This week it was a pleasure to welcome Andy Valiant of London based stoner rock band Oak into the studio. I’ve been playing their music or referring to them over many weeks and it was finally lovely to speak to him to find out more about them.
You can hear the show again here:
We discussed their origins, the origins of the band name and how their style has evolved. Partly due to how each of their EPs have been recorded in different studios, but also the evolution in Andy’s voice, from mainly making noises in the early days, to now with lyric writing. From this is also the enjoyment of having a platform for telling stories from the heart.
Andy Valiant | OAK
I’ve been a fan of the artwork Oak use on their EP covers and Andy spoke of his relationship with the artist- Unexpected Spectre and how much of a symbiotic relationship it is, where they don’t have to explain too much of what they’re after, but they get wonderful results anyway.
Andy also described his musical influences, especially the effect Led Zeppelin had when he first heard them. Also the effect this had on how he can use his voice, also the difference between singing live and recording in a studio.
While Andy spoke of how he enjoys performing, I wondered whether his growth in confidence came from the progress of this. Actually he discussed how it was more from knowing that this path is what he wants to do.
With the discussions about their musical evolution, we spoke about the new single Love Is Falling and how it came about, especially how it it became a single almost unexpectedly. They also created a video for it which you can see here:
It was great to talk about the scene in London and the UK in general. We mentioned other artists that we enjoyed, such as 1968 and Wychhound, and how much the bands in the scene help each other. Especially with the live events that are organised, such as the event at the Big Red on Holloway Road by Wychhound– here is the next one:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1033502320140879/
And the night in Deptford by Trevor’s Head:
https://www.facebook.com/events/2494174517473816/
Also Andy is helping organise the next all day Stone Frequency II event at the Black Heart in Camden on July 28th:
https://www.facebook.com/events/192920791322396/
Their next gig is in Manchester on the 28th April:
https://www.facebook.com/events/112556956231936/
Here is the playlist for 5th April 2018 (With links to purchase or discover more where possible)
1 Kyuss – Odyssey (Welcome To Sky Valley – 1994)
2 Black Sabbath – Hole In The Sky (Sabotage – 1975)
3 The Cortège – Love & Land (Love & Land EP – 2016)
4 Oak – Dissolve (Oak EP – 2015)
5 Led Zeppelin – The Girl I Love, She Got Long Black Wavy Hair (BBC Recording – 1969)
6 Oak – Against The Rain (Oak II – 2016)
7 Wychhound – Hourglass (Wychhound EP – 2015)
8 1968 – Vorpa (Fortuna Havana – 2017)
9 Oak – Love Is Falling (Oak III – 2018)
10 Herida – Otra Vida (Ghost Of The Sun – 2012)
11 Oak – Mirage (Oak II – 2016)
12 Sabatta – Emperors New Clothes (Emperors New Clothes EP – 2008)
