photo by Ingrid Holmquist
words by Chance Solem-Pfeifer
When Oquoa steps out Monday to open for Tycho tomorrow at The Waiting Room, it will be with wider ranks and increased instrumentation.
The Omaha band fronted by Max Holmquist, which played its first show in August 2013 at O’Leaver’s Pub, has added Jim Schroeder (UUVVWWZ, Churls) on guitar and Patrick Newberry (Conduits, Tim Kasher’s live band) on keys to its lineup. The move will see J.J. Idt switch from lead guitar to bass. Roger Lewis, the former Conduits bandmate of Idt and Newberry, will remain on drums.
Both by virtue of the fact that they’d written and recorded as a trio and Holmquist’s sensibility for leaving open air in his songs, Oquoa’s music is notable for its space. Holmquist says the addition of Schroeder and Newberry isn’t a deliberate plan to fill that space, but it does give everyone a chance for enhanced musicianship and specificity of their own parts.
“Some of the ambient elements have shifted from the guitar to the keys allowing Jim [Schroeder] to bring some different elements to the lead guitar work,” Holmquist says of the band’s current direction. “Where we had three guys mapping out four or five different parts before, we now have five musical minds working on their respective parts in a room together. I think it fosters more creativity and opens the possibilities.”
A willingness to try and transcend the limitations of a musical three-piece and prior friendships, Idt with Schroeder and both Idt and Lewis with their former bandmate Newberry, spurred the lineup moves. Holmquist says that having the available moving parts of a five-piece in the mix has already made an impression in rehearsals.
“Rehearsals with the new lineup have been fantastic. Teaching Patrick and Jim the old songs has been a breeze and they’ve really added something new to the songs. We’ve rearranged a handful of the songs and their presence has really opened up and expanded the music.”
While Monday opening for San Francisco’s Tycho, a band also known for its ambience, will be Oquoa’s first time out with the new lineup, its identity as a trio is forever preserved on its debut LP. The record is in the can and ready for release, but Holmquist and company are still hashing out the proper timeline to self-release it.
“I can’t really give a specific date,” Holmquist says. “We’re really excited about what we’ve put together and are really looking forward to sharing it with people.”
Chance Solem-Pfeifer is Hear Nebraska’s managing editor. Reach him at chancesp@hearnebraska.org.