I have been an avid fan of ODESZA since their beginning. I remember one of the first times they visited Madison, opening for Michael Menert at High Noon Saloon with only a few hardcore fans there to watch. Now just one year later, they are playing sold out shows all over the country.
With the recent release of their new album, In Return, ODESZA has shot to fame. This album blends together percussion, vocals, and all sorts of production technology into one single cohesive work of art that entertains the ears of all kinds of listeners.
I was able to chat with Harrison Mills of ODESZA about their first album and EP, their most recent release, and what they consider the “essential tracks” that have driven them to such success.
On your first album, Summer’s Gone, which track would you want listeners to hear above all others?
“I’d say ‘How Did I Get Here’—it’s the fastest song we made and also the first one we did together, and the most interesting one, too. It was the first track we put out from album and the response was great. I’d also say ‘I Play, You Listen’ which is kind of like the anthem from the record. It’s got a more epic, bigger, cinematic feel.”
What were your inspirations for your first album?
“I’d say our inspirations were artists like Tycho, Mellow Record, Bonobo, DJ Shadow, Bon Iver—they’re all over the place. Clayton and I started the album within a few days of ever meeting, and then through getting to know each other and how our styles complemented each other, we really started learning about collaborating together on music. Clay played in bands but I had never collaborated with anyone, so learning to work with one another and lots of getting to know each other inspired the whole album.”
What would you consider the essential tracks from your EP, My Friends Never Die?
“It was a response to first tour season; we wanted to make dance songs and more music for live shows. It was an in-between thing before we did another full album, and the EP actually ended up doing better than Summer’s Gone. It was overall a heavier approach to music—we were changing up style a bit, making a thicker, bolder sound. As far as essential tracks, ‘My Friends Never Die’ and ‘Without You’ would be the ones. They’re big, heavy tracks and my favorite in our set. Lots of people sing along to ‘Without You’ and it’s an awesome way to connect to the crowd.”
So you guys just put out your new album, In Return. What are some essential tracks off that album you want listeners to hear?
“Definitely ‘It’s Only’ is an essential track—it encompasses lots of things having to do with the whole album. It was a maturing album for us where we created full songs and didn’t just make beats anymore. ‘It’s Only’ is a song we’re really proud of.”
What were your inspirations and how did you go about choosing who to collaborate with for the new album?
“It takes from lots of different styles. It’s melancholy, cinematic, but also hopeful. There’s a lot of strange percussion and singing with harmonies on top to make big, bold songs. Clay and I are both really happy with the way it ended up. The way we featured artists was an organic process. We made connections with people and producer friends, then also by word of mouth from other artists. Some were semi-local artists from the northwest, like Jenni Potts. And Zyra—she sang on Youtube over ‘My Friends Never Die’ and within 10 minutes of sending it to us, we had songs for her to sing for us. We also did lots of searching on Soundcloud for the right people. We took our time with the album and did everything the way that we wanted to do it.”