The Oaks (band)
Encyclopedia
The Oaks are an American
rock
band based out of Orlando
, Florida
, created by singer/songwriter
/guitarist
Ryan Costello and drummer
/percussionist Matthew Antolick. The band’s sound contains elements of indie rock
with classic rock
, soul music
, jazz
, folk music
and modern rock
.
The Oaks have gained international attention through their original fusion of music performance and humanitarian aid
. Costello spent two years in Afghanistan
, living among recently-returned refugees, teaching agricultural techniques and directly participating in food distributions. When he returned to the United States
, he vowed to get the word out about the need of the Afghan
people. The Oaks is the result of these aspirations.
. They played together in the project “Figure vs Ground” before relocating to suburban Orlando and creating The Oaks. Costello was pursuing a BA in Biology
, while Antolick was working on his Master's in Philosophy
and teaching Environmental Ethics
.
In 2003, The OaKs' Ryan Costello sold everything he owned, joined a humanitarian organization and moved to Afghanistan
. Costello lived there for two years, working in the Central Afghan mountains with returned refugees, teaching them creative agricultural techniques and becoming fluent in their native language, Dari (Persian)
.
In 2005, Costello returned to the United States, reuniting with his long-time creative partner, The OaKs' drummer Matthew Antolick. Costello and Antolick collaborated to create the band’s first CD, “Our Fathers and The Things They Left Behind”, lyrically inspired mostly by Costello’s time spent in Afghanistan
. The duo released the album independently in late summer 2006. They also partnered with Global Hope Network - an organization dedicated to helping impoverished refugees in Afghanistan
- pledging 50% of CD and download sales towards their cause.
The self-released album was completely home recorded by the pair, mixed by Martin Feveyear of Jupiter Studios, Seattle (Modest Mouse
, Damien Jurado), and mastered by Alan Douches of West West Side Music, NY (Sufjan Stevens
).
Their diverse mix of instruments includes accordion
, mandolin
, bells
, vibraphone
, horns
, assorted percussion, electric organ
and Wurlitzer
, to name a few. Costello's lyrics range from self-examination to social critique. His songs are often about self-sacrificing figures such as Hugh Thompson
and Dietrich Bonhoeffer
, and he pulls inspiration from the Southern Gothic
fiction of Flannery O'Conner and Carson McCullers
.
In the winter of 2006, Costello and Antolick decided to expand the band, with the purposes of live performance and adding more outside influences to their established sound. After some trial and error, the band solidified their roster to include keyboardist
Tim Cocking, lead guitarist Greg Willson, backup vocalist Melissa Reyes, and bassist
Jeremy Siegel.
All of the members of The Oaks are multi-instrumentalists. During a typical Oaks show you are likely to see:
Reyes playing percussion and keys
;
Antolick playing various percussion instruments and keys
;
Cocking playing accordion
, trumpet
and keys
;
Siegel playing trombone
, percussion, bass
and keys
;
Willson playing alto saxophone
and guitar
;
and Costello alternating between acoustic
and electric guitars
as well as lead and harmony vocals.
scene, but nationally and internationally as well. Some notable performances/appearances:
Showcasing artist, 2006 AntiPop Music Festival, Orlando, FL
Featured artist, Orlando Sentinel
Newspaper CD Compilation
Showcasing artist, 2007 Florida Music Festival - main stage
Featured artist, ORock 105.9 FM
Showcasing artist, CMJ Music Marathon 2007
Featured artist, Virb.com MUSIC feature page
Featured in Paste Magazine, July 2007 cover story - “Can Rock Save the World?”
Showcasing artist, CMJ Music Marathon, October 2007
Featured artist, Public Radio International's Fair Game With Faith Sallie, January 2008
Showcasing artist, SXSW Music Festival, March 2008
Showcasing artist, FMF Music Festival, May 2008
The Oaks have shared the stage with many groups, including The Six Parts Seven
, Michelle Malone
, and Caribou (musician)
On December 28, 2007, The Oaks' first album "Our Fathers and the Things They Left Behind" was named by Jim Abbott of the Orlando Sentinel
as number 9 in his top 10 musical highlights of 2007. The Oaks were the only local group named, and joined such company as Radiohead
, the Flaming Lips, Kanye West
and Bruce Springsteen
.
The band's second album, “Songs For Waiting”, was released on March 3, 2008 with a promotional campaign run by Fanatic Promotion. The band was featured on Public Radio International's Fair Game in January 2008, and played at the SXSW music festival in Austin in March 2008, and the Florida Music Festival in May 2008.
Ryan Costello released his first solo album, "After The Fire", on October 20, 2009, guest-featuring The OaKs' Matthew Antolick on drums and Greg Willson on horns. It was featured in Relevant Magazine and critically acclaimed by the Orlando Sentinel, Oregon's The Source Weekly, and the blog Ryan's Smashing Life.
Lead singer Ryan Costello's official website
General pages
The Oaks EPK on Sonicbids
The Oaks online album stream of Our Fathers...
The Oaks on Myspace
on VIRB
on Garageband
Fanatic Promotion's Oaks page
on Purevolume
on Indie 911
>
Publications
The Oaks featured in Paste Magazine July 2007
The Oaks featured in Relevant magazine
The Oaks' first album gets high praise from Jim Abbott of the Orlando Sentinel
Commerce sites
The Oaks on EMusic
The Oaks online Web Store
The Oaks on ITunes
Video on the web
The Oaks on Youtube
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band based out of Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, created by singer/songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
/guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
Ryan Costello and drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
/percussionist Matthew Antolick. The band’s sound contains elements of indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
with classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
, soul music
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
and modern rock
Modern rock
Modern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
.
The Oaks have gained international attention through their original fusion of music performance and humanitarian aid
Humanitarian aid
Humanitarian aid is material or logistical assistance provided for humanitarian purposes, typically in response to humanitarian crises including natural disaster and man-made disaster. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity...
. Costello spent two years in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, living among recently-returned refugees, teaching agricultural techniques and directly participating in food distributions. When he returned to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, he vowed to get the word out about the need of the Afghan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
people. The Oaks is the result of these aspirations.
Biography
Costello and Antolick met as students at the University of South FloridaUniversity of South Florida
The University of South Florida, also known as USF, is a member institution of the State University System of Florida, one of the state's three flagship universities for public research, and is located in Tampa, Florida, USA...
. They played together in the project “Figure vs Ground” before relocating to suburban Orlando and creating The Oaks. Costello was pursuing a BA in Biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, while Antolick was working on his Master's in Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and teaching Environmental Ethics
Environmental ethics
Environmental ethics is the part of environmental philosophy which considers extending the traditional boundaries of ethics from solely including humans to including the non-human world...
.
In 2003, The OaKs' Ryan Costello sold everything he owned, joined a humanitarian organization and moved to Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. Costello lived there for two years, working in the Central Afghan mountains with returned refugees, teaching them creative agricultural techniques and becoming fluent in their native language, Dari (Persian)
Dari (Persian)
Dari or Fārsī-ye Darī in historical terms refers to the Persian court language of the Sassanids. In contemporary usage, the term refers to the dialects of modern Persian language spoken in Afghanistan, and hence known as Afghan Persian in some Western sources. It is the term officially recognized...
.
In 2005, Costello returned to the United States, reuniting with his long-time creative partner, The OaKs' drummer Matthew Antolick. Costello and Antolick collaborated to create the band’s first CD, “Our Fathers and The Things They Left Behind”, lyrically inspired mostly by Costello’s time spent in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. The duo released the album independently in late summer 2006. They also partnered with Global Hope Network - an organization dedicated to helping impoverished refugees in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
- pledging 50% of CD and download sales towards their cause.
The self-released album was completely home recorded by the pair, mixed by Martin Feveyear of Jupiter Studios, Seattle (Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. They are based in Portland, Oregon. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think...
, Damien Jurado), and mastered by Alan Douches of West West Side Music, NY (Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens is an American singer-songwriter and musician born in Detroit, Michigan. Stevens first began releasing his music on Asthmatic Kitty, a label co-founded with his stepfather, beginning with the 1999 release, A Sun Came...
).
Their diverse mix of instruments includes accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
, mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, bells
Bell (instrument)
A bell is a simple sound-making device. The bell is a percussion instrument and an idiophone. Its form is usually a hollow, cup-shaped object, which resonates upon being struck...
, vibraphone
Vibraphone
The vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family....
, horns
Horn section
In music, a horn section can refer to several groups of musicians. It can refer to the musicians in a symphony orchestra who play the horn . In a British-style brass band it refers to the tenor horn players. In popular music, it can also refer to a small group of wind instrumentalists who augment a...
, assorted percussion, electric organ
Electric organ
In biology, the electric organ is an organ common to all electric fish used for the purposes of creating an electric field. The electric organ is derived from modified nerve or muscle tissue...
and Wurlitzer
Wurlitzer
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to simply as Wurlitzer, was an American company that produced stringed instruments, woodwinds, brass instruments, theatre organs, band organs, orchestrions, electronic organs, electric pianos and jukeboxes....
, to name a few. Costello's lyrics range from self-examination to social critique. His songs are often about self-sacrificing figures such as Hugh Thompson
Hugh Thompson
Hugh Thompson may refer to:*Hugh Miller Thompson , second bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi*Hugh Smith Thompson , Governor of South Carolina, 1882-1886*Hugh Thompson, Jr...
and Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor, theologian and martyr. He was a participant in the German resistance movement against Nazism and a founding member of the Confessing Church. He was involved in plans by members of the Abwehr to assassinate Adolf Hitler...
, and he pulls inspiration from the Southern Gothic
Southern Gothic
Southern Gothic is a subgenre of Gothic fiction unique to American literature that takes place exclusively in the American South. It resembles its parent genre in that it relies on supernatural, ironic, or unusual events to guide the plot...
fiction of Flannery O'Conner and Carson McCullers
Carson McCullers
Carson McCullers was an American writer. She wrote novels, short stories, and two plays, as well as essays and some poetry. Her first novel The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter explores the spiritual isolation of misfits and outcasts of the South...
.
In the winter of 2006, Costello and Antolick decided to expand the band, with the purposes of live performance and adding more outside influences to their established sound. After some trial and error, the band solidified their roster to include keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
Tim Cocking, lead guitarist Greg Willson, backup vocalist Melissa Reyes, and bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
Jeremy Siegel.
All of the members of The Oaks are multi-instrumentalists. During a typical Oaks show you are likely to see:
Reyes playing percussion and keys
Key (instrument)
A key is a specific part of a musical instrument. The purpose and function of the part in question depends on the instrument.On instruments equipped with tuning machines, violins and guitars, for example, a key is part of a tuning machine. It is a worm gear with a key shaped end used to turn a cog,...
;
Antolick playing various percussion instruments and keys
Key (instrument)
A key is a specific part of a musical instrument. The purpose and function of the part in question depends on the instrument.On instruments equipped with tuning machines, violins and guitars, for example, a key is part of a tuning machine. It is a worm gear with a key shaped end used to turn a cog,...
;
Cocking playing accordion
Accordion
The accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist....
, trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
and keys
Key (instrument)
A key is a specific part of a musical instrument. The purpose and function of the part in question depends on the instrument.On instruments equipped with tuning machines, violins and guitars, for example, a key is part of a tuning machine. It is a worm gear with a key shaped end used to turn a cog,...
;
Siegel playing trombone
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
, percussion, bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
and keys
Key (instrument)
A key is a specific part of a musical instrument. The purpose and function of the part in question depends on the instrument.On instruments equipped with tuning machines, violins and guitars, for example, a key is part of a tuning machine. It is a worm gear with a key shaped end used to turn a cog,...
;
Willson playing alto saxophone
Alto saxophone
The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions...
and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
;
and Costello alternating between acoustic
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
and electric guitars
Electric Guitars
Electric Guitars were formed early in 1980 by Neil Davenport and Richard Hall who were both studying English at Bristol University. The band soon increased to a five-man line-up, with Andy Saunders , Matt Salt and Dick Truscott , they also later added two backing singers: Sara and Wendy...
as well as lead and harmony vocals.
Critical acclaim
Response to The Oaks has been overwhelmingly positive. In their short life-span The Oaks have established themselves not only in the central FloridaCentral Florida
Central Florida is a regional designation for the area surrounding Orlando in east central Florida, United States. The area represents the third largest population concentration in Florida, after the South Florida and Tampa Bay regions, respectively....
scene, but nationally and internationally as well. Some notable performances/appearances:
Showcasing artist, 2006 AntiPop Music Festival, Orlando, FL
Featured artist, Orlando Sentinel
Orlando Sentinel
The Orlando Sentinel is the primary newspaper of the Orlando, Florida region. It was founded in 1876. The Sentinel is owned by Tribune Company and is overseen by the Chicago Tribune. As of 2005, the Sentinel’s president and publisher was Kathleen Waltz; she announced her resignation in February 2008...
Newspaper CD Compilation
Showcasing artist, 2007 Florida Music Festival - main stage
Featured artist, ORock 105.9 FM
Showcasing artist, CMJ Music Marathon 2007
Featured artist, Virb.com MUSIC feature page
Featured in Paste Magazine, July 2007 cover story - “Can Rock Save the World?”
Showcasing artist, CMJ Music Marathon, October 2007
Featured artist, Public Radio International's Fair Game With Faith Sallie, January 2008
Showcasing artist, SXSW Music Festival, March 2008
Showcasing artist, FMF Music Festival, May 2008
The Oaks have shared the stage with many groups, including The Six Parts Seven
The Six Parts Seven
The Six Parts Seven was an American post-rock band formerly based in Kent, Ohio. The band was founded in 1995 by brothers Allen and Jay Karpinski , who had earlier played with Old Hearts Club, a band of similar style...
, Michelle Malone
Michelle Malone
Michelle Malone is an American rock and blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Biography:Malone was born and raised in Atlanta by her mother and grandmother, both professional singers...
, and Caribou (musician)
Caribou (musician)
Daniel Victor Snaith is a composer, musician and recording artist under stage names Caribou, Manitoba and Daphni. Under the supervision of Kevin Buzzard, he obtained a PhD in mathematics at Imperial College London.- Career:...
On December 28, 2007, The Oaks' first album "Our Fathers and the Things They Left Behind" was named by Jim Abbott of the Orlando Sentinel
Orlando Sentinel
The Orlando Sentinel is the primary newspaper of the Orlando, Florida region. It was founded in 1876. The Sentinel is owned by Tribune Company and is overseen by the Chicago Tribune. As of 2005, the Sentinel’s president and publisher was Kathleen Waltz; she announced her resignation in February 2008...
as number 9 in his top 10 musical highlights of 2007. The Oaks were the only local group named, and joined such company as Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
, the Flaming Lips, Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
and Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen , nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter who records and tours with the E Street Band...
.
The band's second album, “Songs For Waiting”, was released on March 3, 2008 with a promotional campaign run by Fanatic Promotion. The band was featured on Public Radio International's Fair Game in January 2008, and played at the SXSW music festival in Austin in March 2008, and the Florida Music Festival in May 2008.
Future
The OaKs are currently working on long-distance collaboration with one another as lead singer Ryan Costello is attending graduate school at Oregon State University.Ryan Costello released his first solo album, "After The Fire", on October 20, 2009, guest-featuring The OaKs' Matthew Antolick on drums and Greg Willson on horns. It was featured in Relevant Magazine and critically acclaimed by the Orlando Sentinel, Oregon's The Source Weekly, and the blog Ryan's Smashing Life.
Online pages and contact information
The Oaks official websiteLead singer Ryan Costello's official website
General pages
The Oaks EPK on Sonicbids
The Oaks online album stream of Our Fathers...
The Oaks on Myspace
on VIRB
on Garageband
Fanatic Promotion's Oaks page
on Purevolume
on Indie 911
>
Publications
The Oaks featured in Paste Magazine July 2007
The Oaks featured in Relevant magazine
The Oaks' first album gets high praise from Jim Abbott of the Orlando Sentinel
Commerce sites
The Oaks on EMusic
The Oaks online Web Store
The Oaks on ITunes
Video on the web
The Oaks on Youtube