Archer Oh Releases The Loneliest Surface

At one point in their career, Archer Oh was Moreno Valley’s best-kept secret. However, that was more than a little while ago. When word started spreading, the band quickly came to the attention of larger audiences and discerning ears alike. This led them to become supporting acts for many well-established bands, including The Red Pears, with whom they toured the United States twice. The band, which was founded in 2015 by Arturo “Archer” Medrano, continues to gain momentum and promises a very bright future. But for now, let’s turn our attention to their latest release, The Loneliest Surface.

The Loneliest Surface is largely about the pain of keeping up appearances while suffering in silence. From failed relationships to feeling alienated and abandoned, the song captures the feeling of bottling up your emotions until the pressure becomes unbearable.

“We started writing this song
at the beginning of this year as a sort of writing exercise,
maybe as sort of an emotional outlet.”

When the song starts, we are treated to an ascending riff that quickly explodes into an effervescent rush of the most refined indie-rock sound you’ve heard all year. It is sophisticated and modern, but it doesn’t stray too far from the unapologetic garage/jangle leanings that have made Archer Oh’s sound what it is today. The lyrical focus of the song describes the pain of letting go of a relationship that is no longer working. The wistful vocals lend themselves to help us visualize the relationship as a beautiful ocean, but one that is also dangerous and isolating. The song is full of imagery that reflects this tense emotional state, where everything is in turmoil. However, the chorus hints at a make-believe pretense where everything seems normal.

An important thing to note about this song is that it is the first track that Archer Oh has not self-produced, relying instead on other professionals and all of the equipment that a “legitimate” recording studio brings. However, it almost didn’t even happen because, as Arturo points out, they almost forgot about the song altogether while they were bunking with Kameron.

“Our booking agent in Idaho and I decided to show him the demo on a whim,” Arturo said. “After hearing it, he very emphatically told us we needed to record it and put it out into the world. After discussing it with the rest of the team, we workshopped the song over the course of the whole tour and fast-tracked it to be recorded with Stefan Mac once we got home.“

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