Austin Sound

There is some baggage tucked into Oh No Oh My’s body of work. The console is full of a slew of television commercials; the glove compartment, a contest for a Mr. Gatti’s jingle; and in the trunk, the band’s own take on their latest album. People Problems is a causeway of sophisticated indie-pop awash with ever-unfolding beauty, struggle, and tension, yet in interviews with the band, the songs on the album are simply about “slitting a girl’s throat” or “going crazy”. Here Oh No Oh My faces the near-impossible task of crafting something commercial out of material that is inherently challenging, like finding one’s place in the world or death or relationships - topics that abound within People Problems’ palette. Problems shoves the band into a new era. Though the quartet resorts to its characteristic shock-factor appeal at times, Oh No Oh My fails to undermine the complexity of its music. On their second full-length, lyricists and multi-instramentalists Greg Barkley and Daniel Hoxmeier, drummer Joel Calvin, and keyboardist Tim Regan stand unflinching and People Problems finds the band sufficient in and of its music. The album, mixed at Spoon’s recording house Public Hi-Fi, is full of impressive guest appearances including Scott Brackett’s (Okkervil River) lovely trumpet and Miranda Brown of Crooked Fingers. Even still, it’s the band’s carefully constructed rises and falls — its core of opposing traffic — that gives Problems life.

It’s been nearly four years since Oh No Oh My released their eponymous debut LP, but the band has hardly been resting. Two EPs have dropped in the intervening time span, each more polished than the last, leading up to the local quartet’s sophomore full-length to finally be delivered early next year. While the group’s early songs lilted towards twee anthems that strike as intrinsically catchy, and their tunes still work in easy indie pop tones, they have added considerably more rock oriented and complex arrangements that rise in crescendoed refrains as keys and guitars propel in equal measure. The band is currently in the studio, but will emerge this Saturday, October 17, for a show at the Parish to benefit the East Africa Metamorphosis Project along with Cory Branan, Booher and the Turkeys, and the Businessman DJs. You can also check out one of their new songs recorded live from Luxury Wafers below.

Tonight, Thursday February 5, local popsters Oh No! Oh My! will be throwing a free show down at Emo’s to celebrate the birthday of their drummer Joel Calvin. Joining them on the bill are the Corto Maltese, Loxsly, and Las Brujas, so it’s four fantastic groups for the price of none! To help celebrate, they’ve offered up for download below a song from their recent EP, Dmitrij Dmitrij. “Be A Star” explodes with a bit more power than we’re used to from these guys, and we love the opening piano run on the song. This appears to be the quartet’s only local show for a while, and they play only rarely around town, so we recommend you don’t miss this opportunity to catch them!

Although the buzz was a buzzin’ at Emo’s Lounge about Oh No! Oh My!, who were just back from their European tour, Legs Against Arms and Corto Maltese stole the spotlight with their effervescent energies and incredibly catchy set lists. But, let’s start at the beginning. Before opener Gulf of Mexico had even started, there was a decent amount of people shuffling into a poorly lit Emo’s Lounge. The Lounge isn’t quite the pinnacle of the Emo’s trilogy, if you know what I mean… Even so, if you build it, and call it Emo’s, they will come.

Monday, February 11, 2008

Artist: Oh No! Oh My!
Label: Dim Mak Records
Genre: Indie Pop

In what was probably a case of me being too busy trying to take over the world, I completely missed out on the stellar Daytrotter Session that was done a few weeks ago by Oh No! Oh My!. I thought last year’s Between The Devil And The Sea EP was a pretty good listen, but it left me wanting more.

Is there anything harder these days than an artist trying to stand out in an overly crowded indie pop scene? Probably not, especially since the sheer number of releases arriving each week has altered expectations. No longer does anyone have to be making music that’s groundbreaking or even remotely original, it just has to be good. For most that’s a whole lot easier said than done, but on the Between The Devil And The Sea EP Oh No! Oh My! (formerly known as the Jolly Rogers) make the process look effortless.

6/21/07

Oh yes! Breezy folk poppers Oh No! Oh My! offered up a taste of their upcoming EP, Between the Devil and Sea on Pitchfork yesterday. The disc is due out on August 7, just after a west coast jaunt with Deadly Syndrome and Let’s Go Sailing and before they attack the entire nation alongside Au Revoir Simone. “The Party Punch,” which the group has offered download, is in the upbeat acoustic vein of the exquisite “Walk in the Park” from last year’s self-titled debut – one might even venture to call it frolicksome in its lo-fi charm. You can download the mp3 here.