emerged.

In 1989, he joined a jangly folk-rock band called Copper Sea, adding lead guitar and ornamental textures. Performing in Wicker Park was his initiation into Chicago's music scene.

Roth's love for music includes a passion for the entertainment industry, which he has pursued as an associate editor and advertising account executive for Tail Spins Magazine, a Chicago-based music magazine. Additionally, he directed marketing of Chicago's Independent Label Festival and The Chicago Underground Film Festival (1994-96). He also interned with Waterdog Music, a Chicago-based record company (1998-99).

Roth has also expanded his artistic repertoire by studying improv theatre at Chicago's Second City and Improv Olympic theatres.

The culmination of Roth's musical background and artistic passions is the Secret Beach project.

The project started in 1993 with the release of "Secret Beach," a collection of songs created and performed by the project's original lineup, a group of friends who found inspiration in one another and in the sounds and sights of the beach in Roth's hometown on Lake Michigan.

From 1993 until 2002, Roth continued to explore the musical aspects of the beach, continuously writing and recording songs for the project. The second Secret Beach album - "Secret Beach Solos" - was released in 2003. It is a collection of music written and performed by Roth, each song evoking the sights, sounds and feelings of the beach.

"Seeking solitude, I return to the beach during the day to calm my mind by the water," Roth says. "The music of 'Solos' are impressions and have inspirational or healing value."

The Secret Beach project has so far created two musically distinct albums, each inspired by the beach and Roth's evolving artistic abilities.

"Each future album will be an imaginative extension of the concept," Roth says.