Wallows Cancels Tulsa Show Due to Burned Bus

LA based indie band Wallows started their Monday with their tour bus catching fire, causing them to cancel their show in Tulsa.

The band was scheduled to play a “low dough” show at the Vanguard in Tulsa tonight, April 29, with Tulsa band Cliffdiver. Tickets started at $1.45 and sold out very quickly.

Show sponsors, Z-104.5 The Edge, shared the news at 11 am to the chagrin of many ticket buyers. Once everyone got over the shock and made sure the band and tour staff was safe, their disappointment was voiced. These concertgoers immediately questioned whether the show would be rescheduled, if the tickets would be refunded, and if they had been “scammed.”

The original tweet from Wallows, however, proves that this is not a scam.

The number to call for refunds is posted below by The Edge.

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Hoarseman Talks “Annihilation”

We met with Quinton Hoagland of Hoarseman and the Heard, the Judges’ Choice Winner of Battle of the Bands, about his upcoming album, Annihilation (coming out May 10th), and the persona he’s created under the name Hoarseman.

Starting with the character Hoarseman, Hoagland explained that it spurned from a scrapped musical he had written. Apparently, Hoarseman was a narcissistic preacher who loves the sound of his own voice – so much that he becomes hoarse from speaking. “The Heard,” or the live band that played with him at Battle of the Bands on April 5th, is the congregation.

According to Hoagland, using Hoarseman as his stage name was a way to both separate himself from the seriousness of his music and to bring a more theatrical approach to the classic local band.

“Most bands on a local level,” Hoagland says, “put a bigger emphasis on music and not the showmanship of a lot of live bands that are big and out there.”

While he only had good things to say about his fellow local musicians, he does feel that putting more of an emphasis on the performance rather than just the music could only benefit the scene. So, he decided to do it himself.

Drawing from his musical background, he built up a character. Hoarseman is confident and bordering on narcissistic (much like the character he was based on); he puts on a show. Anyone who witnessed his performance at Battle of the Bands can attest to this. Wearing an all white suit (that he, unfortunately, did not wear to the interview – something about not wanting to clean it??) and moving with purpose, Hoarseman is an undeniable presence onstage.

However, as much as the character is used for the theatrical presence, it is very much a facade. Annihilation is the greatest indication for this.

The album is about the “annihilation” of everything political, environmental, and moral. It’s about the annihilation of his former, younger self. It’s an attempt to stick to his morals and hold onto love while everything around him is changing – it’s about eventually letting go.

The themes in this album are heavy – which explains why he feels the need to put up a facade to discuss them in his music.

“When it’s portrayed through a character, it becomes less about me and more about Hoarseman. So, it’s easier for me to say ‘I think everything’s going to shit’ without people being like, ‘Man, you must be depressed,'” he explains.

It probably doesn’t help that a lot of the music was written during the tail end of a long relationship. Many of the songs show the emotions experienced when facing the inevitable breakup, which adds a theme of deviating from love.

In fact, one of the songs, “She,” deals with love specifically. The point of the song is to discuss how love is the best and worst – and how love (to Hoagland) only exists in extremes.

“Millenial Whoop” is another song that stems from his breakup. The song, which sounds like a peppy “whoop” about living life to its fullest, has the underlying theme of a burned out relationship.

Despite Annihilation still being unreleased, Hoagland has already pretty much finished his next collection of songs. Dubbed “Notre Dame is Burning,” this one will contain a lot of religious turmoil.

Hoagland also has another project he is working on with a member of the Heard, Camilo Gonzalez, called Lookouts. Both Lookouts and Hoarseman and the Heard have a busy summer ahead of them; the former is expecting a late summer EP and the latter has several concerts lined up.

Make sure to check out Hoarseman on social media and music streaming sites. Annihilation will be released on Friday, May 10th, so be sure to listen.

Caity Robb3 Comments

Mad Honey Releases Music Video For “Blue & You”

At 1 pm on Sunday, April 14, OKC band Mad Honey shared a music video for their latest release, “Blue & You.”

Their first music video ever, the band has created a surreal video for the hopelessly hopeful song. With the help of directors Emmy and VMA award winning Blake Pickens and upcoming Caleb Vesely, Mad Honey brings their ethereal track to life.

The video follows a woman looking for something. Throughout every obstacle, she keeps searching, never giving up despite having every reason.

The colors, of course, are washed in blue; this is a visual representation of the lyrics, “If all the world remains this shade of blue/I’ll forget it all but you.” In red, she finds what really matters to her.

When she finally finds herself without resistance, she discovers what she was searching for was never really that far away.

To quote how the band describes it, she “finds hope in a blue world.”

It’s a beautiful video for a beautiful song. The video follows the song perfectly, bringing to life the metaphors and symbolism that is ripe within the lyrics.

Click here to watch the new music video.

Returning from a mini tour through Arkansas, Nebraska, and Kansas, the band will play the Opolis Stage at Norman Music Festival (more info here).


Read more about Mad Honey’s song, “Blue & You” here. Make sure to check them out on all social media and music streaming sites.

Caity RobbLeave a comment

Lone Wild Releases Debut Self-Titled Album

On Friday, April 5th, Lone Wild released their debut album, Lone Wild. The album consists of fourteen songs and lasts about fifty-one minutes. Three of the fourteen songs included are a prelude (“Lone Wild”), an interlude (“Homa”), and a postlude (“Feel the Love”).

The entirety of the album can only be described as dance rock. With catchy, upbeat tunes and the hint of 80’s influence, the band throws themselves into the increasingly popular alternative pop genre.

Beginning with the prelude, “Lone Wild,” the album starts with distant voices speaking incoherently. Sixteen seconds later, “Danger Cat” begins playing. Lyrics describing hunting a “danger cat” are chased with steady beats and a suspenseful melody.

“Stranger Ways” is the next track to play. Dreamlike vocals paired with a swaying melody make for an almost seductive draw as the vocalist bemoans the movement of his partner.

The next few songs continue to employ the dance-rock, pop influenced style that bands like the 1975, Bleachers, and Bad Suns have found successful. The music is the kind that contains somewhat serious themes but hides them under a preppy dance blanket of sound.

“Wild Child” is the best example of that preppy dance blanket. From the start, feet are tapping and fingers are snapping. By the middle of the song, it’s pretty much a guarantee to be singing “I’m a wild child/you can’t tame me.” It’s the kind of song that deserves to be shouted while spinning in dizzying circles; it’s the kind of song that will eventually become someone’s anthem.

The following songs are the warm, spinning “Up with the Sun,” the warning of “Spitfire,” and the disco-reminiscent “Sequin Dress.” Each one of these is entirely different from the others, but they are all heavy on keys and inspire their own moves – whether the moves are the spinning of the sunny 7th track or the finger-snapping of a “spitfire” or the kind found at a disco.

“Homa,” the interlude, breaks up the songs with the recording of a phone call in a different language, one of their songs playing in the background. From what I can tell, there is no specific purpose of the split other than to give a background and some additional color. It does lead into the next song, “Seasons,” though.

One of the slower tracks off of the album, “Seasons” is a love song that compares love to different aspects of the seasons. The whole five minutes and sixteen seconds is a beautiful, wistful melody of someone yearning for a reunion with their loved one.

Much like the ending score to a movie, “Feel the Love” ties the whole album up in under a minute. The postlude brings images of the main character of a movie disappearing into the sunset to mind – the perfect “GOODBYE” or “See you later!”

Altogether, the album is beautifully done.

Check out Lone Wild on all social media and music streaming sites.

Caity Robb1 Comment

Retrospective look at BRONCHO’S “Just Hip to Be Woman”

   With the release of their sophomore album, “Just Enough Hip to Be Woman,” BRONCHO obtained their first minor hit with “Class Historian.” This quintessential indie-rock song evokes the warm embrace of summer and coupled with an infectious melody, this track officially put the band on most people’s radar. As the album turns five this year, it seemed only fitting to look back at the release that brought this Norman band to the forefront.

   BRONCHO formed in 2010, releasing their debut album three years later. Titled “Can’t Get Past the Lips,” this album combined a pop-punk angst and fervor with the washed out guitar and hazy vocals of a more indie/alternative brand. The following year, “Just Enough Hip to Be Woman” was released.

   As previously stated, this album saw the band moving to embrace their indie-rock sound, although the more punk leaning side remained in the background.

    This album IS summer. The bright and sun-baked instrumentation with an echo-y and ambient vocal delivery. This theme of summer is even present in the album art, as a portion of it depicts a woman swimming. Everything about it brings a warm fuzzy feeling of nostalgic remembrance for the summer sun and pure bliss.

   Starting off the track list is “What,” a lyrically intriguing song, as it displays a narrator who hopes to “get it on,” while the woman ultimately rejects his advances. This song bounces back and forth between frustration and the desperate attempt to prove that the narrator is worth pursuing. While this song could be viewed as the band defending this sort of self-entitlement, the self-deprecation displayed by the narrator proves that they aim to make fun of this toxic ideal. Couple this with the bright sound that BRONCHO hopes to establish as their new sound, and this track becomes an instant standout.

   Following this is the break out hit for them, “Class Historian.” Instant recognition is gained through the “Du du du” styled intro. The track brings in some more humor, as it details the narrator returning to a class reunion and trying to get the phone numbers of one of the girls he had known in high school.

  With the introduction of this track, a point must be made for the catchy quality of this album. Each track has a melody that is very recognizable, even if just in a single section of the song. BRONCHO knows how to write a hook, and they do not let the audience forget it. “Deena,” “Stay Loose,” and “It’s On” all have that ear worm effect, easily lodging themselves into the conscious mind of the listener.

   One of the darker moments on this album comes in the form of “I’m Gonna Find out Where He’s At.” This track has a more minor tone, as the narrator details his mom’s boyfriend, who he seems to be less than satisfied with. As the title is repeated throughout the song, dread grows at what the fate may be for this boyfriend. The more sinister tone, both in the lyrics and in the music, make this song stick out in the track list. This being said, that is not a negative to the song, but rather something to break up the sunshine (musically speaking) that exudes through the rest of the album.

   BRONCHO’s sophomore album is a strong indie-rock project. With glistening guitars, infectious bass lines and a perfectly atmospheric vocal style, “Just Enough Hip to Be Woman” is an incredible release.

Noah EstesLeave a comment