‘Sunflower’ by Olive Vox | Interview
Psychedelic rock band Olive Vox is the creation of singer-songwriter Parker James and his brother guitarist-songwriter Caden Shea who have created a sound with heavy 90s grunge influence, as well as some psychedelic influence of veterans.
Originally from Orange County, CA, Parker & Caden moved to Texas as pre-adolescent kids searching to fit into a new landlocked environment. During the COVID induced lockdown Parker and Caden developed their sound influenced by psychedelic indie rock, garage rock, 90s grunge and more. Their Gen Z perspective makes the music they play resonate to an audience searching for a new sound to embrace.
The band is premiering their brand new track, ‘Sunflower’.
Olive Vox will embark on their Fall 2021 tour in November. Tickets on sale now.
U.S. TOUR DATES
November 12 / FAIRFIELD, CT @ Stage One
Nov 15 / New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
Nov 17 / Vienna, VA @ Jammin Java
Nov 18 / Columbus, OH @ The Basement
Nov 19 / Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
Dec 1 / Los Angeles, CA @ The Mint
How did you decide to start a band?
Caden: We’re brothers!
Parker: We knew at a young age that we would start a band together but I had to wait for Caden to get to the age where he was ready because he’s 5 years younger than me.
We hear a variety of influences; from 90s grunge to the current psych. How would you describe your sound and what are some of the main influences for you?
Parker: I can’t really describe our sound myself. I’ll leave it up to the listeners.
Caden: Definitely 90’s grunge influence but I’m not sure how to pin point it. My influences are Kurt Cobain, Cage the Elephant but I also listen to a lot different artists that aren’t as well known.
Was the project born during the pandemic?
Caden: Yes that’s when we started Olive Vox. I had been writing music since I was 10 and I wrote ‘Bury Me Low’ when I was 12 so I asked Parker to write lyrics and then we decided to go to the recording studio since everything was shut down.
If I’m not mistaken your first single, ‘Bury Me Low’ was released this summer, followed by your second single, ‘Finger’.
Parker: Yes we released ‘Bury Me Low’ August 26th. That was super cool!
Caden: We released ‘Finger’ October 13th and ‘Sunflower’ is out today!
How are the gigs so far in this weird world?
Parker: Pretty good, surprisingly now that things have opened up.
Caden: So refreshing and fun!
How did you enjoy playing the Levitation Festival?
Caden: It was great experience and to play a show with Ty Segall was awesome!
Parker: It was pretty cool that it was our debut show and just being in Austin was really fun.
What’s the story behind your third single, ‘Sunflower’?
Caden: It was the first song that our band ever wrote together.
Parker: The lyrics are a metaphor of how I struggled in school being dyslexic and all.
Can we expect an album release?
Parker: We’re releasing an EP in February 2022.
I hope you’ll manage to get it on vinyl, although sadly there is so much delay in the industry. It’s quite amazing how popular the format is again?!
Caden: We would really like our EP available on Vinyl. That was always the plan but you’re right there is a big delay.
Parker: Yes everything is re-emerging because listeners want to connect with that vintage vibe.
Are any of you involved in any other bands or do you have any active side-projects going on at this?
Caden: No nothing else right now.
Parker: No, but I still do have my Lovelorn account on SoundCloud. It’s ambient piano music with vocal.
Let’s end this interview with some of your favourite albums. Have you found something new lately you would like to recommend to our readers
Parker: Some new music I’ve been listening to lately is Duster & Title Fight and a ton of Shoehaze.
Caden: I’ve been listening to My Bloody Valentine, Weezer and Nirvana, my favorite album is ‘In Utero’.
Klemen Breznikar
Headline photo: Heidi Yowell
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