People with metaphysical leanings would call it a "highly serendipitous coincidence." Normal people would probably just call it a major stroke of luck. No matter what the terminology used to describe the windfall of fortune descending on Osker, one of Epitaph's newest acts, the band's short history provides all the rags-to-riches fun of a Broadway rendition of Annie, without all that crappy singing, however.
High school punk bands come and go, most without even making much of a wave on the local scene. For a time, albeit a brief one, Osker seemed to go the same route as that of nearly every other trio of 16-year-old boys: nowhere. However, just like farmyard wisdom declares, the cream rises to the top and the Los Angeles-based trio would soon find itself stepping away from the leagues of underage punk bands, in a big way.
With a freshly minted four-track under its belt, Osker's then set out for some constructive criticism. Calling on former band mate Mike Trujillo, now working at Epitaph Records.
"We never had any intention of getting signed. I only sent it to Mike to get some feedback. We never even dreamed of getting on the label," said the band's singer/guitarist Devon Williams.
Two years later, Okser is sitting on its first release, the beneficiaries of a combination of connections, coincidence and luck, working a contract its front man admits nearly fell into its lap. Don't fall in with the temptation to label them as yet another ugly example of buddy rock gone ugly, however. Where many times the results of incestuous webs of intertwined co-conspirators mis-interpreting bonds of friendship as musical talent, Osker's work proves its connections aren't the only thing it exercised in the production of its album.
Treatment 5, Okser's debut album should help diffuse that notion with the impetuous anger of youth, tempered with a the slightest bit of restraint usually overlooked by youthful acts. With most of the band's songs written while Williams, its songwriter, was still only 16 years old, it's fairly easy to spot the juvenile threads tying the band together, though it's an aspect the band manages to turn into a strength. After all, everyone from the Descendents to the Gadjits can trace their histories back to days of being a high-school act.
"Those songs were written two years ago," Williams said. "They deal with a lot of high-school stuff, mostly me being angry at people."
Two years can be a long time for any songwriter; the Beatles graduated from Rubber Soul to Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in a shorter time. When put into the perspective of a maturing adolescent, a span of years can seem like an ice age. It's a stretch of time Williams said further influenced his work, finding him branching out into new directions.
"I've got a lot more stuff written," Williams said. "It's a lot different. Instead of me just being angry at someone, now it's about me dealing with my anger personally."
With a couple years of songwriting under his belt, Williams said his new songs show a lot more development, both as a songwriter and personally as his earlier work, picking up on life's lessons taught since his first writing spree.
In fact, one lesson Williams seems to be learning very quickly is the disparity between the speed of his artistic growth and the speed of the industry. With development, recording, promotional and sales cycles, the recording industry tends to creep along at a pace similar to that of an asthmatic ant when compared to the white-hot rush of rock's live side. Williams now finds himself locked in a time warp, playing and promoting songs written years ago, working songs not reflecting his current artistic situation. It's one every band working professionally must deal with at one point or another, though, it's an aspect of the industry Williams doesn't find all that exciting.
"It sucks," he stated with the succinct flair for expression typical of an 18-year-old. "Those songs are so old. We've got so much more now."
In fact, gearing up for its first-ever tour, Williams said his band will be slipping new songs into its set, despite the advice of his handlers at Epitaph. "They said we should stick to songs on the album, but we can't just do that. We're going to put some new stuff in," he confided.
Sure, the patience of the recording industry doesn't always dovetail very well with youthful excitement, though the world of punk rock is quickly becoming a youngster's paradise again. With bands like NOFX and Lagwagon getting long in the tooth, at least by the standards of punk rock, fresh new faces are cropping up ever faster, finding a new wave of bands developing. In addition to Osker, younger acts like Whippernsapper and Home Grown find themselves setting new musical agendas for the style.
Though the appearance of newer faces is being felt across the board, Williams isn't quick to bash his elders, a reverence often seen in young acts, stating the newer takes on punk aren't a reaction against more worn-in bands, but simply an interpretation of their work.
"Kids have been listening to skate-punk, bands like Pennywise and NOFX, and a lot of other stuff like that," he said, noting the similarities of many punk band's fares. "Now they're just taking all that and putting a new twist on it."
Source: http://www.aversion.com/bands/interviews.cfm?f_id=55
