SATURN

Despite their smaller size, SATURN is a band that has been kicking since 2003, releasing two full length albums, with a follow-up EP in 2018. “Stomping Grounds” is a fascinating release that packs a bit more of a punch than their previous albums.

SATURN is typically a fairly ominous band. Whether this is in the lyrics or the hazy, atmospheric musical landscape that they craft, most of every song has some kind of darkness layered into it. While this bleakness is omnipresent in “Stomping Grounds,” the atmosphere is ditched for stronger guitar licks and more dynamic lead work. While this does stand out a little next to some of their past work, the sound continues to compliment their strengths and avoids ditching their old sound completely. In terms of a band’s evolution, this is the “Goldilocks Zone” that most bands would strive to achieve.

To try and classify this release into a genre would typically land it somewhere in the alt-rock arena, but distinctive metal-inspired riffs flow through a few tracks. “August Heat” has this lead guitar that takes over the mix that sounds straight off a Black Sabbath album. The fuzzy hard-rock chords that flow through the title track further exemplify this idea.

Despite the “metal” comments, a strange similarity can be drawn to Gorillaz. Vocally, the similarities are occasionally uncanny. The filter layered over Brett Fieldcamp’s vocals in “A City Split By A Mountain Range” is distinctly similar to what Damon Albarn has done in the past. Take this with the synthetic drum work, sweeping synthesizers, hollow production and cryptic lyrics and the likeness to Gorillaz is undeniable. This all being said, it never feels like a cheap rip-off. SATURN establish their own identity without truly sounding like copycats.

The black tone of this album carries on to “Dorothy Gale,” a track that discusses a tornado, presumably one that hit the band’s hometown of Moore in 2013. Taking the title from the full name of the lead character in “The Wizard Of Oz,” the song discusses this Dorothy that comes and destroys everything in the narrators life. The literalness of this track can only come in the eye of the beholder.

“Stomping Grounds” is a truly excellent EP that helps establish a new sound to these local veterans. Demonstrating their immense talent, this release is not one to be passed over. - Starcatcher Magazine

Through a series of emails and Facebook messages, I was able to gather the full story of OKC band, SATURN – everything from how the band formed to what they hope the band will become. After consulting with each other, Brett Fieldcamp was elected to compose the group’s answers.

According to Brett Fieldcamp, SATURN began sixteen years ago. The three members had been in and out of bands; when the group Brett and Brady Fieldcamp had been in “unraveled,” they called up their old friend, Jesse York, and started a new one. This all happened in the summer of 2003. Since then, they’ve performed together off and on, with SATURN taking the backseat to their other endeavors.

Their newest EP, Stomping Grounds, is the turning point for the band. The songs are not necessarily new; the band has been playing many of them for years. Yet, in 2018, they decided to take a more serious approach and finally record their more commonly played tracks. Since then, they have been attempting to gather a wider audience in which to spread their music.

What made you guys decide to become musicians?

Fieldcamp: I think all three of us just grew up with music. For Brady and me, our father was a massive music addict. He devoured and collected nearly everything. And Jesse was raised in this great, encouraging community of older classic rockers that would get together on weekends and jam and play parties all the time. So I guess on some level, it was just in our blood from a young age.

What is your songwriting process?

For us, we’ll normally hit on some melody or chord progression at practice or when we’re just sitting around noodling or humming or something. I’ll try to give it a really basic fleshing-out, just to figure out where it’s going, and then it always comes back to the band and finds some new avenue. And then the lyrics pretty much come last. Brady and I will both labor over lyrics for really unreasonable amounts of time.

What are some of your musical influences?

A lot of Jesse’s bass playing is informed by the early 90’s Grunge stuff that he loves, like Alice in Chains; so, real low notes and deep, round tones. Brady’s drumming lately has been pretty directly influenced by a lot of funk and soul drumming, both old and new (like, Bill Withers and new Amos Lee). With guitar, I keep coming back to Radiohead a lot.

What kind of audience would you say your music is aimed towards?

I’ve always felt that your target audience should be yourself. If you’re into an odd, unexpected, combination of things, there’s a pretty good chance that there are other people out that love all of the same things in the same strange combinations. A lot of modern playlist-makers and startup labels and blog-runners want to tell young musicians that they need to find a focused style for themselves and develop it and stick to it, but you can’t tell me that The Beatles and Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd and Radiohead didn’t make constant, wild stylistic shifts.

What does the name “SATURN” mean to you guys? Why did you choose the name for your band?

It’s a surprisingly long, convoluted theory about our dad and numerology and recurrence theory and Roman mythology. Lately, we just tell people we’re named after the old wrestler Perry Saturn.

Which of your past performances was your favorite? Why?

The one that immediately comes to mind was a few years ago, the last year that we weren’t officially selected for Norman Music Festival. We took a slot on one of the awesome, unofficial stages that people set up around Norman, It was the day Prince died, so I wore purple and dedicated our set to him. I felt that it was my duty as a performer to get up and PERFORM the way he always did, so I just went big with it. [The] audience just responded to us in a huge way. It’s the most I’ve ever felt like a rock star.

The final question was over their experience in the Oklahoma music community.

According to Fieldcamp, there isn’t a collective OK music community. Instead, it’s split into a lot of different, smaller ones. The main one in OKC and Norman is apparently Indie-Rock/Psychadelic/Garage-Rock, but the Punk and Metal scenes have been on the rise lately as well.

Fieldcamp believes that SATURN belongs somewhere in between either of those two groups and so isn’t sure of where they stand as far as the OK music scene – or how the scene even fits together for them to have a spot. He doesn’t believe it overlaps enough to call it a “community.”

He did make mention of how the Norman Music Festival has brought some of the sub-categories together; though, he feels this mainly applies to the Indie-Rock, Metal, and Punk scenes. The jazz community, he specified, is one that is on the rise and is alienated from the rest of the music scenes.

According to Fieldcamp, however, Evan Jarvicks of Make Oklahoma Weirder IS the Oklahoma music community. He made sure to let us know that Jarvicks is the best resource for every aspect of OK music – something, I assure you, we already knew.

“He’s able to float around among everything that’s going on and really absorb all the different elements,” said Fieldcamp.

After sixteen years of learning and experimenting, SATURN is ready to take their music to the next level. Several mini tours and shows have already been scheduled for 2019 and 2020; for them, Stomping Grounds, an EP written about their hometown (Moore, OK), is what will ironically bring them out of their hometown.

Armed with an indescribably cohesive sound inspired by a variety of bigger artists, SATURN is prepared to prove themselves to anyone that gets in their way.

Check them out on all social media and music streaming sites. - Starcatcher Magazine

BY DENNIS SPIELMAN · APRIL 27, 2018

With art-rock sounds, SATURN, speaks with me in this Norman Music Festival performer question and answer session. SATURN will perform at the Red Brick Bar on Saturday, April 28, 2018, at 5:30 pm. Here are ten questions to get to know them.

1. To get people to know you, how would you describe yourself and your music?

SATURN – We normally pitch ourselves as some kind of “art-rock,” whatever that means. On our records, we intentionally try to cover a lot of stylistic ground, running through everything from intense post-rock to piano-oriented pop to prog-rock to electronic stuff. Our live shows tend to be pretty guitar-driven and energetic, though, and that’s definitely the kind of show we’re planning for NMF.

2. What song would you like a person who hasn’t heard your music listen to first?

SATURN – This was a difficult choice, but we settled on “Main Street,” from our second album “A Long Discussion.” It sums up a lot of ideas and influences we’re shooting for while still being pretty straightforward and simple.

3. What’s your song writing process?

SATURN – Most of our songs begin as either some random riff or melody that one of us stumbles upon, or as something that we land on accidentally while we’re jamming or messing around at practice. Once that early idea is established, it’s just about trusting your instincts and trusting whatever direction it sends us in. Then it’s just about doing whatever is best for what the song wants to be, even if it’s something we wouldn’t expect ourselves to do.

4. What are your thoughts on the Norman Music Festival?

SATURN – As a primarily Norman-based band for the past number of years, it’s the biggest, craziest event there is! It gets bigger and better every year, and this year is especially huge. The people that run the festival care so deeply about the creative scene in Oklahoma, and we know they put everything they have into helping that scene develop all year long, every year. NMF put the city, and really the whole state, on the map in a way that proves that OK is a cultural powerhouse. Plus, it’s just so great to see our friends climbing higher on the line-up every year!

5. In general, what inspires you?

SATURN – Art that takes real risks. That simple. Anyone that pushes themselves and their own audience out of whatever comfort zones is an inspiration to us. We have a tendency to really connect with and fall in love with art that really challenges its audience.

6. You’ve just been offered an all expenses paid trip. Where would you go?

SATURN – A tour of the Solar System. Or maybe Iceland.

7. Any plans while you’re in the Norman area?

SATURN – We all grew up in Moore, so Norman is our second home. So we’ll probably just load up on all the good food that we can’t get up the street in Moore.

8. What else you want the public to know about you?

SATURN – Just check out our official site at SATURNSITE.COM and follow us on social media and all that. Other than that, we’d want people to know about our incredible friends that have worked with us and helped us so much. Steve Boaz, the owner of Breathing Rhythm Studio in Norman, is one of our oldest and best friends, and he’s helped this band in ways that we can never repay. Local artist Maurice Perez is our other brother, and he’s provided us with the cover art for our last two releases. And Jarvix. He’s seriously the best resource a musician can have, and he is a treasure to this entire community.

9. What do you think should be the Eleventh Wonder of the World?

SATURN – Easy. Jon Hamm.

10. What was the most extreme adventure you’ve had?

SATURN – This one comes from Brett: “I did Coachella three years in a row, 2010 – 2012. Each year was an unforgettable and life-changing experience. The most ‘extreme’ thing about it all was the heat. 110 every day in the sun. Also, the drive. I drove all the way there and back with friends every year. 20 hours BOTH WAYS! It was brutal, but totally worth it. The performances I saw out there, and the experiences I had, were beyond anything. Those memories are a huge inspiration in everything I do musically and artistically now, and I definitely see a lot of that same atmosphere and energy in NMF every year.” - Uncovering Oklahoma

Brothers Brett and Brady Fieldcamp and Jesse York formed SATURN in 2003. Three years later they would release their debut album entitled In Sorrow You’ll Find Hope, which earned them a loyal fan base. They wouldn’t come out with their sophomore release entitled A Long Discussion for another twelve years. The album contains thirteen songs and is quite scattered when it comes to style and theme. I thought some of it worked very well and some of it fell a bit short. That being said I would say the majority falls into the former. The band flirts with post-rock, pop, ambient and a couple of places in between.

The album kicks off “Asleep Inside the Sound,” which starts off with a lone piano and vocals. I loved the piano sound, which reminded me of Silver Mt. Zion. The song is extremely melancholy and is basically on the verge of despair. You can surely understand my surprise when I heard the second track “The Crows,” which was upbeat and lively.

“The Crows” is a great song and can easily make a case for being the standout track on the album. The instrumentation is a rich tonal palette with a piano taking the lead but the vocal melody is what makes this song special. It’s instantly catchy and I felt the delivery was especially effective here. Guitars start to become more prevalent on “All the Clouds in the Sky,” which tumbles along with a kinetic energy that gets powered by a steady percussion and very welcome trumpet.

I have ambivalent feelings about a couple of the songs. One that comes to mind was “Absolute,” which is seven- plus-minutes that doesn’t go anywhere. It’s atmospheric and beautiful in a melancholy kind of a way but I think it could have been wrapped up in four minutes since the energy doesn’t change. The next track “Canada” is longer but doesn’t feel like it since it contains peaks and valleys. This is a bit post-rock mixed in with elements of jazz and metal. I have to say it felt worlds away from some of the other material.

As the album progresses there were more twists and turns that had me scratching my head. “Holy Hands” is an acoustic based folk song while “Ghosts II” is grandiose style post-rock. They close with an extremely sparse and dismal song called “asleep”.

The biggest issue with A Long Discussion is the flow. A majority of those the songs work on their own but when listened to in sequential order it feels like a compilation CD rather than an album that has recurring themes (something that can happen when taking twelve years to make an album). I’m not sure the band realizes that they have a gift for writing a great indie pop song as the displayed on “The Crows.”

I was hoping that the band would explore that territory more. Overall, this is a solid yet disjointed album that contains a number of songs that are clear highlights. - Divide and Conquer

SATURN was formed in 2003 in Moore, OK by brothers Brett and Brady Fieldcamp and longtime friend Jesse York, and they quickly began working to develop a unique, artistic, rock-based style, influenced heavily (but equally) by the likes of Pink Floyd, Tool, The Cure, Sigur Ros, and even more folk-oriented artists like Josh Ritter and Iron and Wine. In 2006, the band completed their self-recorded debut album “In Sorrow You’ll Find Hope” and began performing and building a firm and loyal fanbase around their home.

By 2009, tightened by frequent performances and bolstered by a confidence in their adventurous new material, SATURN was ready to enter Breathing Rhythm Studio (owned and operated by close friend and regular collaborator Steve Boaz) for what would, after 5 long years of recording, become “A Long Discussion.” The new full-length album showcases a never-deeper sense of song and melody for the band, augmented by their profound tendency toward atmosphere and experimentation.

SATURN is currently working hard on touring with an intense, visually-stimulating live show and performance style, often created in partnership with rising painter and visual artist Maurice Perez. - Music Inform

Formed in 2003 in Moore, OK, Saturn recently released their sophomore full-length album A Long Discussion (available on iTunes and the band’s webstore).

This interview was conducted via email January 7 – 20, 2014.

For more information on Saturn check out their official website, Facebook, and Twitter pages.

Dave: How did the band get together?

Brady Fieldcamp: Well, I had been in and out of bands for a long time through high school and after, and eventually Brett started joining those bands, which gave us a chance to see how we could write and play together.

Brett Fieldcamp: Once the last of our other bands fell through, Brady and I decided to just start something up ourselves, so I called Jesse, who I’d played with for a long time in my first band, and he was up for it, so we all got together and gave it a shot. I specifically remember Jesse on the phone saying “that sounds like a good opportunity.”

Jesse York: I always kinda knew that I’d end up playing with Brett again, even after our first band broke up, and even back then, I was so impressed with Brady’s playing and had always joked that we needed him as our drummer.

Brett: It wasn’t until much later on, after our first album was released, that we reconnected with Maurice Perez, who we’d known from high school, and when we brought him in to collaborate, we were finally able to start approaching a lot of the live visual and artistic ideas we’d had.


Dave: What’s the story behind the name Saturn?

Brett: There’s a lot of really personal relevance and reasoning behind why we chose the name Saturn, but without going too deeply into all of that, we’ll say that it comes from a place of recognizing that the name Saturn has had this pretty huge significance in loads of ways across so many different cultures and eras and philosophies. Obviously the Roman mythology, where Saturn was the father of the Gods, has a lot to do with it, but also the planet, of course, and its symbolism in both science and occultism. It’s all combined, really, and is wrapped up with a bunch of personal significance, too. We’re actually still always finding and realizing new ways the name applies. We usually just tell people we’re named after the car company or the old professional wrestler, though.


Dave: For those who have never heard the band, how do you describe your music?

Jesse: Uhhh…

Brady: I usually tell people that we just want to be Pink Floyd.

Brett: That’s a hard one. The Floyd comparison is pretty apt, I think, but more from a lot of their earlier stuff, when they were still playing around with lots of folk influence and trying out different sounds and structures and improvising more. We have a lot of guitar, like most rock, and lots of organic, folky-type structures and sounds, but also lots of instrumentals and improvisation from a big jazz influence, and even a bit of metal on occasion. Most people we know call us Art Rock, which I think is a pretty good catch-all for what we do, especially given our live show and the fact that one of us is a painter and artist.


Dave: You have a new album coming out entitled A Long Discussion. What’s the story behind the record?


Brady: We began it as an EP. It was only supposed to be five songs. After we realized it was going to be almost as long as a full-length album, we decided to just fill it out. We started building coherence for it with new songs and older stuff, and created more of an album format. The overall theme and idea presented itself. Like any art, really, it’s very personal, but it ended up becoming an even bigger part of our lives than we could’ve expected.

Jesse: God, it took forever.

Brady: Yeah, it took us five years, and even though it was stressful it was kind of nice to let the album have time to breathe. We weren’t trying to get it out quickly so we could reflect and mold it into the best version of it.

Brett: The title actually came up really naturally and early on, but ended up being pretty appropriate with how long it all took.


Dave: Do you have any plans to tour in support of the record?

Brett: Definitely. Right now we’re looking at identifying some cities around the country that would be really receptive to what we do, and then we plan to make the rounds through those places and try to establish ourselves in their scenes. Most of what we’re looking at is actually along the east coast. We’re also looking into booking some stuff around the Norman Music Festival and hopefully South By Southwest, as well.


Dave: Do you have any specific type of songwriting process?

Brady: We have so many, honestly. We usually just get an idea, either from something one of us has worked out or just from jamming together at practice, and then we just try stuff and see where it goes. Sometimes one of us will bring in a song fully-formed and other times we’ll seriously just record a long improvisation and call it finished if it sounds good to us. We like to just try every different way we can think of to write, and the songs on this album really reflect the products of all the different approaches we’ve taken.


Dave: What are your thoughts on the music scene in Oklahoma?


Brett: There’s so much going on here musically right now, and so much that I think a lot of people don’t know about. Obviously, as far as rock stuff goes, I think the biggest perspective people have of Oklahoman music is the Flaming Lips, and then there’s a pretty wide scene kind of spawned from that style of crazy, noisy psychadelia and garage-rock freak-out stuff, and it’s all awesome and pretty insane. There’s a lot of smaller stuff happening, though, and it’s so cool to see it all combining and feeding off of collaboration. You’ve got Kyle Reid and his band playing this great, old-school jazz stuff, and then he and members of his band are also playing with Magnificent Bird, who are doing some dark, atmospheric post-rock. That kind of cross-style collaboration is happening all over the place and it’s so cool to see the results. I always think those little anomalies and unexpected acts in places are more interesting than the bigger scenes that are happening.


Dave: This is a High Fidelity inspired question. What are your top five favorite bands, albums, movies, television programs, books/authors?

Saturn: We thought it might be cool to try something a bit different with this one. We all got together and decided on five bands that are the most influential and important to us as a whole, but then we divided the four remaining categories among the four of us. Thought it might give an interesting perspective into our different tastes.--

(These are all in no particular order)

Top 5 Bands:
Tool
Pink Floyd
The Cure
Iron and Wine
Josh Ritter

Jesse’s Top 5 Movies
The Life Aquatic
Sunshine
The Prestige
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Shutter Island

Brady’s Top 5 TV Shows
Lost
South Park
The Simpsons (Specifically the first 10 seasons)
Seinfeld
It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Brett’s Top 5 Authors
Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
Alan Moore
Chuck Palahniuk
Neil Gaiman
William Shakespeare

Maurice’s Top 5 Albums
Amnesiac – Radiohead
F#A# (Infinity) – Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Mines – Menomena
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness – The Smashing Pumpkins
Spirit of Eden – Talk Talk


Dave: What’s next for the band?

Brett: Just making an effort to really push this album and get on the road, mainly.

Brady: Yeah, I honestly don’t know what’s next, but I’m really excited to find out.


Dave: Any final thoughts?

Brett: We’ve been in this band, and been living as Saturn, for ten years now. That’s a hell of a long time for a group of guys that got together in school to just have some fun and make some weird music, and we’re really happy with the way things have turned out so far, even if it’s taken a long time to get our feet on the ground. I think we’re all just excited to pick up the pace and see where we end up in another ten years… - Oklahoma Lefty