Oakrest talks new music, childhood crushes, and more! — exclusive interview

Toronto pop-rockers Oakrest recently shared their latest single “Olivia” from their upcoming debut album Summer Sun. You can check out “Olivia” right here on All Punked Up!

Oakrest takes inspirations from the icons in the scene. The Cars, Fountains of Wayne, blink-182, New Found Glory, Seaway, Neck Deep, and Young Culture are all major influences in Oakrest’s unique sound. While the topics Oakrest tends to write about include heartbreak, feeling alone, and relationships, the music behind the words is energetic and uplifting.

“I hope this single helps listeners take that next step to tell their crushes how they really feel,” shares vocalist Jacob Szabo. “I also hope this single gets listeners dancing like no one’s watching.”

We got to sit down with Jacob Szabo of Oakrest to talk about “Olivia” and Summer Sun.  Check out our interview below!

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What inspired the name Oakrest? 

Like many bands, we went through a few names that did not stick. For a while, when we started, the band name was called Collided Minds (which I am happy that one did not stick lol). I remember one day I was skateboarding around town, in Keswick ON, with some friends, and caught glimpses of the street name signs! So that made my brain think of the street I lived on. Annamaria Dr. (the name of our second EP). While it didn’t sound good as a band name, the off street, Oakcrest, did! Of course, I wanted it to be somewhat original, so we took out the “c” in Oakcrest and became Oakrest. 

What has the process been like to write and record Summer Sun? What were some challenges you faced while creating the record? 

The writing process started March of 2020, simply just sitting in front of my amp until I wrote something I liked! At the end of it in April of 2021, we came up with 20 songs, and ended up with the 10 we have now on “Summer Sun”. Thankful in a way that we were granted the off-time during the pandemic to simply just write music, and do nothing else, as before the pandemic happened, we were gearing up for a busy year of touring.

With this off-time we were allowed, it got me (Jacob Szabo) seriously into learning and recording good quality demos, as we were heading into the studio with Kyle Marchant in December of 2021. I’d say some challenges we faced were all the lockdowns, as it would interfere with writing sessions between the band, or practice. In terms of challenges I faced while writing these songs, was simply choosing which songs I liked most, because I wanted to tell a story with these songs and have them be cohesive with each other. 

The album title helps emphasize how this record “calls to mind warm nights spent with your favorite people.” What are some stories of your best summer nights? 

My favourite summer nights are simply spent with the people I care about most. Whether that be at a bonfire, a party, a cottage etc. I truly just appreciate good company. Looking forward to having this record kick off the summer for our fans, new or old, and hoping it may be a soundtrack for some even! 

Who is “Olivia” to you? 

Olivia to me, could be anyone. It’s a song about having a crush, and as we go through life, I’ve found we have new crushes on new people at certain stages of our lives. The song was inspired by a childhood crush, a girl who I was too nervous to tell my feelings to, named “Olivia”. 

Which track are you most excited to play live from Summer Sun? 

I’d say either “Olivia” or “It’s Something You Do”. “Olivia” is such a fun, catchy song to play and “It’s Something You Do” is such a bouncy song.

Which song will be the most challenging to play live? 

We’ve all come to terms that “Let’s Go” will be the hardest to pull off live, as we’d require backing tracks! As a band who is not so familiar with how to use backing tracks yet, we’ve decided to not play it on our “Summer Sun” Tour. 

Which song are you the proudest of and why? 

Even before the record was recorded, personally, my favourite has always been Olivia. That’s why we chose to release it as a single, because we wanted this song to get the most attention it so ever deserves. As a songwriter, I feel like this song is some of my best work, in terms of lyrics, melody, flow, etc. and I’ve been so excited watching the numbers grow every single day! 

Is there anything else you’d like to share with your fans or All Punked Up readers? 

Last thing I wanna say is that Oakrest is very excited for everyone to hear our new record Summer Sun, as we’ve been working so hard for the past two years building it up. Now, we cannot wait to tour it. You can catch us on tour starting July 22^nd in Toronto ON, at Sneaky Dees for our record release show! 

 

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