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Australia’s music scene is thriving at the moment – there’s groovy tunes everywhere and one group experimenting with the architecture of music is Oscar & The Grouches. A budding six-piece band from Sydney’s Eastern suburbs, they combine their love for getting people jiggy with the sounds of the 70s and 80s to create a musical experience that is both unique and eclectic.
Bandmates Oscar Sharah, Jack Janis, Luke Gerber, Jacob Siles and brothers Nathan and Jacob Parks have been enjoying their musical journey since placing second in Emergenza in 2010.
Whether it be on the beer-infused floors of pubs or on stage under the Aussie sun, Sydneysiders in particular are being treated to fresh talent such as Oscar & The Grouches.
Cruising around venues in Sydney, from local pubs to the more popular Factory Theatre and Metro Theatre, Oscar & The Grouches love nothing more than to make people happy and “have a good time at the gig,” Sharah says.
Debriefing with the boys, we talked about style and ‘staches:
OSCAR: “I’m the singer/guitarist. I write the songs with everyone and I produce/engineer when we record our songs. I also bring the best moustache to the band.”
JACK: “I play keys/synth and try to lay down silky chords and lines to help our songs move and groove. I also rap here and there as the designated rapper of the group. I speak on behalf of the rest of the band when I say Oscar’s moustache is substandard, but as long as it makes him happy then we are also happy.”
JACOB: “I play drums. Well at least try to… and have to agree on the substandardness of Oscar’s moustache.”
NATHAN: “Jacob and I make up the horn section of the band. We’re brothers, so we have a pretty good dynamic when we play together, as well as coordinated dance moves.”
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Oscar & The Grouches’ infusion of brass and woodwind instruments, synth keys, a guitar pulse and occasional rap verses set them apart from the usual live music in their local area.
“We always try to think of what exact genre we are. We love the 70s so we go for kind of funk, mixed with pop and a bit of hip-hop and RnB as well” says Oscar.
“I think adding horns to the mix really solidifies the 70s/80s vibe. Nice and funky” says Nathan.
Just listen to Jealous, from their debut EP Marsha Mellow and you’ll experience the max chilled, summery vibes. From Sharah’s lucid voice and Janis’s flowing verse to the interplay of electric strings and bursts of sax, Jealous exemplifies the band’s far-reaching talent.
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Treat your ears to Ashleigh Ellen’s harmonic vocals in Cupid’s Juicy Diggity, and song 06 from their EP which showcases an experimental amalgamation of guitars and environmental soundscapes.
Marsha Mellow is a result of hard work and fun in the sound studio, Sharah says “Luke who plays bass is my main man in the studio, we produce the songs together. I love that we have control over sound, it lets us be fully hands-on with all of it.”
On not sounding like other bands, Sharah says “I feel like we’re doing something a little bit different. Which is cool.”
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