By DAN ARMONAITIS
While many are eager to say good riddance to 2019, that certainly isn’t the case for guitarists and vocalists Andrew and Stephen Oliver, whose Greenville-based outfit, Brother Oliver, enjoyed an unprecedented level of success this year.
“It might be difficult to top it,” Andrew Oliver said of the year that will soon come to an end. “We’ve had a lot of milestones this year, and it’s a year that we’ll personally never forget. Who knows what 2020 holds, but 2019 is going to be dear to our hearts probably for the rest of our lives.”
Brother Oliver, which will close out 2019 with a full band show, including drummer Devin Taylor and bassist George Sweet, on Tuesday, Dec. 31 at The Radio Room in Greenville, has had plenty of memorable moments this year.
In March, Andrew and Stephen had the opportunity to open for the legendary Steve Miller Band at the Peace Center in Greenville, and the group also performed opening slots for such renowned artists as Big Head Todd & the Monsters, Drake Bell, SUSTO and Of Montreal.
Andrew, who formed Brother Oliver with Stephen in 2013, referred to the Steve Miller Band gig as “probably the highlight of our career.”
“It was perfect,” he said. “And that show was extra special because sometimes you’ll play an opening slot for a pretty big band and you never really see the guys or you never really get close to them, but with this one, it wasn’t like that at all. They were so inviting to us. We were in there eating dinner with them, and they just treated us really special.”
And that’s not to mention the impressive full-length album, “Well, Hell,” that Brother Oliver released in August on its own Forthright Records label.
“That (album) took two years to make, and it’s the keystone of my production resume for sure,” said Andrew, who served as producer. “That album means a lot to me and to the other guys. It’s kind of a full encompassing collection of songs as far as what we’ve been trying to do with this whole project.”
Perhaps never before has Brother Oliver’s knack for blending vintage psychedelic folk-rock influences with a modern indie rock edge come across as effectively as it does on “Well, Hell.”
“Every time we’ve released an album in the past, I always get this anxious feeling to start the next one,” Andrew said. “Obviously, I still want to do another album, but I just have this peace about this one. I feel like we’re very well represented and the message that we wanted to portray to people was clearly portrayed.”
Brother Oliver also received plenty of positive feedback this year for its cover of folk-tinged indie rock outfit Glorietta’s “Someday,” which was released as a single in April and has become one of the band’s most popular tracks on streaming services.
As for 2020, Andrew said Brother Oliver has already booked a few festival gigs throughout the Southeast, Midwest and East Coast and that the band plans to continue its popular “BO TV” video series featured on its official YouTube channel.
For now, however, the focus is on remembering the highlights of 2019 and getting ready for the New Year’s Eve show at The Radio Room, which will also include performances by local bands Wolfgang Wallace, The Apartment Club and Finding Freedom, the latter of which actually recorded a Brother Oliver song, “What Will Be Will Be,” earlier this year.
“The Radio Room is kind of like our home venue,” Andrew said. “It’s one of the first places that gave us a ticketed show many years back, and we just always have a great time there. … They’ve really done a lot for the city and the music scene, so we’re thankful for them and honored to play a show there every chance we get.”