There's a palpable excitement in the voice of Old Man Markley vocalist and autoharpist Annie Detemple, and for good reason. In three short years, this eight piece bluegrass-punk family has gone from the unknown to being signed to Fat Wreck Chords and touring with legendary bands like NOFX and Anti-Flag, and are now on the brink of whatever fame & fortune equates to in the bluegrass-punk world. Yet despite such success in such limited time, the band remains charmingly authentic, here talking excitedly about their homegrown instruments, and about the kick they get out of fans participating in the band's polls on Facebook. 7" records, punk covers, and even wiki forums are also covered in the interview below, as is news about their status on the next OMM record. You'll be very excited to find out who's producing it...
Old Man Markley Quick Tips
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If you know instruments like the back of your hand, why not experiment with customizing your instrument of choice? The result could make for a cool sound, and will definitely make for a cool story, like this one: Old Man Markley’s Ryan Markley uses an electric Washboard that has pick ups run through a wireless unit. Whoa.
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Got a lot of band members? Consider taking some of the drudge off load-in and load out by using DI pedals instead of amps (where possible). Old Man Markley tours with only one bass amp because seven amps would be a pain for everyone. Instead, everybody has their own DI pedal.
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Want your fans to be more involved? Consider asking them questions using a Facebook poll. OMM used this feature to ask their fans what song they should cover next. Tons of the band’s fans took part in the poll, and just remember, every time someone answers a poll question it will show up in a good portion of their friends’ news feeds.
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Most bands these days release their material on CD and digitally through services like Tunecore, while a few choose to manufacture a vinyl LP as an option as well. However, don’t neglect the 7” vinyl single (also known as a 45)! OMM have a great history with 7” formats in which they release one original and one punk cover. Short, sweet, and cheap. Remember, cover songs are a great way to expand your audience!
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Since OMM have been signed to Fat Wreck Chords, they’ve taken advantage of forums they were unaware of beforehand, like the Fat Wreck Wiki. By participating in this forum, they’ve been able to connect with fans of all Fat Wreck artists and share news about new releases, tour dates, etc. Don’t leave any Direct-To-Fan connection unused!
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The process of OMM being signed to a label did not happen over night, or through the mail. By planting their seeds individually and making legitimate connections around southern California over the course of many years, they had enough people in each network to make things happen quickly when the time was right. Let that be a lesson to you!
There's a palpable excitement in the voice of Old Man Markley vocalist and autoharpist Annie Detemple, and for good reason. In three short years, this eight piece bluegrass-punk family has gone from the unknown to being signed to Fat Wreck Chords and touring with legendary bands like NOFX and Anti-Flag, and are now on the brink of whatever fame & fortune equates to in the bluegrass-punk world. Yet despite such success in such limited time, the band remains charmingly authentic, here talking excitedly about their homegrown instruments, and about the kick they get out of fans participating in the band's polls on Facebook. 7" records, punk covers, and even wiki forums are also covered in the interview below, as is news about their status on the next OMM record. You'll be very excited to find out who's producing it...
