Interview: The Oohlas' Ollie Stone

By Jenna Bensoussan

"I wouldn’t say anyone really inspired me to be an artist, I just always wanted to be in a band," says Ollie Stone, lead for the band The Oohlas.

The Oohlas' debut album, Best Stop Pop, first surfaced on the musical radar back in September, 2006. Recording their first album was more than a fantastic experience for Stone. "It was the greatest feeling in the entire world," she says.

"I got to record with people I like and respect and I finally got to be creative where I felt comfortable. I learned new things about equipment and procedures every day, developed as a musician, learned to make noises and different sounds and learned different tricks in the studio—all great things... It was awesome. It was totally awesome!"

Stone tries to decide which song on the album had the most meaning to her. "I don’t know – I think I really like 'Octopus' a lot because it is really dark and kind of moody. I kinda like 'Rupert' too because that was a really fun song that me and Mark wrote in our apartment about my fish that died. I think they all have their own thing that makes each one my favorite song. They all mean something totally special to me because of how they came about."

This album was a great accomplishment for the Oohlas, especially when they are accustomed to doing small-time shows for little to zero compensation. "A traditional show is a traditional show. You show up, you don’t get paid, you get your free drink tickets and that’s it.

"The best show we were ever a part of was at the Fillmore. That was an amazing thing. Playing at the Fillmore is just way too cool for me. That was such a huge deal. The sound was amazing, they feed you and they paid us, which was awesome! It was really an honor to play at the Fillmore. Now we get a poster put up on their wall," says Stone.

The hardest thing to overcome as a new band trying to inch into the mainstream is primarily of financial relation. "The hardest thing is being poor as hell and still being poor as hell and continuing to be poor as hell and not having any income, but trying to stay as positive as you possibly can."

The most important thing to do when faced with this is to remain optimistic. How does one do this? "Knowing your music will be heard by people, knowing that you have something to be proud of and that you can’t give up – you can never give up. You just gotta keep trucking," reflects Stone.

By this time next year she would like to make “a lasting impression on the hearts of many people" that have heard their music, make "fans out of people instead of just people lurking on MySpace", and be able to have the opportunity to record a second record (that is her biggest goal) and tour the world, or at least some of it. "It’s just an honor to go square across the world and have people show up to see you and know your songs."

The band became popular predominantly through their MySpace page. "Bloggers are what’s opened things up so that anyone can have a voice. I am friends with many and they have a very awesome voice." I am sure many of the Oohlas' fans would say the same thing about Ollie Stone.

For more information about the Oohlas, or touring information, check out their official website.