INTERVIEW: Sibling Duo OLIVE VOX Bring 90’s Grunge & Psychedelic Rock To The Modern Age in New EP. Discuss Bringing Classic Sound To Present, Favorite Childhood Memories of Each Other & MORE.

Posted On 25 Feb 2022

Although brothers Caden and Parker are still in their teens, they have released a self-titled debut EP that is sonically well beyond their years. Drawing inspiration from some of their favorite acts like Nirvana and Pink Floyd, the siblings – A.K.A. Olive Vox – have produced a 90’s grunge rock style EP that comes complete with psychedelic sonics that sound like they could have been released decades ago. The two, however have managed to create a modern feel to the song that brings it into present day. Having just released their debut single, “Bury Me Low” back in August 2021 the two have already dove head first into the music industry. From “Bury Me Low” getting love on radio, to an interview on SiriusXM to a tour and spot on the Austin based Levitation Festival and now with a debut EP out it seems these two are just getting started.

They celebrate the release of the Olive Vox EP by hanging with All Access to discuss their classic sound, their favorite childhood memories of each other, what they’d change their middle names to and much more. Get to you know your new favorite rockers by checking out the full interview below:

ALL ACCESS [Austin] At what point did you realize you were going to make a career out of music? Were there other careers you considered growing up?

CADEN: I’ve always liked music a lot and was interested in performing, but when I actually started writing music at the age of ten, that’s when I knew I wanted it as a career. There really were no other careers except at one point I wanted to work at Starbucks, ha!

PARKER: When I was about five, I wanted to be a meteorologist. When Caden got to the age when he started playing riffs on his guitar, I was like “ok it’s game time.” I always wanted music to be a part of my life

AA: Congrats on the release of the self-titled debut EP. Although still in your teens, the EP has very distinct classic rock sonics that were made popular before you were even born. How did you approach creating that sound in the modern era? What is it about that style of music that you’re so drawn to?

CADEN: Thank you! I grew up listening to 90’s rock because that’s what my parents were into. I was drawn to Nirvana when I was in the 3rd grade and started playing their music on my mini Squire. It just grew from there!

I like the human feel of rock and there’s a lot more passion in that style of music. I think our generation is missing out on something really cool and I want them to be able to experience it.

PARKER: I grew up listening to rock music, especially 90’s alternative rock.

I love the sound, the distortion, and the feel of rock and that someone is actually playing an instrument rather than the sound made on the computer. A lot of music now feels overproduced to me.

AA: Being originally from Orange County and moving to Texas as kids, how do you think the music would’ve sounded if you would’ve instead spent your entire lives in California? Do you think the band name “Olive Vox” would’ve been the same too?

CADEN: I think our music would be exactly the same. Our influences come out of California more so than Texas. Our family all still lives there and we go back and forth. I think our name might have been different because it would have been a different sequence of events.

PARKER: I think the lyrics might have been a little more upbeat if we were living in California, but other than that nothing would have really changed. I think our music has more of a California feel than Texas. I think our name, Olive Vox, might have been something different, probably more of a surf rock name.

AA: Creating music as siblings, as you two do, can have its pros and cons. What are the benefits of making music with family? What are the challenges?

CADEN: The benefits are we’re always together and we can practice pretty much anytime. We haven’t really come across many challenges yet.

PARKER: I think it’s super easy because I just walk in his room and say ok let’s work on music, the con is you’re prone to tell each other that something sucks more easily, but Caden thinks that’s a pro, ha!

AA: What’s your most vivid/favorite childhood memory of each other?

CADEN: I have a lot of memories of us at the beach, but this one time we built a pretty big snowman out of sand so it was a sandman. I even have a picture of it on my Instagram.

PARKER: I was in speech meets when I was younger and I had to recite poems & fables. I remember Caden memorizing them all when he was like three and I have YouTube videos of him. They’re pretty funny!

AA: My favorite song off the EP is the song, “Middle Name” that has such a classic but original sound. What’s the inspiration behind this one? If you could choose any new middle name (that’s not your current) which would you choose?

CADEN: I started writing that song when I was 11 or 12. I don’t know what really inspired me to write it except I was listening to a lot of cool music and I just started playing what I had taken in. I really like my middle name, Shea, but if I had to pick a new one it would be Bob. I used to always tell everyone my name was Bob, so I think that would make a great middle name.

PARKER: Experiences and things I had to deal with in my life so far inspired me to write the lyrics to “Middle Name,” to let go of negative things and look for the positives in life. My new middle name would be The-Pooper, Parker The Pooper, ha!

AA: You guys recently had your first live debut performance in October 2021 in Austin, TX. Describe how you guys prepared for that debut? After that, were there any specific adjustments to your live show you changed before hitting the road on your own tour last fall and beyond?

CADEN: We practiced a ton, we wrote a couple new songs for our debut and we did change up our set afterwards and pulled our slower songs because we realized people liked the energy more.

PARKER: We practiced all the time because Levitation was our big debut and we were super excited to be a part of that music festival. We were finally able to perform live! We decided to pull some of our slower songs and keep it high energy.

AA: For both of you, if you could only listen to (5) artists for the rest of your life, who would they be?

CADEN: Nirvana, Cage The Elephant, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, twenty one pilots

PARKER: Nirvana, Deftones, Cage The Elephant, Smashing Pumpkins, twenty one pilots

AA: What else can fans expect from Olive Vox for the rest of 2022?

CADEN: We’re going to write more music and continue to grow and hopefully tour the world.

PARKER: Some really good music & more tours.

A massive shout-out to the boys of Olive Vox for chatting about the new EP with All Access and congrats on the release – its just the beginning for you two we’re excited to be a part of the journey. To keep up with the band follow along through the links below:

About the Author

Austin is the former Music Director for the now sunsetted Radio Disney and current Music Programmer at SiriusXM in Los Angeles. As a music junkie Austin finds himself constantly seeking out new music and artists from every genre to obsess over. Pre-COVID this passion led him to attend over 100 concerts and festivals annually. He is also the founder and publisher of the music blog Too Good Music. Feel free to connect directly via Instagram or Twitter: @austinB26.