WEHM All Access - Great South Bay Music Festival - Owls By Day

In this episode, Harry sat down with Eric, Danny, Jordan, and Rob of Owls By Day, ahead of their performance at the Great South Bay Music Festival. They discuss anticipation for their first performance at the festival, give insight into the focus of their setlist, and their growth working together over time as a band. 

@OwlsByDay

@GreatSouthBayMusicFestival

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

It is the uh EH and Breakfast Show with Harry uh and as we head towards uh the Great South Bay Music Festival. Looking forward to a whole bunch of different performances this year, and I believe a lot of first timers too, which is kind of cool. We're chatting with a whole bunch of bands and want to welcome to our virtual studio on Zoom right now, is the band Owls by Day. Uh there's Eric, Danny, Jordan, and Rob. Thanks for uh spending some time with us, guys. Thanks for having us. Thank you. Our pleasure. Uh curious, uh, first off, I guess because we want to kind of go back and learn about how you guys got together as a band, but this is the first time you're performing at the uh the Great Southway Music Festival, right? How did that come about?

SPEAKER_04 0:37

That's right. Um, well, I guess I'll kick it off. Um I I guess sort of started the band. Um I found Danny through a uh actually a Facebook group called Fish Guitar Heads. Um and was just looking for someone else to write some music with um in that kind of style. Um and we just we hit it off and took a little while to find the right mix of of people. Um eventually landed on Eric on the drums and Rob in the bass. And we've been doing this for this I met Danny in September of 2023.

SPEAKER_03 1:14

Three, yeah. Oh wow.

SPEAKER_04 1:16

Um fairly recent. And our first gig was yeah, our first gig wasn't until April of 2024.

SPEAKER_00 1:22

How long how long did it take to kind of find the right mix? Were you guys moving people in and out or just working on different projects? How did you know this was kind of the the direction to go in?

SPEAKER_04 1:32

I think we just had a good good uh we clicked on the writing sense um and our the jamming was great. Um we both uh viewed each other as like equals in terms of like guitar playing and songwriting, and it was very collaborative from the very beginning. Um and as soon as we had added Eric uh on drums, it was like perfect. It it just worked. Um we we didn't have to we didn't have to fight it too much.

SPEAKER_00 2:00

How long um you guys have been doing music for a while? Have you guys always lived near the Brooklyn area?

SPEAKER_01 2:05

Yeah, I think Danny and I are the only native New Yorkers in the band. Um, you know, both both Rob and Jordan are um West Coasters, at least, you know, more recently, Rob, you know, can speak to, you know, he grew up in Connecticut. Um lived in Connecticut for a long time, but uh I'm I'm a true New Yorker and I've been looking for a band like this for a very long time. And um it's it's a funny thing when you're you know getting older and like you're not gonna find the band you're looking for, and you get close to 40 and all of a sudden this thing kind of clicks together. I don't think any of us were expecting it uh to feel as good as it does.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

That's interesting. So you really came together n nicely over the past few years. You guys have been doing different things. I read that you just did the Bowery Ballroom earlier this year and uh kind of doing bigger shows and and bigger venues. Uh, what's it like? Yeah, I guess it we'll start because there are four members in the band. Uh, what's it like as far as the writing process and kind of creating music together? And how do you balance uh because in a way you guys just like to get together and jam sometimes? How do you balance that with with the songwriting?

SPEAKER_03 3:10

Yeah, I could just jump in here. The songwriting is a really important uh part of what we do. Um I was coming into the group with a decent backlog of my own music that I had written prior to meeting any of these guys. And um and while, you know, I think the same could be said for uh everybody else in the group, um, we could bring in old music, but we really enjoy the process of uh of coming together and making something completely new. Uh, and usually the way that that goes is somebody has sort of the seed of an idea which uh they bring to the group and there's a lot of excitement around that, you know, possibility of that small concept becoming a fully fleshed out song, which uh uh, you know, given our style, has the potential to be improvised on for you know up to maybe even 20 minutes for just a single song. Um, and it can go in a lot of different directions, and then uh, you know, we all will then collaborate on hammering out the finer details of the song's entire form, and uh, you know, we all really rise to the occasion of collaborating in that way.

SPEAKER_00 4:34

Uh improvising is a big of course part of your live show. Um how how do you kind of adjust to it? Um, how do you do you plan for it? I guess you go with the flow uh with it, but do you have a plan for it and kind of knowing going in how you want to kind of create things and and mix it up a little bit, each each show is different?

SPEAKER_01 4:55

I think we um we all know the spaces where exploration is called for. There's there's moments in each song that kind of speak to there being, you know, a sort of choose your own adventure vibe. Um, everyone in this band has very big ears. We're very good listeners, and I think what um excites us the most in being improvisational is latching on to someone's kernel of an idea, melodic idea or rhythmic idea, and kind of following that through to its natural conclusion, and it makes for you know really unique versions of each song so that there's there's you know, no two versions are the same, which is very much in the vein of the the jam-band ethos. We really try and like find a new idea each time we play a song and and exploit it.

SPEAKER_00 5:39

What's the role of the crowd on when you're improvising on the stage? Does that affect where you kind of go with it or kind of shorten or lengthen it? How does that affect you? The reaction of the crowd.

SPEAKER_01 5:50

For me, I I like to lead versus follow. I think that um it's sort of our job as as a band to bring the audience along with us. And certainly if we're getting um, if we're doing our job right, where we end up is where they're happy the jam ends up as well.

SPEAKER_00 6:06

That makes that makes sense. Uh, I have to ask, uh, where did the name come from? Owls by day. Uh where did this uh where the where was that born?

SPEAKER_03 6:14

Almost the hardest part of having a band is coming up with a fun name that you feel like captures the essence of you know what you are, and um just throwing names at the wall and seeing which one sticks with everybody.

SPEAKER_01 6:30

I think that like the actual like the band, the band name itself to me at least is a is a representation of the fact that we kind of live these these dual lives of you know, we are we are doing this uh very much uh seriously, but we all have day jobs. And so um there is this dichotomy of when we're together at night, we are very much alive and kind of you know living this life of being musicians, but come the daytime we are sleepily getting through our our responsibilities. And so owls by day kind of felt like a nice summation of like we we thrive better at night, but we have to kind of get the daytime as well.

SPEAKER_00 7:08

Can I ask what you guys do uh during the day or what day jobs? Because I'm curious, it always is interesting to see what um what backgrounds a lot of bands because they are a lot of bands are working other jobs to make this whole whole thing happen.

SPEAKER_02 7:19

I'll jump in. I'm the I I've been in music education for a long time, and I'm director of education at a at a music school called the Jazz School.

SPEAKER_00 7:28

And that's and that's actually what I was kind of thinking, and I didn't know that, but I I do find that a lot of music teachers, and a lot of times it's great because of the summers, you guys can go out on tour and do more shows uh because of the summer vacation, so to speak. Does that work out for you as as far as that works?

SPEAKER_02 7:42

Um, you know, I mean the the the job is year-round, but we do have that, we do seem to have that kind of flexibility to, you know, make the make the band a priority and and you know, jump in on fun opportunities like this upcoming festival.

SPEAKER_00 7:56

Uh as far as uh what you guys are working on, um, have you been putting together I think I read that you've got something coming soon, uh, an album.

SPEAKER_01 8:04

We are in the the final stages of getting our like production list together for our first record. Um at the same time, we've we've had so many shows in the last year that we're looking to do some live releases as well. Um so we're pulling together like a first live volume of some tunes from some previous shows, but our our first studio record should be out, we're hoping by the end of this year. That's sort of the plan. We're gonna be in production very soon.

SPEAKER_00 8:28

What's it like? You guys are based in Brooklyn. Um, there's obviously a huge musical influence there and a musical kind of ecosystem. Uh what's that like to be around? Does that help your creativity um working with others in collaborations? Um, do they tend to uh kind of come from that?

SPEAKER_03 8:42

No, I I I think that that's a big uh part of this whole experience that uh has been really enjoyable for me has been getting to know some of the other bands on the scene that we share the stages with, share the bills with. Um we've had a couple of repeat bands, and you know, you sort of um just by by impulse, you kind of like almost measure yourself against like what they're doing and see uh how they approach working with the crowd and writing their songs and structuring their jams, you know, and and everybody has such a unique take on like how they do that. And when we share bills together, you know, we support each other. And when when somebody invites us to play a show, then like we can return the favor back to them. And it's uh really awesome to be able to uh play a part in um uh you know maintaining that really rich uh music ecosystem that you had mentioned.

SPEAKER_00 9:52

Uh curious, uh, you guys are playing Sunday July twenty sixth at the uh Jambalaya Stage, Owls by Day, Great South Bay Musicfestival.com for tickets and more information on the uh the full lineup for the weekend. How do you guys approach uh your sets? Obviously, you have a certain amount of time. Um, but this is I don't have you done other festivals, and how does how does this whole set come together? Um, how do you plan it as a group?

SPEAKER_01 10:16

Yeah, I think um with a 45-minute set, we have to be very strategic in what we're looking to accomplish. Um, I think for me it's you know, this is our first festival on Long Island, and so there's a real opportunity to kind of engage a new fan base. And so you kind of want to make sure you're presenting as much of your music as possible, also presenting what we're best at, which is improvisational music and and you know, making people dance. That's at the end of the day, I think we we really just want to make people have a good time and and move their bodies, so it's in equal measure like showcasing some of our music and giving opportunity for there to be some stretching and some opportunity to dance a little bit.

SPEAKER_00 10:55

What's the what's creating the set list like? Do you have uh are there certain songs you know you want to do that you're comfortable with? Are there covers uh that you're looking to do?

SPEAKER_01 11:04

I will share that there's one Long Island-centric cover that we are uh throwing into the mix. I I grew up um in Massapequa, so Long Island is you know my my home truly. Um and so you know, there's there's definitely uh the the notion of throwing this like Long Island specific thing in, and also, you know, there's I would say four or five song of songs of ours that are like really festival um appropriate and allow for like there to be some good hooks and also some some space. And so we kind of like sat down and really looked through like what what can we cram into 45 minutes that accomplishes all those all those goals and takes all those boxes.

SPEAKER_00 11:42

How do you uh I'm just curious, and this is more for behind the scenes stuff, how does it work? How did you guys get hooked up with the the Great South Bay Music Festival?

SPEAKER_01 11:52

Yeah, I'm so uh I actually I work in the music business. Um I'm an artist manager in my in my day job. And so Jim Faith has become a good friend and and someone who I've um you know known for a little while. And um I'm I'm often very reticent to talk about my own musical projects because I like to keep church and state separate. But this this band felt like a really good fit for Sunday, and so I just kind of mentioned it to Jim in passing, sent him over a link, and he really enjoyed what we do. And so it just felt like a really natural fit.

SPEAKER_00 12:23

That's great. Owls by day, uh based in Brooklyn right now, but uh from all over. Uh, what did you guys grow up listening to that kind of turned you're into this direction that you wanted to be in this type of band? What did you guys listen to growing up?

SPEAKER_01 12:38

The Dead. We we left The Grateful Dead. That's that is the one through line for all four of us is that you know, the Grateful Dead really um drives a lot of our musical decision making, and the way that they approach both compositions and jamming is super important. Uh, I'm a massive Pink Floyd fan. Floyd is very important to me. Um, you guys talk too about what you like.

SPEAKER_02 13:03

I'm I I would declare myself as the resident jazz guy uh in the band who brings that. I mean, I'm not the only one who loves jazz, but that's a lot of my playing background, is coming from a jazz background. And so I think that's like kind of what I bring in particular to the group. And I'm like kind of thinking about that, and still as the new guy in the band, you know, figuring out where's the overlap between each, you know, so we're still kind of getting to know each other about like what's the where does the Venn diagram meet, where's the sweet spot of people's various influences and things so that it can come together in this kind of um this manner that has like a fresh energy of its own. And uh, but yeah, Jazz Guy, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, so on and so forth. But also Grateful Dead, Fish, you know, Steely Dan, all that kind of fun stuff.

SPEAKER_04 13:48

I for me, I I grew up on a lot of 60s and 70s, funk rock, um, especially Derek and the Dominoes and that kind of jamming. Um Tower of Power, Slying the Family Stone, um, all that kind of stuff. So trying to bring a little bit more of like funk and pocket and more like rhythm guitar playing, but you know, a lot of that music too is just so musicianship focused. Um, even if they're playing something simple, they're they're doing it to the best of their ability. No, that makes sense.

SPEAKER_03 14:17

Uh learning and if I if I may also just uh chime in on that. Uh I think my first two concert experiences are very illustrative of um you know who I am as a musician, and there also is a Long Island connection there as well. But when I was seven, I saw Neil Young at uh the United Palace in uh Washington Heights. And then when I was eight, I was fortunate enough to see Stevie Wonder at Jones Beach. And um, you know, both of those artists are um two of my all-time favorites, and they've been yeah, part of my life since I was just uh just a boy, you know. And I got into jam bands uh when I was like a teenager.

unknown 15:05

Wow.

SPEAKER_00 15:06

Uh that's great. Owls by day is the band they're gonna be at the Great South A Music Festival uh on that Sunday, July 26th. Uh I'm curious as a band, and I mean you have various projects over the years, uh, but this is one that you're certainly focusing on over the past couple. Uh what's it like for a band now? Because it it's not necessarily just about the music, um, it and that should be, but it's a lot of uh a lot of social media involved now, a lot of uh ways to get the band out there. What's that been like for you um to kind of formulate and and piece together as a band here in 2026?

SPEAKER_01 15:43

Um I think that we are a bit antithetical to most bands that are out there now, and that we're we're a little more analog than most, and we kind of let the music speak for itself. Um social media has not been a priority for us. Um it's been our experience that you play really good shows and you build a fan base by being at the merch table and meeting some people, and that is as effective as a funny meme post on your Instagram. And so I think we're a little more focused on being tapped in and present with the people who are there to see us, and we've found that that grows a fan base a little more organically than there being a good stream of reels and stories and posts. So we definitely you know are mindful of it, and I think we're you know aware of its necessity, but the music will always come first for us.

SPEAKER_00 16:32

No, that's that that's great. It is it's a it's tough for some bands because you don't want to get lost in the shuffle. There's so much out there now, and there's so many options, whether it be with you know online platforms and everything. So you want to make sure that you don't get lost in the in the shuffle, but it's great that you guys are letting the music speak for yourself and uh doing it at great venues too. What was it like doing Bowery Ballroom in the in these shows, Brooklyn Bowl uh as a band? Uh what's it like? Do you kind of notice the growth as and working together over time, I'd imagine?

SPEAKER_03 17:00

It's been unbelievable. Um just a real privilege, honestly, to uh be able to say that we have performed at those two those two venues. Um it's not something that I think any of us takes lightly in any way. And um when you have a show on a stage like that, you really want to bring it. And we work really hard. We uh we practice really intentionally and with great focus. And uh, you know, I think it really shows when we we get up there on the stage.

SPEAKER_04 17:41

Yeah, I think playing playing at those venues really I think the crowd also plays a much bigger part at a venue like that than something smaller. Um and it it really does feed into the energy of of jams and like just the the overall emotional experience of playing in venues like that and kind of hitting you know mil big milestones like that really it changes how we think of the next show and everything we you know ever we're always trying to go on an upward trajectory. Um, but it it it's um I think we just try to live in the moment when we're playing at a venue like that, and we try to set our intentions for the show and you know make sure that we're giving it everything we got.

SPEAKER_00 18:26

As you uh as you continue uh to to tour and do other shows, um what's it like? Um I guess as the band evolves, uh how does it work with because there are four people um and different different instruments, different uh experiences. When you're writing and putting together uh songs, where where do the ideas come from? Do they do how do you get together on it? Because is it as is it is it intentional? Do you walk in and say, All right, we're going to write these songs right now, or do you kind of just go through your past? You mentioned earlier some older songs kind of have some influence too. But but how do they what's kind of the process that works best for you guys?

SPEAKER_04 19:02

Um for for me, I think about this moment where we we had written a bridge to our song and it just kind of it it really just happened. Um I played something by accident and you know Danny latched on to it, and we kind of like flushed it out and and kept playing with it. And um things like that that are really just um yeah, they just there's for the moment. Um that's like my probably the best representation of how I think about writing in this band is like bringing ideas into the band, but also just sometimes stuff happens.

SPEAKER_01 19:37

Yeah, I I'm someone who has a hard time with the blank page, but if you give me the initial germ of an idea, I can run pretty far with it. And so what has worked, I think, really well for us is kind of coming in with these sketches of ideas and seeing what organically jumps out at all of us, and you know, both in jamming and in writing, that served us really well. Um, you know, Danny has uh such great ideas for like the initial idea of a song, and then what will often happen is we'll get to what should the chorus be, or what should the the bridge be or how should we jam? And like it blossoms this much larger musical dialogue that kind of came from someone being a little bit of the dictator of the idea, and then it very quickly becomes co-opted. So I mean, even when someone writes you know most of what seems like the song, we view songwriting as a four-person democracy. And when we finish a song, we view it as the four of us wrote that song.

SPEAKER_02 20:35

Yeah, and that's also, I think in the shaping process, that's where each of our individual influences come in in an interesting way. You know, and so you you end up with a pretty unique sound because of that. So one person might have the initial idea, but then you know, whether if there's four or five different people shaping it, things it becomes pretty unique as a result of that, which is which I really enjoy.

SPEAKER_00 20:58

That makes a lot of sense. Uh chatting with owls by day here, they're doing the Great South Bay Music Festival. Don't miss them on the Jambalaya stage on Sunday. They're going on right before Miles to Dayton. Um, and uh that should be a lot of fun. So looking forward to beating you guys in person and hearing you, and uh, thank you for sitting down. I appreciate it getting to know you a bit. And uh can't wait to see what uh the future holds. Look forward to the the record, uh hopefully by the end of the year, and wish you guys the best in this in this process, in this journey. Thank you so much for coming on.