We were grabbed by French trio, OAKMAN when we heard their song Outer Space. They have an infectious sound and we were keen for a chat.

OAKMAN’s brand of pop / punk / rock came to our attention from one of the amazing compilations put together by Colin’s Punk Rock World.

The French 3-piece-band: Marine (lead voc/guitar), Geremia (bass) and Jesse (drums). They come from Lyon, east of France and play what they describe as an emotional kind of rock, nervous and melodic. They released a first EP Waterscape in 2016 which gave them the chance to tour abroad (UK, Scotland and Japan).

A second EP Plastic World was released in 2018 which, again, allowed them to broaden their horizons even more (USA, Italy, UK, Scotland)

Their pedigree is a fine one, having opened for bands such Enter Shikari (Bataclan, Paris), ZZ TOP (Pérouges Fest), Basement (Kao, Lyon), Bukowski (Marché Gare, Lyon).

Seemed reasonable to find out a bit more with our 13 Questions.

Where are you and what are you doing?

OAKMAN : Hello! We are OAKMAN a three-piece band from, Lyon, France. There is Jessie (drum), Gérémia (bass) and Marine (Guitar/Vocal). We play music with our heart and we play it loud.

What is your favourite view?
Jessie : Sounds cheesy but seeing my family smiling.
Marine : The sea. My hometown is located by the sea, and I always loved to go there early in the morning and think about everything.
Geremia : When my amps gauge is in the red zone.

What is your favourite swear word and why?
Marine : I would say « putain » (fuck). I think that it’s the most used French word… I’m not proud of it haha but saying this word is one of my bad habits, sorry!
Geremia : I don’t have a favourite swear word. I’m a fancy and romantic guy. I’m the French ideal.
Jessie : « Sorry I’m French »

What was the first record / cd you bought with your own money?
Jessie + Geremia : As we are brothers, we gathered all of our money to buy our first CD. It was Smash from The Offspring.
Marine : I didn’t have the internet back in the days, so I went to the rock section of my local record store, and bought the first album I found. It was Simple Plan, the album with Welcome to my Life. I was actually looking for a Blink-182 album that I discovered at my best friend’s house, but I couldn’t find it, I was really sad…

Marmite. Yes, or no?
Marine : Definitely no! I’ve tried it once in France and it was very particular.
Jessie + Geremia : We toured in the UK and never tried Marmite. Promise, next time we come back in the UK, we’ll try. Just come to see us on gig with a Marmite jar and we’ll try!

If you could go to a gig right now, anywhere in the world, which band would you see? And in which venue?
Marine : I always wanted to see Death Cab For Cutie. This is one of my favourite bands for a long time. I don’t know which venue, I would say Seattle, I think this is their hometown. Hometown’s shows are always the best.
Jessie : I’d like to have the chance to see Manchester Orchestra to play loud in any venue, I would be really happy whatever the place is.
Geremia : Because of Covid-19, I need an outlet. So I would probably want to see Envy in a small indie venue, full of people, screaming out loud.

Who are your musical influences?
OAKMAN : We have a lot of musical influences. It is always hard for us to answer this question. We love the music that comes from heart. We can be moved by any style of music, but we mainly listen to rock music. Asian Kung Fu Generation, Enter Shikari, The Back Horn or Manchester Orchestra (and so much more) are those who gave us the passion to create and play music.

How do you like your eggs?
Marine : Scrambled!
Jessie : Soft boiled!
Geremia : Same than my lovely brother, soft boiled.

Tell us something we don’t know.
Jessie : I am a huge Magic the Gathering addict.
Geremia : I am a huge Dungeons and Dragons addict.
Marine : Ok, these guys are inspired. Sorry to say I’m just left-handed.

Which city do you recommend we visit – and why?
Geremia : In France we have a lot of medieval towns and villages. I really like that! It is a window into history.
Jessie : I recommend you to visit Annecy if you come to France someday. It’s a lovely old city with a beautiful lake located in wonderful mountain region.
Marine : I had the chance to go to Japan a few times. I loved Tokyo, although there are so many places that I liked a lot in this country. There’s always something incredible to discover with this big city. And what is fascinating, is the fact that this city is so big, there is so many people but it’s still so peaceful and restful at the same time. I don’t know, maybe it is just my tourist vision
haha.

What’s your drink of choice?
OAKMAN : Wine of course! We’re French.

What band or album do you think we should check out right now?
Geremia : Totorro, really good sunny French math rock.
Jessie : Citizen or the song ‘Headsick’ from USER x.
Marine : Death By Fireworks! You definitely have to check this band out. Their new single ‘Waste’ is dope! They are so talented and deserve more attention.

Do you have anything else to declare?
OAKMAN : We have new material coming soon. Can’t wait to share that with all of you. So stay safe and stay tuned! We’ll be back soon.

Lead image – credit – Aurélien Mariat