An ambitious rock band who have conquered Austin -- the “Live Music Capital of the World” -- are about to embark on their biggest challenge of all: Los Angeles, the entertainment capital of the universe.

This is Oliver Future.

Oliver Future’s sound is epic, filled with raw emotion, and powerfully delivered through singer/guitarist Noah Lit’s vocals - which can range from the moodiness of David Bowie to Damon Albarn’s playfulness to Thom Yorke’s crooning in the course of a few lines. The band injects elements of dance-rock into heavy guitar driven songs with luscious hooks and harmonies and sharp songwriting, resulting in tunes that are instantly catchy and possess an undeniable intensity.

The pomp and swagger of this five-piece is what makes them an irresistible live band, but the true confidence that lies within the band is why they are destined to succeed. Armed with a new EP, The Bear Chronicles V.II, which will be released to all major digital retailers on February 14, 2006, and a new producer, Eels’ Koool G Murder (aka Rusty Logsdon), Austin’s buzz band is ready to win over Hollywood with soul searing tracks about heartache and life in LA.

“What we’re really feeling right now is the chorus of What Heart (the first track off the EP) – this is the life that we’ve chosen for ourselves,” said Lit.

“It is actually a line from Godfather II that Jesse Ingalls (bass player) and I always say to each other when we are touring and exhausted. We’re not doing the normal things our friends are doing and we’ve made a lot of sacrifices and lost a lot. But we’ve all had a pretty amazing time doing it.” 

Oliver Future was dubbed a breakout band to see at the Austin City Limits Festival in 2005 and was named “Best Band in Austin” by the city’s weekly, the Austin Chronicle. Oliver Future was praised by NPR’s Bob Boilen, had a single off their debut in the CMJ Top 200, and continue to receive regular spins and constant praise from legendary Sex Pistols guitarist, Steve Jones, on his daily show Jonesy’s  Jukebox on LA’s Indie 103.1. Ben Harper, who brought Ingalls and drummer Jordan Richardson into the studio to jam on a track off his soon-to-be-released album, is among their fans and future collaborators.

The Future began when Lit (guitar, vocals) and Ingalls (bass,vocals) decided to break away from the glam rock style of their former band, The Love Supreme and start fresh in a sonically different direction. This led them to not only changing their name, but changing their whole approach to songwriting as well.         
Within two weeks of Noah adding his brother Josh Lit (keyboards and vocals) to the band, Sam Raver (lead guitar), who had played drums in a rock band with Noah in high school, moved to Austin and joined the lineup on guitar.  The final piece was Richardson (drums), an accomplished drummer in the Ft. Worth/Dallas music scene, who was introduced to the band by Raver. His hard-hitting and perfect groove complimented Ingalls’ bass playing and their new artistic vision, tying the whole band together.

The band toured across the country and released a highly praised full-length album, Oliver Future, with tracks featured on MTV’s Real World: Austin as well as the new A&E series Rollergirls, which debuted in January 2006. They will be a part of a Rollergirls soundtrack to be released by Koch Records.

The band changed course and headed West after securing a management deal with STILETTO Entertainment in Los Angeles. They quickly settled into a house where they could rehearse at a moment’s notice and were soon back in the studio, inspired by new experiences and new musical influences.  This new transitional phase helped them re-evaluate what they were good at and what they truly enjoyed doing.   

“Most of our influences we wear on our sleeve like David Bowie, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, Led Zeppelin, and U2. But we started really getting into soul music in the last year after some heartbreak and ego bashing experiences,” said Lit. “We got to raid the vault at Warner Brothers, thanks to some friends that worked there, and we stole fantastic soul box sets like Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin. It’s the best thing a major label has ever done for us!”

Much of the new EP is a reflection of all these influences reined in carefully by Rusty, who met the band through a mutual friend.

“I’m a sucker for big production. I love Phil Spector and The Beatles. But I had to realize some of my favorite Beatles songs are some of the most simple ones with just  them jamming.”

“Rusty wanted to let the band sound like the band, which meant when we would say ‘wouldn’t it be cool to have a string section here?’ he would say no!”

Rusty is behind the super catchy, hard rockin’ What Heart and live favorite San Francisco Song, which dives into heartbreak with dramatic beauty and captures the bitter truth of the experience in the closing line: “Nobody knows anybody, not that well.”

Bukowski Bar, so-named for the bar around the corner from the studio where they were recording, relays amorous advances in a dirty rock ‘n’ roll track. Singing “I want you” as more seduction than plea, Lit pines for a sexually charged encounter with a woman and you know that’s exactly what he will get. 

Oliver Future recorded and produced the track Seppuku Sunday themselves, with Richardson at the helm, and brought their longtime producer Lars Goransson (Cardigans, Cotton Mather) on board for Marcello Mastroianni, which hints at Lit’s more paranoid illusions in a story about the singer being tricked into espionage with a woman who is trying to kill him.

Oliver Future’s unrivalled passion in their music soars alongside their impressive and highly accomplished lyrics, revealing a defined maturity and giving them a solid ground from which to emerge in 2006.

As it stands, the EP lands somewhere amongst the Future’s best. And it should land somewhere in the best of yours as well.

For more go to www.oliverfuture.com and www.myspace.com/oliverfuture.

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