Formula Indie Sessions _ Interview with Screech Owl
Screech Owl is a rock n roll band pulling from American roots.
Their songwriting and style are heavily influenced by the alt country scene, including bands like Uncle Tupelo, Wilco, and The Old 97s, but they’re also steeped in a wide range of music, including Americana, bluegrass, country, garage rock, punk rock, rockabilly, indie rock, and on and on and so forth and what not.
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
Micah (drums, vocals): Certainly listening to records that my parents would play, and growing up with bands like The Guess Who, America, Jethro Tull, Chicago, and Paul Simon.
Justin (lead guitar, vocals): I have a strong memory of a lot of Jim Croce being played at my house when I was young. My two older brothers also had a lot of hair metal being played.
How did your passion for creating music begin?
Micah: My parents got me a bass guitar and an amp when I was in high school, and I got hooked then, playing punk rock and grunge, and then four or five years later started playing electric guitar and writing songs.
Justin: My entire family played, so it was a challenge to catch up to them since I was younger. After realizing I related with Punk and Grunge, songwriting became passion for me
What’s the story behind your current music project?
Justin: I really wanted to play electric guitar in a band again. It had been decades and I was ready to dive into writing more electric guitar driven music.
Micah: For me, I was also ready to play some rock n roll again, and as much as I like playing guitar, I had played drums a couple of times for one of Justin’s bands and I got back into drumming pretty quickly.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
Screech Owl mixes elements of alt-country, punk, rockabilly, garage rock and more. The blog heat wave described us as “Like Neil Young meets Elvis Costello” and that’s a pretty good way to put it.
What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
Micah: Well one thing I’ve learned is that when I plug in my electric guitar to a bunch of pedals and turn up the volume, I am probably not going to write a memorable song. My best songs tend to start with some lyrics and an acoustic guitar.
Justin: I’ve learned that songs I bring to the band never sound like a complete song until everyone in Screech Owl adds their own touch.
What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
We are fans of the Ardour DAW software for recording and mixing.
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
Micah: I’m really enjoying the new albums and projects from MJ Lenderman and Waxahatchee.
Justin: The new Lucy Dacus album is great and I can’t stop spinning “Get Hurt” by The Gaslight Anthem (which is several years old)
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
We’ve definitely had some musical experiences that have influenced us, in terms of focusing on original material when we play, and always working on new songs so we can have music to release every year.
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
Well our songs often have narrators who are down on their luck, but hopefully folks can find slivers of hope and humanity in them.
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
Micah: The importance of persistence, in terms of keeping after it and trying to build a body of work that you are proud of. And also the value of perspective, time and money are not endless, so try and think about how you use them to make the most of your time without going broke.
Justin: Do it for you. I’d rather my songs make a few folks smile and feel than play someone else’s for a crowd who just want something they recognize.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
That’s a good question, we are slowly trying to expand our range and play to new folks, but it would be a blast to play one of the great East Coast festivals sometime in the future.
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
Micah: I mean, who wouldn’t love the chance to pick up a tambourine at Big Pink with Dylan and The Band?
Justin: Ya know, I like playing with the four artists I have the honor of sharing the stage with at every Screech Owl show.
Where can our listeners follow and support your music? (Website,Spotify, IG, links)
https://www.instagram.com/screechowlband
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
Micah: For the next chapter, we’re hoping to record again soon, and hope to always have our next release be our best release, and at some point to put out a release on vinyl.
Justin: Always put out new songs and play in front of new people
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
Hopefully folks who get into our music will find a song or two that they really connect with, like we’ve connected with our favorite songs over the years.
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