ION INDIE MAGAZINE November 2015, Volume 18 | Page 8

JP: Southern-fried Rock. Is that what you would classify yourselves as?
O&M: That’s a little bit of what we hear.
JP: What exactly would you call “Southern-fried Rock”?
O&M: A modern day Southern Rock, I guess you’d say. A modern day Lynyrd Skynyrd…sort of.
JP: You have kind of blasted onto the scene. Why do you think people are relating so well to
Outlaws and Moonshine Music?
O&M: I think it’s our approach in the way we write; the way we work as a band. We’re very hard
workers and I think it’s our music--that’s what speaks out to the people we are drawing at our shows
that are blue collar-based people.
JP: You are out of Indiana? How do guys from Indiana end up playing Southern Rock?
O&M: Where we’re at on the map--we’re about 3 ½ hours out of downtown Detroit, probably
about 3 hours from Chicago, but we’re also about 3 ½ hours from Nashville. We have a big mixture
of music here in Middle America. You hear KID ROCK, TED NUGENT--there is a lot of Southern
Rock in the stuff they were doing.
JP: I feel like I’m picking up some Bluesy sound in there as well, am I right?
O&M: Yeah. Old Lynyrd Skynyrd days, CURTIS BLOW--even all the way back to Skynyrd’s
“Mississippi Kid”--there was a lot of Blues-based stuff in what they did. That’s what me and my
brother grew up on.
JP: You are hitting the road coming up soon.
O&M: Yeah, we kinda have a lot going on. It seems all of it tends to be in Illinois next month.
We’re really excited about that. We’ve traveled through Ohio a whole lot, which we love. BILL
(CHAVIS, Owner at HIGHVOL MUSIC Indie Label) called us up and said, “I’ve got a couple of
things in Illinois, are you guys down?” And we were like, “Yeah!” He called again the next day and
said, “I’ve got a couple of more, are you down?” And again, we were like, “Yeah!” He said, “Do
you wanna play ‘Rock N’ Skull’ with TRIXTER and those guys?” And we were like, “Yeah!” He
said, “Do you guys wanna spend the whole month in Illinois?” And we were like, “Yeah, guess so.”
We’re kinda taking it day by day and seeing where Bill wants us to go. We’ll go wherever he wants
us to go.
JP: What do you find the most exciting about hitting the road?
O&M: Personally, I like to be up on stage…and I like to play places we are not so familiar with. It’s
exciting going to play to people we don’t know. It’s nice watching their faces--and them trying to
figure out exactly what we are. Are they Rock? Are they Country? Southern Rock? What are they?
Then them getting excited about it (whatever they perceive us to be).
JP: You think that will be the biggest challenge?
O&M: I think getting out of our comfort zone. We’re used to being here. We’re used to rehearsing 3
or 4 times a week. We’re used to playing places we know. So, to venture out…I guess some of the
things that are exciting are also some of the same things that are challenges.