Forming together during their college years, indie surf rock band Box the Oxford’s been growing in popularity since the release of their latest album, Wild, back in 2016. With plans to release new music in the forthcoming months, we caught up with the band to talk about their history, new cultivated sound, and when you can expect to hear new material from them.
What is the story behind Box the Oxford? How did you all get together and form?
All of the members studied engineering fields at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Before coming to college, Andrew and Colton happened to randomly chat about music over Facebook, and they ran into each other the first week of college in 2013. In fact, they ended up living two doors down from each other in the freshman dorms. In the following months, they had written lyrics and music for a few of the songs on their 2016 record like “Off to War” and “Outside of Me”, and later completed the existing band lineup by recruiting Eric and Davis (also in the same dorm) to play drums and bass.
Do any of you come from a musical background or family? What bands / types of music influenced you all from a young age?
Davis’ father played bass also, but most of the other members are unique in their family to pursuing music professionally. Davis liked “the King” (Elvis), BB King, basically all the kings. Eric and Colton grew up listening to 1990s and 2000s punk pop and rock with influences like Paramore, Fall Out Boy, and Goo Goo Dolls. And Andrew had a special bond with 90s grunge and classic rock growing up, which was later replaced by eclectic indie genres from bands like Wilco and Local Natives.
How would you describe the sound and style of Box the Oxford for those that may have not heard your music before?
Box the Oxford was born out of washed out indie styles and upbeat alt-pop flavors most commonly seen in modern (and some 80s) music. Box the Oxford’s biggest influences are Local Natives, Bon Iver, Foster the People, Two Door Cinema Club, and Vampire Weekend.
What was the overall writing and recording process like for your forthcoming track “1922”?
The weekend before our senior college finals, we flew to Portland to record a couple new singles that we were just too stoked about to wait. Our first album was dark, almost blurry, and we recognized “1922” was different. We worked with producer Brandon Rush (from Priory) with the goal of making “1922” an in-your-face single that 1) would make you dance carelessly, and 2) was about a love that made you feel like you lived in the roaring twenties again. We had a blast in the studio and think we captured the spirit in the recording.
Can fans expect to hear similarities between “1922” and what is shown on the band’s latest album, Wild?
Although the production of “1922” was focused more on dance pop styles and front-facing drums, there are a lot of thematic and creative similarities between this new single and songs off our debut album, like our single “Someone”. In “1922″, the quasi-rapping style that Andrew does on the second verse is fairly unique to Box the Oxford, but the guitars and melodies are still reminiscent of WILD.
You are all very active on social media, in what ways have social media platforms impacted Box the Oxford since you first formed?
The biggest impact we’ve seen has been the ability to connect our music with people in different states and countries. For example, we had a couple from North Carolina fly to our last show in San Luis Obispo, because they found our music on Instagram.
Aside from your new release, what can fans expect from Box the Oxford in 2018 and are there any goals you are hoping to accomplish?
After two years working on it, we have a music video coming out for our first single “Bones” that we’re incredibly excited to share. We also have a couple singles up our sleeve, including “1922” which will be released on June 8th.
Box The Oxford’s latest album, Wild, is out now!
Follow Box the Oxford: Facebook // Website // SoundCloud // Instagram
