Melody maker, body shaker and all round nice guy, Oscar (or Oscar Scheller, if you want to get personal) has had a “mental” past couple of years. Being a true kid of the 90’s and a North London teen with a Mac and a Dictaphone laid the foundations of the long awaited release of debut album, 'Cut And Paste'.
Greeted with a “YAY!” the twenty-something year old enthuses “It feels so good that it’s out, and people are getting in touch and telling me they’re enjoying.” With songs gathered from the awkward first love to the moment he “lost track after landing in NYC” Cut and Paste is a sugar rush rollercoaster of ups and downs fizzing with optimism. Though perhaps the most exciting part? “I’m getting a lot of great selfies sent to me.”
“The communication is why music is so magical. It unites people.”
Having been classically trained in music, despite formerly having hopes of a career in Egyptology, Oscar’s day-glo bedroom pop lushes jubilancy. From carnival lullaby ‘la-la’s’ ('Good Things') to the low-slung swagger of trip hop rhythms ('Breaking My Phone'), with jangly guitar ('Be Good') and zapping synth ('Sometimes'), the soundtrack wouldn’t feel out of place of a Nintendo game.
“I took a while over choosing the track listing. Aside from the production and writing, the way the tracks run is the most important part of an album. “How people hear and even see the story can completely change what record it is.”
A fan of the “bittersweet quality pop music has” Oscar translates first heartbreak, relationships with fathers and falling out with mates into delightful slices of lo-fi but sun- kissed shots. With a “real feelings, but presented in an uplifting fashion” ethos, swooning harmonies groove alongside infectious rhythms, as baritone vocals of clumsy romanticism slink in wonderful contradiction.
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Having a knack for a killer hook and grass-is- greener attitude is “something that happens quite naturally” he explains, “some subjects on the album could be considered sad or deep, I don’t use a lot of minor chords so it tends to sound happier than say, Radiohead.”
The chipper ‘Daffodil Days’ was birthed from an autocorrect mistake from trying to explain Oscar’s difficult day. “It’s a day where you’re just not on top of it” He starts, “When you feel a little down, an off day.” One of those where you’ve rolled out of bed; hair a frizzled mess, stiff neck from an awkward angled sleep, riddled with fear after pressing ‘snooze’ an additional two times.
Playing with irony, angelic harmonies shimmy with its big surging chorus. Whilst the other side of Oscar slings arsey lyrics ‘Then I see your face, and I want to die’ in euphorically melancholic ‘Fifteen’. These are real contradictions, where “in 2016 anything goes, and that’s awesome.”
The freedom of being a songwriter and one man band eases over the scuzzy bedroom records. As an advocate for DIY music making, Oscar gushes that the culture has “such a long and fruitful history”, with thrive to keep it alive he urges “Just remember, that no one thinks like you. So do as much as you can be yourself before you need a little help.”
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Just remember, that no one thinks like you…
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Explaining how he’d go out, hear a dub track, get home and master one himself, this “musical homework” has meant that his tastes are “always evolving” as “it was, and still is a bit of a game”. As a firm believer that “pushing and challenging yourself is integral to becoming a great artist” he splatters rich vocals over Britpop riffs and paints a bluesy tone over the top, electrifying his concoction with neon beats. Concluding, “I think I’m a bit loopy when it comes to style.”
It’s Oscar’s loopiness that makes all 6ft and more of him that alluring. Donning vivid Mickey Mouse sweatshirts and questionable printed socks, his compelling image only feeds into the youthful, bubblegum burst of sound.
The unconventional heartthrob wouldn’t star in the traditional Disney film however, as he passes his romantic endeavours onto his dog. Thinking of a starring role in an animated movie, Oscar decides the plot would go as follows “after receiving several love letters from Japan, Jasper the friendly poodle decides (with his brother Oscar, also a dog), to embark on a journey from London to Tokyo in hope to find his admirer.” However, the road isn’t a straight one for the hopeless romantics on paw patrol, “Will they find the admirer? What does fate have in store for them?” Time will tell whether 'A Tokyo Wedding' will get picked up by the studio. Apparently, Japer is quite the celeb over there.
Having already broken America, and with a summer on the fields just around the corner, you’ll be seeing Oscar cut and pasted everywhere. He’ll be the one with the wet wipes and supply of tea bags.
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'Cut And Paste' is out now.
Words: Tanyel Gumushan
Photography: Bella Howard
