OFTENER "DAYDREAM" EP REVIEW

Oftener have their heads in the clouds.
Although their pillowy strain of -gaze rock draws inspiration from countless rougher and rawer sounds, this Minneapolis four-piece filters their songs through the internal monologues of a head lain down for bed. That’s not to say the six songs that make up their new EP, Daydream, are dull or even all that calming. Instead, the gorgeous, watercolor-like soundscapes provide enough space for the band to get lost in their most personal anxieties.
Worry is found in the sprinkles of Midwestern twinkle-emo that dance along Daydream, and this is most clearly heard in the title track. Although the music is just as well suited for late night reveries as the genre's touchstones, Oftener presents itself as more emotionally opaque - or at least less literally descriptive. Pensivity comes through just as strong, though, both in Oftener’s play and the band’s lyrics. The final verse of “Daydream” reads as an interpersonal tragedy whose specifics are intentionally blurred. “When all that I know / Is that I built myself / On the frames we made out of love / But I ran out of love” scans as a debilitating heartbreak on a foundational level - one so vaguely painful that even the most hopeless of the romantics out there can find a little more hope to dispose of. To further punctuate this despair, “Daydream” ends with “So soon” repeatedly cooed, as the tune drifts off into nothingness.
Not everything on the project is sedated, though. There are moments of explosiveness throughout as the band reaches brief catharsis. On “Messy,” Oftener fights unsuccessfully to break out of their daze. They most closely find escape in a mid song plea for an unnamed relation to release. Throughout “Wisteria,” the band digs even deeper into these rock tendencies. Although still untethered by dreamlike production, they're able to muster the energy to kick out a jam. This heretofore unheard heaviness is brought about by a more aggressive attack from both the drums and the bass, both of which previously floated inches from the ground but now reach down to push against it.
Daydream provides a clear expansion of Oftener's sound. Where earlier projects Lavender and Or More Often have a similar prettiness, the overall tones on those EPs are much more delicate. Daydream builds its songs laterally, expanding the scope of the group’s soundscapes. This growth is most obvious on “Home Remedies,” an older track originally appearing on 2017's Lavendar. On the original cut, a simple lazed strum lays over all. The updated version, however, has a more energetic pulse to it, and each instrument captures an equal presence in the mix.
As a band, Oftener seems preoccupied with the dichotomy found between a restless mind and a resting body. With Daydream, the scenes found in this state are conflicted and clouded. Although clarity can be hard to come by, Oftener never stops searching for it with their music.

Oftener:
Nate Gurrola, lead vox/rhythm guitar (he/they)
Eric Jaques, harmony vox/lead guitar (he/him)
Nic Gauer, bass (he/him)
Jon Brenner, drums (he/him)

(Melodic Noise) How's your day going?
(Oftener) it could be better- i'm virtually unemployed right now because of the coronavirus grinding my coffee shop's business to a halt, and i just finished canceling the tour we had lined up for april fifth through the eleventh. but today, the EP is out, and hearing kind words and seeing support from our friends has lifted my mood a lot.

(MN) What is your formed/origin story?
(O) Oftener started in 2017 as an acoustic bedroom pop project that consisted of just myself, with the release of "Lavender." In 2018, I expanded it to a full band with the help of my friends Troy Asseln (drums), Chelanga Langason (bass), and Ben Davidson (lead guitar), and together we wrote and recorded "Or More Often," Oftener's second EP. In 2019, with an entirely new lineup save myself, we wrote Daydream, Oftener's third EP, and recorded it with my friends Adam Schaberg and Sam Vanorny, who run Drifter Music Group.

(MN) Genre?
(O) I tend to call it dream pop because i like the way that sounds. i've also characterized it as bedroom pop, or indie rock. sometimes shoegaze if i don't feel like the person hearing me call it that is gonna roast me for not being real shoegaze.

(MN) Do you have a label?
(O) no label- we're not entirely closed off to the idea. some of my favorite record labels that i wouldn't mind being on are triple crown records, run for cover records, or saddle creek.

(MN) Album name?
(O) Daydream. The name is kind of a callback to a song from Lavender called "Daydreams," a short song about dissociation. Daydream is about that same disconnected feeling, about a desire to break out of it and be present.

(MN) Lyrically what stands out on the album?
(O) I think the lyrics for "Perfect Pair" are a little jarring at first, before you realize it's a song about my own internal monologue rather than me posing a series of fucked up questions ("what's the point of having your health, when you're gonna die?/can't take good care of yourself, why bother?) to the listener. That song is one of my favorites because a big part of my struggle with my mental health has been learning to discern when I'm in control of my internal monologue and when i'm not.

(MN) What was the inspiration behind the album?
(O) The inspiration is the same as it always is for any Oftener record, which is my own day-to-day experiences and relationships, and my constant struggle with my mental health.

(MN) What do you hope people take away from the album?
(O) i hope they take away a desire to look at the ways they're stuck in their own daydreams, and to work against that and be present for the people around them.

(MN) Is there something that connects the songs together?
(O) disappointing the people i love, probably.

(MN) Are you locals or transplants?
(O) we're nearly all transplants, mostly all minnesotans. i grew up in woodbury, and moved up to minneapolis when i was 19.

(MN) What are some of your influences and Minnesota influences?
(O) some of my biggest influences would be From Indian Lakes, Thrice, City and Colour, O'Brother, The Sidekicks, and Elliot Smith, to name a few. As for Minnesotan music influences, I would say I'm most influenced by bands around us currently in the local scene, like Sal Paradise, Keep For Cheap, Alexander Natalie, Internet Dating, Dad Bod, Double Grave, Marmalade, Miloe, Niiice., Greynier (which Jon drums in), Harper's Jar, and so many more.

(MN) Who are some of your favorite current Twin Cities artists?
(O) to expand on the previously mentioned ones- Floodwater Angel, Jack Pfeffer, Just Grey, A Mess, Team Killer, Vial, NATL PARK SRVC, Lapdogs, Early Eyes, Wrister, Bugsy, Allergen, Alien Book Club, Sadsquatch, Partition, Why Not, Mister Wes, Gramma...so many.

(MN) What is your favorite venue to play and see shows at in Twin Cities?
(O) Definitely 7th street entry. It's the perfect size and the sound is always so good.

(MN) What can fans expect when they come to your shows?
(O) a little sadness, a little danceyness.

(MN) Do you have a favorite or crazy memory of playing a show?
(O) i think my favorite show memory is from a show my old band, Ridgewood, did at Reverie Cafe when it was on Franklin and Nicollet- some guy wandered in during a song, made his way up on to the stage, and after dancing around a little bit he gestured to me that he wanted to tell me something. When he leaned in to say it in my ear, he ended up just kinda slobbering all over my ear and the side of my face. My friend Tane helped get him off stage after that. Thanks Tane. Love you.

(MN) Who are your dream tour-mates?
(O) i would love to go on tour with our friends from here- top three dream tours would be with Miloe, Keep For Cheap, or Sal Paradise.

(MN) Other hobbies?
(O) i like to read, mostly fiction but also some creative non-fiction. I just finished "On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous" by Ocean Vuong.

(MN) What do you like about living in the Twin Cities?
(O) the community- whether it's people who are into art or just good, kind people in general. i feel so much more connected to the people here than i did growing up in woodbury.

(MN) Is there anything that sets the Twin Cities scene apart from places you've toured?
(O) only really the fact that i know more people in the twin cities scene. DIY scenes across the midwest (where we tour) are all very similar, marked by the same sense of community and absurd abundance of talent.

(MN) What are your favorite places to grab food or drink in the Twin Cities?
(O) ooo. i love moto-i, la taqueria hacienda, manny's tortas, el taco riendo, nico's tacos and tequila, and brasa.

(MN) Day jobs?
(O) i'm a barista, ric's a barista, nic teaches music lessons, and jon has a desk job of some sort. i can never remember exactly what it is.

(MN) What are the band's plans for the future?
(O) would love to tour. we have in the past, and we did have one planned for this april before the whole pandemic situation started. i would really love to tour like more than half of the year.

(MN) Is there anyone you'd like to thank or give shout outs to?
(O) this record would not have been possible without Drifter Music Group- have to say thank you to Sam and Adam for their hard work on it. Also thank you to Greg Reierson at Rare Form for mastering, and to my friend Chris Grenfell for the album artwork. I'd also like to thank Eric, Nic, and Jon for doing all of this with me, and for being some of the best friends i could have ever asked for.

Make sure to check out more music from Oftener on Spotify and Bandcamp.

Review by: Eric Martin, Writer @eamartin95

Interview and edited by: Andrew Perrizo, Owner @PlaylistTC