Me Oh My is starting a new chapter in their music with a new groovy sound, a funky music video, and a fresh new EP entitled “The Best is Yet To Come.” Me Oh My lead singer Megan Wiggins called this “phase two of Me Oh My.”
“I don’t want people to expect us to be who we were,” Wiggins said. “We’re evolving, and there’s so much to look forward to.”
Wiggins described Me Oh My’s sound as “futuristic space aliens.” It’s hard to place, but it’s somewhere between the Flaming Lips and Alabama Shakes.
Me Oh My has learned a lot of lessons, and now they want to show the world what they have to offer.
“We thought we had it together, but we’ve learned so many things the hard way,” Wiggins said. “We’re ready to grow up a bit and find out who we are.”
Me Oh My’s mission statement is as follows – “Connect the world. Be vulnerable. Show love.”
Groove Grass Rock
Me Oh My is all about vibrancy and volume. Their sound comes from all over the place, with some members influenced by blues, others by metal. The result is what they call “groove grass rock.”
“Whenever we write music, I picture bright colors, vibrancy,” she said. “We just like to have fun with our music. I want everyone to be able to dance.”
Wiggins said she even tries to incorporate a twangy element.
“I mean I’m from Oklahoma, so it’s kind of a little twangy, but also we’re alternative rock, and we sound like Modest Mouse at times,” she said. “Who’s going to tell us that’s wrong when we don’t even know what our genre is?”
When Me Oh My performs, they like to have fun, and they want to be loud.
“I just really like singing to people and seeing people’s reactions when I do crazy shit on stage,” Wiggins said. “I just dance a lot and get up in people’s faces. That’s why I like music. It’s the universal language. You can connect with people on another level. Eventually, I want confetti cannons at every show.”
Wiggins said she’s enjoyed watching her bandmates become more comfortable on stage, and she wants them to tour more eventually.
“It’s fun whenever the crowd has fun with you too, and it’s not just our show. It’s everyone’s show,” Wiggins said. “I like making people feel something, and I want everyone to dance.”
A Little Trippy, A Little Hippie
The new music video for Carousel is an introduction to phase two of Me Oh My with bright colors, wild visuals, and a quirky, soulful sound.
The video includes animal masks, balloons, bikes, swing sets, hula hoops, party hats, and a cake full of worms. So.. what’s not to like?
The band filmed the music video with videographer Nathan Poppe over a year ago at Quartz Mountain, but they’ve been waiting to release it until they could begin their new phase. Me Oh My released an acoustic version of the song on Bandcamp in April of 2017, and they weren’t expecting people to like it, but they absolutely did.
Wiggins called the video “abstract” and related it to the peculiarity of St. Vincent and Portugal the Man.
“We definitely have a space cowboy vibe comin’ up, so I’m excited for that,” she said. “It’s modernist, like the beatles….but with a little cowboy.”
The Me Oh My Story
Me Oh My hasn’t had an easy go of it in the music scene, but they’re proud of what they’ve accomplished, and they’re ready to share their art.
Wiggins and Kyle Pennypacker do most of the writing in the band. Wiggins said the writing often comes from Pennypacker messing around on the guitar and Wiggins developing a song to accompany.
Me Oh My played house shows with xylophones and shakers, and more people joined the band as they jammed with friends. They recruited Chase Thompson on drums and Zachary Wright on bass and soon moved up to playing gigs at Earth Rebirth and the Deli in Norman.
In Nov. 2017, Me Oh My organized their own music festival called Chill Fest.The festival featured local artists like Bad Jokes, Annie Oakley, Space4Lease, Bowlsey, Limp Wizurdz, and Flock of Pigs.
It took place at Mom and Dads, a venue in Norman known for supporting local acts. At Chill Fest, Me Oh My only had five songs ready to play along with a cover of “Hang Me Up to Dry” by the Cold War Kids.
With the festival, they made a name for themselves. Unfortunately, Me Oh My ran into some roadblocks.
They spent a lot of money on failed recordings, they couldn’t find time to practice, and Wright and Thompson decided to leave the band. It wasn’t until they played the Coop Showcase at Tower Theatre in April that they knew they needed a change.
“How we played that night was not what we wanted,” Wiggins said. “We were so disappointed in ourselves, but we knew we didn’t want to stop playing music. We had to figure out what to do from there.”
Entering Phase Two
Wiggins said she was embarrassed by their performance, but it served as a wakeup call to get things in order. So they took a Hiatus in May, worked on some music, gained two new members (Dalton Eckroat on drums and Drew Douthitt on bass) and came back with phase two of Me Oh My.
“We feel like more of a band together, and we have more of a collective idea for where we want to go,” she said. “We want people who believe in the music, no matter what. I want people who know the music, feel the music, are dedicated to the music, not just people who want to be in a band, not just any artist.”
To celebrate their comeback, Me Oh My performed at the Resonator Oct. 26 with Johnny Manchild and the Poor Bastards, Tripsitters, and Rousey.
Manchild produced the EP alongside Gian Archiniaco at Skyloft Recording Studio. Wiggins said Manchild understands the struggle of being a starting band, so he was able to help them out with cost, provide instrumentals, and give honest feedback. He even called in a friend to add horns to a Me Oh My song.
“It really felt like that’s where we were supposed to be, and they really got our vision,” Wiggins said. “They really just have confidence in their abilities, and they want to help the community.”
Keepin’ it Local
The idea of helping each other out is something Wiggins has found to be true of the Oklahoma music scene. She said she feels a ton of support from her community, and she’s excited to watch the scene grow.
“I love being in the community were in,” she said. “We’re some fish in some small water right now, but I think the scene is gonna keep growing like Texas. I always thought that. I mean, we have scooters now. We’re going mobile.”
Wiggins said she’s watched the support of local music grow with open mic nights and new venues. She also credited programs like the Oklahoma Rock Show on Spy FM. She said she was blown away by the support for the arts at the 2018 Plaza Festival.
“The support we’re giving and getting from the artistic community and all the incredible vibes is amazing,” she said. “People are really paying attention to bands. And we’re really caring about music.”
She said there are a lot of up-and-coming acts of all different genres in Oklahoma like Mad Honey, Spinster, the Ivy, and Tripsitters. Wiggins also said she’s found a support system and mentor in local artist Lincka.
“It’s hard to keep up,” she said. “We’ve got some really cool people doing some really cool things. People better watch out for Oklahoma.”
november, 2024
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