DC hard rockers VOSH are about to hit the road in continued support of their latest record Vessel. The industrial, metal, punk multi-hyphenates’ vocalist Josephine Olivia was kind enough to chat with TGEFM about their sound, influences and future.
Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview. Congrats on the success of “Vessel”. What can you tell us about your sound and your goals for readers just discovering VOSH?
thanks so much! I think our sound bends between a few different genres, people tend to take what they want and need from the sound. We span from moments of goth, post punk, industrial to metal. Our goal i think collectively is just to create a real visceral experience whether you’re at a show or listening to the record at home.
What album or band or significant singles made you go “Yeah, this is what I want to do” Not just an influence but who or what was the catalyst?
we have all been making different kinds of music for years, and i think we have each wanted to make a darker edged sound- influences span from NIN to early ministry, skinny puppy, but also pop influence like Kylie monogue. I wouldn’t say it’s been one thing but a summation of experiences.
What’s going on in the hard rock/metal scenes that “femme-fronted” acts are finally seeming to get the acceptance and mainstream attention it deserved for so long? In light of the way the world seems to be moving backward in a lot of regards, do you believe we will ever get to a point where “femme-fronted” is no longer used as a descriptor when we really should just be calling bands like VOSH kick-ass rock?
Unfortunately i still find that “femme fronted” feels less common, and until the world can stop obsessing about what a person looks like / what they have goin on in their pants , it’s still going to be niche. We’ve been paired with bands that are sooo different, with the only commonality being that a woman is singing. Dont get me wrong, i love playing with bands that don’t sound exactly like us, but sometimes it just feels lazy, like “oh yeah that band has a chick singer let them share a bill” it’s incredibly lame and short sighted. The music industry at large is still inundated with male egos, “boys club” mentality, but i can only hope that with more women playing music and getting out there, it’ll feel less rare.
We’ve all got a few, what is your biggest regret? A gig you turned down, advice you didn’t take, what one thing do you wish you handled differently as a musician?
Not sure i have a specific regret, but words of wisdom that i always follow is “don’t throw the show”. Whether there’s 2 people at the gig or 2,000, you show up and you give it everything you have. That’s something i learned really early on and i live by it now. You’re there to put on a show, and that’s what you gotta do every single time.
One of our obligatory questions in these interviews also tends to be the one I have found most important on a personal level. Who are some bands on your radar that TGEFM readers may not know about, but you think they should?
True Body is an incredible band based in NYC/ Richmond. We just played with them in Queens @ trans pecos. They have an incredible sound and presence and one of my favorites
Now that the world has its hands on the album, what’s next for VOSH?
We are still pushing ahead on this current North American tour, we hit the road Oct 2nd and won’t be back til Nov 9th, I’ll attach dates and venues.
We are releasing a small Ep in the next week or so that will be available for pre order. LP2 is coming 2025 and we head to Europe early February for a month long tour which we are also announcing soon.
10/22 – San Francisco, CA @ DNA Lounge
10/23 – Eureka, CA @ Siren’s Song Tavern
10/24 – Eugene, OR @ John Henry’s
10/25 – Portland, OR @ Coffin Club
10/26 – Vancouver, BC @ The Cobalt
10/27 – Seattle, WA @ Substation
10/28 – Boise, ID @ The Shredder
10/29 – Salt Lake City, UT @ International Bar
10/30 – Denver, CO @ The Crypt
10/31 – Omaha, NE @ Reverb Lounge
11/1 – St Louis, MO @ Platypus Bar
11/2 – Indianapolis, IN @ Black Circle
11/3 – Chicago, IL @ Reggies Music Joint
11/5 – Detroit, MI @ Sanctuary
11/6 – Cleveland, OH @ No Class
11/7 – Philadelphia, PA @ foto club
11/8 – Richmond, VA @ Fallout
11/9 – Baltimore, MD @ Holy Frijoles
What do you wish I asked about or that you had more of an opportunity to speak about during this interview?
This was great! No extras I’d add, thanks so much for having us!
Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, and no follow-ups are allowed. The interview may be lightly edited for content and clarity.
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/
