SPECTRUM: Interview with One Eyed Jacks
Find out more about One Eyed Jacks, seven musicians creating soulful melodies with punchy rhythms and funky harmonies.
In our newest SPECTRUM interview series, we talk to the one of the hottest live bands in Brighton today.
When did you start writing music?
We started writing together not long after meeting at uni, initially Karl (lead vocals) and Jon (Drums) started writing from day 1 but we were all studying our respective disciplines at BIMM when we first met. Originally there was only 4 of us but over time we developed into the team we have now.
How did you meet?
We all studied together and met or worked with each other in different bands before forming OEJ. As a 4-piece, we had a good creative connection but we had ideas of further working on our sound. Initially we added another guitarist to help develop our ideas and things were going well but once we added the girls (Sylvia & Scarlett), they made a great impact on our sound and helped shape the band we are today.
What track are you most proud of?
The track we are most proud of at the moment would probably be our song Roll With It.
We recorded and filmed this song in 1 take at Metway Studios, it took a couple takes to get the right one but we’re happy with the final cut. We wanted the video to represent our live performance element and be an accurate representation of what we’re all about as a band. The style of this video gives an insight to us in the studio and highlights some of the different personalities in OEJ.
What are the main influences on your sound?
Energetic, fun and exciting! As a group we all feed off each other’s energy, we feel most at home when a crowd’s responding and that energy is bouncing back and forth.
We love to see people dancing and having a good time to our music. It lets us know that we’re doing a good job and brings out a better performance from us.
Have you released any albums yet? Are you signed to a label?
No album yet but we’re working towards it, we are currently working independently but have had some interest from labels and management. I think it’s something we would be open to but it would have to be the right person/company, there’s plenty you can do yourself but we’ll see how it goes.
What are you listening to at the moment?
As we’ve all got different tastes I just asked for one band from everyone, in no particular we’re listening to.. Jorja Smith, Frank Ocean, Radiohead, Kaytranada, Alfa Mist, Action Bronson & Portugal.
We’re all into a bit of everything which I think feeds our expectation of how we want OEJ to sound.
What are your plans for the near future?
We’re planning on getting into the studio soon to record a couple tracks, we’ve got some good gigs in the calendar for this year and a few festivals to play. We’d like to add a few more under our belts but we’ll see how it goes!