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Nashville-based band Edgehill has released their latest double-edged sword of indie rock mastery, "lol," a cathartic search for meaning out today via Severance Records/Big Loud Rock. We sat down with the band to get the inside scoop on their writing process, commitment to collaboration, and who wear's the chef's hat in the band. Read on for a true representation of friendship and collective musicianship: 

OnesToWatch: There's not a lot of bands anymore, so why are you in a band? 

Jake: I always grew up listening to bands. I always wanted to be in a band growing up, but I didn't know anybody to play with, so I just grew up playing guitar in my bedroom alone. I was still doing that when I moved to Nashville for college, and then I met Chris. We started jamming together and it felt so natural, it just seemed like the thing to do. I was super excited about it. 

Chris: Yeah, I was in a band in high school, pretty much solely because my friend's dad loved '80s and ' 90s rock and didn't play any instruments. He was somewhat of an intense guy, but so nice, and basically formed a band from me and a bunch of other kids. We stayed a band for 4 years. So it only felt right that when I came to Nashville, I’d start a band. I didn’t want to do anything solo. 

Aidan: Similar to Chris and Jake, I always wanted to play drums and it was just kind of a no brainer. I made my brother play guitar to have someone to play with, and I was always trying to form bands. I did the music program School of Rock, had a band in high school, and then moved to Nashville with the intent of playing as much as I could. But, I didn’t just want to be a fill-in musician – the hired gun – I wanted to be in a band. 

There’s sometimes an argument that the “rock” revival has not yet occurred because there aren’t as many bands in the community as there are solo artists or producers behind laptops. What are your thoughts on that? 

Jake: I have a ton of thoughts on that. There’s a huge indie rock scene in Nashville – from our favorite artists to just our friends who we’ve been lucky enough to jam with. Zach, who’s playing bass with us, is in a band called McKay, and they’re one of the most incredible live bands ever. So, there definitely is band culture if you know where to look. But in terms of the rock revival, it’s just a completely different frontier than the pop space or producing on a laptop, because it’s an older format. It’s much harder to create “fresh” band music, to be innovative and find new ways to express yourself. It's a space that has been explored and had multiple revivals. That being said, there’s a lot of interesting stuff going on in the merging of laptop production with the organic rock space. 

Aidan: Also, I don’t even know if it’s necessary to revive that again, because, like you said, at least the circle that we’re in is people bringing back the “band” thing, but doing it in a newer way – recording everything in your bedroom. I think that could be the new rock revival, if that’s even possible, because it truly is so hard to make it as an artist or band. 

Chris: I also think that for so long, artists have been incentivized to just have a solo career, moneywise. We split our label advance three ways, meanwhile solo artists are drinking the entire thing. Touring, merch, that gets split. Even the process of a solo artist is more streamlined, by working with a producer who builds out a lot of the track, and the artist mostly brings in a song with chords. It’s a seamless way of making music, while being in a band is collaborative in the way that requires compromises for the band dynamic. It’s more difficult. Especially in the last 15 years, radio's all been solo artists, pretty much, unless you're, Imagine Dragons who's basically making music like a solo artist, but they're technically a band. I do feel that there’s a resurgence of bands right now, and a large part of it is from the Spotify algorithm and TikTok. The indie band niche started getting pushed really hard in 2019ish, where people were invested in The Backseat Lovers and Peach Pit. So it’s coming back in it’s own way, whether or not it makes its way into the mainstream. 

Jake: There’s definitely mainstream rock influence in major acts right now. Like, half of Olivia Rodrigo’s stuff is rock inspired, at the very least. It’s one of the first times we’ve seen overdriven, loud guitars in a pop mix in a really long time. 

That’s a great point. One of the most interesting parts of a band’s dynamics is the collaboration element. What is Edgehill’s process for writing songs? Is it fully collaborative, does someone bring in the concept, how does it work? 

Jake: I wish we had a process. 

Aidan: Yeah, it really does depend, but I think what we found out from our recent time in the studio, is the way that it works best is if one or two people form an idea and have the general idea of the song already planned out. 


So would that be chords? A concept? 

Jake: A melody with some backing. 

Aidan: Some substance of a song. If someone brings that to the band, we can fill the rest out. Sometimes one of us will have the entire arrangement already figured out, and that’s easier for the band, because we can either make minor adjustments, or keep it. It’s rare that we come into the room and try to create a song from scratch. We need a base to work. 

Jake: It’s more about what everybody brings to the table, from their sound, to playing style, to their taste. 

Chris: Even before then, when the singular person starts an idea, at least for me, anything’s fair game when it comes to creating. Some songs have started just by writing lyrics, others are from a melody I sang in the shower, or just a cool chord progression. So in the game of making something, we’re open to everything. We’ve just found that the easiest way to get something that we're all happy with, is when you already have this half-baked thing that everyone can then work on, instead of starting from ground zero and everyone's trying to pull it in different directions. 

Who has the best ideas? 

Jake: On three… one two three. Me.

Chris & Aidan: Everybody. 

Who has the worst ideas?

Edgehill: Everybody. 

Jake: We all have really stupid ideas. That’s the best part about being a band though, even more than expanding each other’s ideas, we filter out the bad ones. 

Self-editing is tough as a solo artist, and I’d assume even more so as a group dynamic. How do you guys decide which songs make the cut? 

Chris: It's hard. It's really hard. It's different every time. We've all made this commitment to share what we make together, and all have a stake in it. So, it's not just like a simple democracy system or anything. Sometimes your idea doesn’t come through, but that’s the commitment you’re making in the band. I love and trust these people and if the others aren’t happy about it, then I don’t want to make them do it.  

Jake: It happens in the song creation part, but then once you have your batch of songs to choose from to make a record, there's actually a really strong consensus. We didn't disagree even at all. 


If everything comes to fruition for Edgehill in the way you’d like, and you get to build your dream show, where are you performing and who’s playing? 

Jake: Mine would be at the Gorge. 

Aidan: He’s a huge Dave Matthews Band fan. 

That makes more sense. 

Aidan: Huge. Like he has multiple tattoos. The Gorge is beautiful though, and it would be awesome to have a festival of our friends bands and bands we’re in love with. 

Chris: Yes, a festival of just our friends would be so cool. McKay, Mercury, Palmer, Riley Whitaker, Noah Floersch. 

Aidan: Ryman, Emma Ozier, Billy, Eden Joel, Baby Wave, Allegory. And then when it comes to bands I really look up to, Great Grandpa is a big one. Pinegrove would be huge, but we could never have them open for us. 

Jake: I’d never let them happen. 

Aidan: Alex G, too. 

Jake: I don’t want it to be indoors. Like Brooklyn Bowl or something where people can interact and not be sitting in far seats. 

Aidan: I’d want everyone to get on stage and sing with each other and make moments that wouldn’t happen anywhere else. That would be really cool. 

Jake: Yes, play on the fact that these are live bands that aren’t using tracks. Or any of the modern production techniques that so many artists use nowadays. We’re all about making music that you hear on the spot, and you can do so much in the collaboration space because of that. 

This is awesome. So let’s say this show happens, then we of course need to celebrate. What do you do? 

Chris: We honestly might just go back to the house and play games. We’d invite our favorite people, play drinking games. 

Aidan: There’s some spots in Nashville we like to go out, but the more we do it, the less fun it is, and we just have more fun at home. 

Jake: We love to turn a game into a drinking game. 

You wouldn’t go get food? 

Chris: Maybe Hoppers? Or taking everyone from the show to an All You Can Eat sushi place. That would be sick. 

Okay, so we go back to your house and someone’s gotta cook a meal. Who’s it going to be? 

Aidan & Chris: Jake. 

Chris: Jake’s a great cook. 

What’s the band meal?

Jake: Well, recently, our other manager, Pat, had a birthday and we made him dinner to say thank you for everything. I made him a prime rib roast, mashed potatoes, carrots and creamed spinach. So I’d make a roast, if it were a celebratory dinner. I’m really good at proteins, steak, that’s my specialty. 

If you guys need a mediator, who’s the one in the group who creates an equilibrium. 

Jake & Aidan: Probably Chris.

Jake: Chris has a very level-headed approach to almost any situation, and can see all sides of things. 

What side of the spectrum are [Jake and Aidan] on then? 

Jake: I just think we’re both pretty stubborn about things. 

Aidan: We just have different ideas. 

Jake: Yes, it’s not like one of us is more optimistic or pessimistic. 

Aidan: It’s just that one person might see something going in a different direction than the other.

Jake: We don’t have any real personal issues, we’re very like-minded on what goes on in the world or between us. 

Chris: From an outside perspective, Aidan tends to enjoy – probably because he’s a drummer – parts that are a little more complex, while Jake eres toward the simplicity. I wouldn’t even say Aidan strongly pulls toward complex, but he’s a drummer, and he’s a really good drummer. 

Jake: Yes, it’s definitely a Yin and Yang, because we both like complex or simple or something in between, but that’s just a small tendency our opinions differ. 

What’s your favorite time signature?

Aidan: I used to love super complicated stuff, but thankfully I’ve matured past that. 

Chris: What’s that shirt you were wearing? 

Aidan: It said “These are hard times” and it was like 9/16 and weird time signatures. 

Separate from everything you guys discusses, how do you relax as individuals?

Jake: I golf. 

That was not going to be my first guess. 

Jake: It’s the best thing, because it’s such a frustrating game that it takes up all of my mental space. I get to go outside, too, which is a plus because we’re trapped inside when making music. So I go outside, get to walk around, and my mind is completely occupied. 

Chris: I go on bike rides, and walks a lot. I also love just going places by myself, honestly. I really like going to random places in Nashville, like thrifting or a restaurant by myself. Which is something I didn’t like before I got to college, but you’re alone in college, and I started exploring. 

Aidan: Recently, I’ve been enjoying bike riding. 

Are these mountain bikes? 

Chris: They’re hybrid kind of. 

Aidan: Chris got a bike, and then I started riding, and I just found that I love doing it. So I got my own bike, and I go out every day. It’s honestly my favorite part of the day. You get to listen to music, go outside, and explore. 

Okay last few questions. I’d love two recommendations – a non-musical one, and then your music recs. For non-music, what’s something you can suggest? A book, movie, restaurant, thing to do, etc.

Jake: My general life recommendation is ______. Whenever you cook a protein in a pan, just make a sauce out of whatever is left in the pan. You can do a red wine reduction, anything. It’ll make your protein way better. My music recommendation is McKay. I know we’ve talked about them multiple times, but I was saying to Zach earlier today, it physically pains me that they’re not a way bigger band than they are. They are THE most incredible band. 

Aidan: This is going to come across as pretty corny, but when I was in high school, before I left for college, I’d spend a lot of time on my back deck looking at the stars for hours. Now, every time I do that, I’m brought back to that time. It’s rare, but every time I do that, I remember how much I’ve been missing it. So people should look at the sky more. And then my music recommendation is Mercury. She’s already doing well, but she blows me away. Maddie is truly one of the best voices out there, and she’s an incredible songwriter, and so dedicated to being a rock act. She also has this incredible short film of three of her songs, and it’s one of the most emotionally evocative things ever. She’s a true artist. Then my other rec is my dad, who is a songwriter. Shoutout Pops. John Kelly. He’s super talented and a big reason why I write songs. He just recorded new music with us as his backing band. 

Chris: I would recommend – this is something I get a lot of joy out of – fast food restaurants’ special deals, or rare sandwiches. Like, Chick-fil-a had pimento cheese and jalapeno sandwiches, and it’s the best thing in the world. It’s a seasonal thing. It’s just fun to see a commercial and go get a special sandwich while you can. My musical recommendation is an artist I’ve been listening to a lot called Acre Memos. Lomelda worked with him and recorded an amazing album. It needs more love for how good it is. 

Amazing. Do you have some band wisdom, or a mantra you’d like to end on? 

Jake: Schwazi never lies. 

Chris: You gotta respect the schwazi. 

Jake: I’d also like to add another addendum to my pan sauce rec. The other advantage of it is that the pan is basically clean, you just get to rinse it off when you’re done. It saves so much work. 

We’re a cooking channel now. Thank you guys so much for chatting with us. 

Edgehill: Thank you.