Wir haben Oso Oso erst mit etwas Verspätung entdeckt, dafür hat uns das geniale The Yunahon Mixtape perfekt durch den Sommer 2018 gebracht. Wir haben uns mit Jade Dimitri, Kopf hinter Oso Oso, über den unerwarteten Erfolg des Albums und seine Emo-geschichtsträchtige Heimat Long Island unterhalten. Direkt danach hat Jade gleich mal versucht, eine erste Europatour auf die Beine zu stellen.
Interview mit Jade Dimitri (Oso Oso)
Hey Jade, please give us a short intro to yourself. Who are you? Where are you from? What band(s) are you in? What bands did you used to be in? What do you do apart from being a musician?
Hello I am Jade from Long Beach, NY i am 25 years old. I write music and play in the band Oso Oso, I used to be in a band called State Lines and apart from being a musician i am constantly finding little odd jobs here and there, currently i work at a drive thru convenience store.
Oso Oso is on tour right now with Citizen. How have the shows been going so far? How “well-known” are you guys in the US? Or are a lot of people just starting to get to know you there as well?
At the time i am answering these questions we have just returned from that Citizen tour. Let me just say Citizen is a truly excellent band, kind group of people. The shows were really great for us as we aren’t to well known in the US at the moment so playing these support tours are super important to get out there and showcase our music to new faces and larger audiences then were used to.
Apart from the shows itself: Are you self-driving or is it a shared nightliner thing? Highlights? Lowlights? Fun anecdotes?
We are self driving and because of this i would say the ultimate low-light was our van dying on us last night of tour. We are from the east coast of the US and ended up stranded in the middle of the country for two days as we had to figure out a way to get home. Highlight was probably our guitarist, Tavish, winning big amongst the tour package in a game of dice haha
In your press releases Oso Oso is described as a project. Is there a difference between a project and a band in your eyes?
I like to call Oso a project because thats just what it naturally feels like to me when you consider the way it operates. I will write music and go make a record, then try and find people to teach the songs to and come on tour and because of peoples limited availability the lineup is constantly shuffling, changing, and rearranging. Calling it a band feels a bit dishonest and calling myself a solo artist feels weird so i was like „lets go with project“
Is there a characteristic approach that you take when writing Oso Oso songs? What’s the most important thing for you in the music you write? What’s the nicest thing anyone ever told you about Oso Oso?
The only characteristic approach i try to take is the thumbrule of just bringing some type of energy to the table. Anger, Sadness, Cheeriness, whatever. Just make sure to come with an energy people can feel and sense. The most important thing for me when im writing music is that I think its enjoyable to listen to honestly, i want to make music that makes people feel something. Its hard to rank the nice things people say because its just overwhelming in general sometimes to have someone react positively to your art. One thing that sticks out in my memory though is one girl coming up to me one time at a show and saying „i dont really know anything about your band i just know this is the 2nd time ive seen you live now on accident and i just have to say your band goes so f**king hard man.“ hahaha
It has been more or less one and a half years since the (pay what you want) release of the yunahon mixtape now. Did the album change something for you guys in terms of the commitment you put into Oso Oso?
100% Changed everything and made it possible for me to pursue this more seriously and take off more time from work to tour.
You signed to Triple Crown earlier this year. Are there already plans for a next record?
Nothing too concrete but i like to move in secrecy about that stuff anyway 😉
10-15 years ago Long Island bands like Brand New, Taking Back Sunday, Bayside and The Movielife seemed to be at the forefront of an “emo/punk”-sound making it to the bigger audiences. Over the last couple of years with Iron Chic, Jeff Rosenstock or you you guys a lot of bands seem to be coming from LI right now. Is there a Long Island scene? What is it like?
Long Island will always have a spot for emo/punk music. I think there is so much history in it that new bands will always be inspire and spawn from generation to generation of kids. Specifically right now i think were entering a period where the bands who have been around there for the last couple years are becoming less active and making way for newer younger bands to jump into the forefront and im excited to see how that pans out
Your chance to root for your home team: Which Long Island bands should I listen to right now?
Macseal is coming out with a new record EXTREMELY soon and everyone should check that out!
Last question: are there any plans of touring with Oso Oso in Europe?
After I hit send in this email I am emailing somebody who is trying to make that possible so fingers crossed! I would LOVE to!
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Hello I am Jade from Long Beach, NY i am 25 years old. I write music and play in the band Oso Oso, I used to be in a band called State Lines and apart from being a musician i am constantly finding little odd jobs here and there, currently i work at a drive thru convenience store.
Oso Oso is on tour right now with Citizen. How have the shows been going so far? How “well-known” are you guys in the US? Or are a lot of people just starting to get to know you there as well?
At the time i am answering these questions we have just returned from that Citizen tour. Let me just say Citizen is a truly excellent band, kind group of people. The shows were really great for us as we aren’t to well known in the US at the moment so playing these support tours are super important to get out there and showcase our music to new faces and larger audiences then were used to.
Apart from the shows itself: Are you self-driving or is it a shared nightliner thing? Highlights? Lowlights? Fun anecdotes?
We are self driving and because of this i would say the ultimate low-light was our van dying on us last night of tour. We are from the east coast of the US and ended up stranded in the middle of the country for two days as we had to figure out a way to get home. Highlight was probably our guitarist, Tavish, winning big amongst the tour package in a game of dice haha
In your press releases Oso Oso is described as a project. Is there a difference between a project and a band in your eyes?
I like to call Oso a project because thats just what it naturally feels like to me when you consider the way it operates. I will write music and go make a record, then try and find people to teach the songs to and come on tour and because of peoples limited availability the lineup is constantly shuffling, changing, and rearranging. Calling it a band feels a bit dishonest and calling myself a solo artist feels weird so i was like „lets go with project“
Is there a characteristic approach that you take when writing Oso Oso songs? What’s the most important thing for you in the music you write? What’s the nicest thing anyone ever told you about Oso Oso?
The only characteristic approach i try to take is the thumbrule of just bringing some type of energy to the table. Anger, Sadness, Cheeriness, whatever. Just make sure to come with an energy people can feel and sense. The most important thing for me when im writing music is that I think its enjoyable to listen to honestly, i want to make music that makes people feel something. Its hard to rank the nice things people say because its just overwhelming in general sometimes to have someone react positively to your art. One thing that sticks out in my memory though is one girl coming up to me one time at a show and saying „i dont really know anything about your band i just know this is the 2nd time ive seen you live now on accident and i just have to say your band goes so f**king hard man.“ hahaha
It has been more or less one and a half years since the (pay what you want) release of the yunahon mixtape now. Did the album change something for you guys in terms of the commitment you put into Oso Oso?
100% Changed everything and made it possible for me to pursue this more seriously and take off more time from work to tour.
You signed to Triple Crown earlier this year. Are there already plans for a next record?
Nothing too concrete but i like to move in secrecy about that stuff anyway 😉
10-15 years ago Long Island bands like Brand New, Taking Back Sunday, Bayside and The Movielife seemed to be at the forefront of an “emo/punk”-sound making it to the bigger audiences. Over the last couple of years with Iron Chic, Jeff Rosenstock or you you guys a lot of bands seem to be coming from LI right now. Is there a Long Island scene? What is it like?
Long Island will always have a spot for emo/punk music. I think there is so much history in it that new bands will always be inspire and spawn from generation to generation of kids. Specifically right now i think were entering a period where the bands who have been around there for the last couple years are becoming less active and making way for newer younger bands to jump into the forefront and im excited to see how that pans out
Your chance to root for your home team: Which Long Island bands should I listen to right now?
Macseal is coming out with a new record EXTREMELY soon and everyone should check that out!
Last question: are there any plans of touring with Oso Oso in Europe?
After I hit send in this email I am emailing somebody who is trying to make that possible so fingers crossed! I would LOVE to!