Brannon Oliver is a multi-talented musician and songwriter originally from Clovis, New Mexico. He started playing drums at age nine, and guitar at age 15. After moving to Wichita Falls in October of 2017, Brannon made his way into the local music scene shortly thereafter. He has since established himself locally as a solo act and as a drummer for the band Raymundo, as well as touring with the band Mitch Gray and the Conspiracy from time to time. I sat down with Brannon to ask him a few questions about his own music.
“All of my lyrics came from past events in either my life, someone else’s life, or something that I’ve shared with somebody. Almost every song I have has a meaning to it that I know, but nobody else might really know. It’s more how they want to perceive it. That’s my favorite part about song writing.”
Brannon expressed when asked about his technique, “I’ll sit there and find a riff, or I’ll find something that just clicks in my head and I’ll go with it. I’ll work with it for a little bit, I get it in my head and I’ll hear it in my head on a non-stop loop, and then that’s where my lyrics will come from. Throughout my day, singing in the car, driving around, or just outside smoking a cigarette, you’ll see or hear 
something or somebody says and you’re like ‘that’d be so rad’, and so you write it down.” Continuing, “I’m almost meticulous about it [practicing],” Brannon admitted. “Free time is hard to come by these days. It is hard. It’s one of those things where I’ll have a riff that’s been going in my head and I’ll have a song, but I’m lucky enough to have my guitar and my amp at work that I can just jump on there. If I’m really working on a song, I’ll get really manic about it and I’ll sit there with coffee and I’ll be in one spot for hours just writing and writing and going about it.”
Brannon’s dark yet easy-going and kind persona makes for passionate and intense music that appears to come quite naturally to him. In his solo act, his earthy voice and intricate guitar tone create a solemn musical landscape that leaves the listener to reflect on their own life experiences. His music could best be described as stripped-down, raw and melancholy.
You can find Brannon’s EP, which was released in November of 2016, titled ‘’For All The Right Reasons, At All The Wrong Times” at boliver.bandcamp.com. It is free to stream, and features both studio and live recordings. Brannon has been working on a brand new album that has a tentative release date for April 30th, so keep your eyes and ears open for updates. You can also find him at the Gypsy Kit every Tuesday night for their open mic night from 6-9pm.
– Charlie Roberts
