One of my favorite things to do on the internet is to look up random music I haven’t heard that someone I follow says they love. As much euphoria as I get from introducing other people to musicians I love, I enjoy it so much when I find out I dig artists shared with me that someone else loves and wants the world to know about. Oscar Scheller is one of those artists. I had never heard of before him before seeing Rebecca Black share him on her Instagram last week, and now I am hooked on his music. He makes super warm and fuzzy Indie Pop and Indie Rock that has a retro feeling to it that is so fun. I am bummed I missed out on his project HTTP404 when it came out in 2019, but excited I get to react to his new record, Boys Cry, right when it is being released. From what I have heard so far, Oscar Scheller incorporates a lot of elements of retro Synth-Pop music with modern Indie Rock and Indie Pop music in a way that is so fresh and interesting. With that being said, here is how I feel about Oscar Scheller’s new record Boys Cry. Let me know in the comments below what songs you love from this album, and let me know your feelings about Boys Cry as a whole down there as well.
I don’t care about being cool. Fuck what they all thought in school. Now I’m not your textbook average Joe. I’ll bend all the rules. I’ll play around ’cause I’m free. Can’t tell me what masculine means. ‘Cause I’m not your textbook average Joe. No, that’s not me… – ‘Average Joe’
The first song from Oscar Scheller’s new record Boys Cry is the song ‘2D;’ it is an extremely warm and fuzzy song from the start, with an encompassing synth riff that draws the listener in. The way this song starts reminds me a lot of slow New Wave music from the 80s; specifically, this riff reminds me a lot of ‘Take My Breath Away’ from Berlin or ‘Voices Carry’ by ‘Til Tuesday. As ‘2D’ progresses, a slow-paced and low-key 808 beat kicks in that is still so reminiscent of calm 80s New Wave music. I swear I could tell someone this song came out n 1988 and people would believe me. On ‘2D,’ Oscar Scheller is realizing that it will now work out with the girl he is pursuing in any way, and everything he sees around him is becoming “2D” and dull because of it. Since he has come down from the sense of happiness that this girl gives him, nothing is and bright or colorful as it used to be. The next song, ‘Half Eaten,’ also has underlying tones of 80s New Wave music, but it also has elements of early 2000s guitar rock and Adult Alternative music. The funky bassline for this song reminds me a lot of 80s New Wave Pop music, but the guitar riff reminds me a lot of early 2000s Adult Alternative artists like Vertical Horizon or Michelle Branch. On ‘Half Eaten,’ Oscar Scheller is talking about how he felt very sad growing up, and how he is starting to feel better as an adult but always still feels like a loner. The next song, ‘Famous Enough To Die,’ is another song with an 80s New Wave sounding bassline and underlying riff; it also once again has a different sounding guitar melody that drives it. So far, every song on this record has had that New Wave undertone with a different kind of music driving the main melody of the track. On this one, that melody reminds me a lot of mid-2000s Indie Rock and surf rock. The guitar melody on this track will make anyone want to dance the day away on the beach; it is so fun and easy-going and fun to listen to. It is almost impossible to listen to this track and not bop your head while smiling. For as happy as this song sounds, the lyrical content is not very positive. In ‘Famous Enough To Die,’ Oscar Scheller is talking about how the person he wants does not think he is good-looking enough or famous enough to be so sad or want to die. This person is saying Oscar has so much more to accomplish before he dies. The ideas from ‘Famous Enough To Die’ transition very well into ‘Average Joe.’ Instead of letting someone tell him what to do with his life or how to feeling, on ‘Average Joe’ Oscar Scheller is embracing who he is as a person, admitting that he knows he is not “normal” and that he will never know how other boys feel because he is just not like other boys. Even though society tends to want boys to be masculine, Oscar Scheller does not care, so he has come to love who he is and not let the opinions of others dictate his opinions on himself. Sonically, ‘Famous Enough To Die’ also transitions into ‘Average Joe’ extremely well. ‘Average Joe’ drops the dark-sounding New Wave bassline that the preceding track has, but has a similar style Surf Rock sound to its guitar riff. This song is very uplifting and fun to listen to; the lyrical content and overall sound of this song will put anyone who hears it in a good mood.
Hey there, it’s me! I don’t look too bad, yeah I’m glad that you agree. Hey there, it’s me! I’m feeling myself, kinda pretty like a peach. Like a peach, like a peach… – ‘Peach’
Following ‘Average Joe’ we get ‘Peach,’ which has quickly become my favorite song from this record. ‘Peach’ has a similar Indie Rock and Surf Rock sound to the song that precedes it, but it has more of a happy tone to it in my opinion. This track reminds me of a lot of songs like ‘Monkey Tree’ by Mother Mother and ‘Dancing In The Moonlight’ by Toploader. The riff just has such a warm and fuzzy sound to it that reminds me of summer and makes me want to dance. ‘Peach’ is a song about self-confidence and loving yourself. On this track, Oscar Scheller is expressing that he knows he looks good and that he is very happy with himself when he looks in the mirror. The next song, ‘Hollywood Sign,’ calms down the mood and slows down the pace of the record. To me, this is probably the most “mainstream” song on this record; that is, it is the one the reminds me the most of Pop music that is popular today. It has an 80s Pop sound to it that sort of reminds me of some of the slower songs from The Weeknd’s last record. The amount of autotune and reverb on the vocals reminds me a lot of modern Pop music as well. ‘Hollywood Sign’ is another track that has a very warm and fuzzy melody; this is the kind of song that will make anyone want to curl up by the fire. On ‘Hollywood Sign,’ Oscar Scheller is begging to get a significant other back. He knows that he screwed up, and is trying to figure out if there is anything he can do to make the situation better. ‘I’m Enough,’ which features Katie Gavin, brings the New Wave feeling that the first few songs had back to the forefront. This is another song that reminds me of 80s artists like INXS and Duran Duran. The funky bassline that this song has creates a very interesting contrast with the bright and sunny melody that it has. ‘I’m Enough,’ as one might expect, is another song about self-confidence and loving yourself. On ‘Im Enough,’ Oscar Scheller and Katie Gavin admit that they are both feeling a bit down and in the dumps, so they are reminding themselves that they are great and that they are enough for the world. This is a song that I am sure will help a lot of listeners feel better about themselves as well. ‘Boys Cry’ is another song that has quickly become one of my favorites from this record. It is a song that kind of combines all of the best elements of all the types of music expressed on this record so far. It has a bass line and drum pattern that remind me a lot of New Wave music, a melody that reminds me a lot of happy Surf Rock, and a bunch of sound effects that are reminiscent of late 2000s and early 2010s Indie Pop music. The lyrics of this track create an interesting juxtaposition with the way that it sounds. On ‘Boys Cry,’ Oscar Scheller is letting all of his emotions and all of the bad energy that has been happening recently in his life consume him. He knows that boys are supposed to be too tough and stoic to cry, but is admitting that he does cry sometimes and seems to know that other boys do too. I love the honesty of this song and the fact that it makes people who like to let out their emotions feel safe.
‘Fuck It All’ is probably the most modern-sounding Indie-Pop song on this record up until this point in my opinion. It is very similar to the “Bedroom Pop” sound that has become popular over the last few years. Songs like this remind me a lot of Lorde or Billie Eilish or Clairo before her last album(which was sounded a lot more like older Indie music). This song has a catchy melody that draws the listener in and makes them bop their head. On ‘Fuck It All,’ Oscar Scheller is talking about wanting to rekindle a toxic relationship for a night. He knows that this night will have a negative effect on the near future, but he just wants to be happy for the night so he is willing to let that happen. In the next song, ‘Murder,’ Oscar Scheller completely slows the mood down. This is the only truly acoustic track on the record. After the fast pace that a lot of this record has had, I love the fact that ‘Murder’ really calms things down and kind of resets the mood. It is another song with a super warm and fuzzy melody that makes me want to bundle up by a fire and tell stories with friends. The lyrics of this track are very melancholy compared to the melody it has. ‘Murder’ is another song about a very toxic relationship that Oscar Scheller just can not seem to leave. Even though he knows being with this person will continue to hurt him, he can not leave the relationship because he still loves them. Following this is ‘Boys Cry,’ which is another song that has a riff that reminds me so much of the 80s. Instead of sounding like the New Wave Pop music that a lot of the other songs from this record have elements of, this song reminds me a lot of Post-Punk artists like The Cars and Modern English. This is one of my favorite kinds of 80s music, so this riff draws me in. When we get to the chorus, though, the song begins to have R&B elements to it as well. On ‘Happy Nowhere,’ Oscar Scheller is talking about trying to be happy outside of the toxic relationship he keeps referencing, but he keeps going back because it is the only thing making him happy. Ultimately, he would rather be happy at the moment than have to work to be happy on his own. Boys Cry closes out with the song ‘Red Eye,’ which is one of the more unique sounding songs on the record. It contains a melody and vocal style that is reminiscent of modern Bedroom Pop, it also has a beat, tempo, and guitar riffs that sound a lot like modern Emo-Trap music. This is one of the most unique tracks on the record, and it is a cool and interesting way to close Boys Cry out. The toxic relationship that Oscar has been referencing throughout this record does not come to a positive closing point with the song ‘Red Eye.’ On this track, Oscar is going back and forth about whether he should have left the relationship or not. Even though he was not happy within the relationship, he is now also unhappy that it is over. Not everything comes to close with a happy ending, and Boys Cry highlights this point.
As I stated before, I did not even know who Oscar Scheller was before I saw him on Rebecca Black’s Instagram last week. One of my favorite ways to discover great music is by checking out artists that people I like or admire share, because I know if that person likes the music, I am sure I will like it too. Oscar Scheller’s Boys Cry is a perfect example of that. Boys Cry incorporates so many different kinds of music that fit so well together. There is an 80s Pop and New Wave feeling to so much of this record, which does a great job of drawing the listener in because 80s sounding Pop music is so hot right now. Also, pretty much every kind of Indie music is highlighted on this record. From Bedroom Pop to 2000s style Indie Rock, there something for everyone on this record for fans of Indie music. Boys Cry is a fun and emotional Indie record that makes me want to dance and cry at the same time, which I am pretty sure was Oscar Scheller’s goal. Thank you to Rebecca Black for introducing me to Oscar Scheller, because I am now a new big fan of Oscar Scheller and I really dig this record.
EAST SIDE VIBES 