Despite only having been around for a couple of years, the Evangelicals are arguably one of Norman’s most successful bands.
Not only have they found success locally, but have toured all over the nation in support of their debut record, “So Gone.” They have shared the stage with such bands as Serena Maneesh, Annuals, Get Him Eat Him and, most notably, The Flaming Lips. They have also achieved critical acclaim from the incredibly-hard-to-please folks at Pitchfork Media.
“Evangelicals don’t have beards, but sound like they should.” Stuart Berman said in his review of “So Gone” for Pitchfork Media. “On their scruffy surface, they’re a trio of cosmic cowboys following a path laid down by Grandaddy and currently trod-upon by Band of Horses — artists making music that evokes open skies and horizons stretching for moonlit miles. What sets Evangelicals apart is a refreshing lack of preciousness. Singer and guitarist Josh Jones may possess a fidgety, helium-high quiver endemic to sensitive guys in indie rock bands, but the tone of his voice has more to do with agility than fragility.”
The band has just finished its sophomore record “The Evening Descends.” In the past, the writing had all been done by Josh Jones, but this record was more of a collaboration.
“Josh is still the principle songwriter, but this is truly an Evangelicals record,” said bassist Kyle Davis, “We all had our way.”
The new album will be released on the recently formed Dead Oceans Records, which is a division of Secretly Canadian. The band didn’t ever formally go into the studio for this record, but instead recorded it at numerous places around Norman and Oklahoma City.
“It was basically recorded in the different places I was living, in different apartments.” Jones explained. “And Trent Bell and Chad Copeland at Bell Labs were nice enough to let me go in and use their equipment after hours. It was really made possible by the generosity of our friends and family. ”
The band is fresh off a performance at this year’s D-fest in Tulsa, where the band’s set didn’t go quite as planned. During the first song Jones broke a guitar string, then the band’s smoke machine set off the venue’s fire alarm. Because of these incidents, the venue wanted to cut the band’s set short, but the Evangelicals wouldn’t have it. They kept playing even after their power was cut. Despite all of these problems, Jones said the show turned out to be a massive success for the band.
“Sometimes the worst situations give you this punk-rock Zen that makes for the best shows,” Jones said. “You could never plan for that kind of thing, but it’s great when it happens.”
Despite living in Norman, the band isn’t sure where it fits in with the rest of the local music scene, but are still huge supporters of it.
“I don’t even feel like we are part of it, because we just don’t play that many shows here,” Davis said. “Though I really love a lot of the bands here. Bands like Student Film, Ghosts of Monkshood, and Neon Signs Like The World Is Great are some of my favorite bands, local or not.”
“I really hope a lot of the band’s here are able to do something outside of the local scene,” Jones said. “Some of the bands are definitely deserving of getting signed and things like that.”
