Life Lessons has an honest and gritty approach to pop punk, making their music straightforward in its delivery and sincerity. Leaning more onto the alternative/indie side of the genre, these OKC locals have pushed through lineup switches and worked through the writing process even with a member studying abroad. One listen through the raw emotions and deep, rich melodies on their latest EP Need To Know shows that it was all worth it. Stream all of Life Lessons’ music on their Bandcamp page.
For Fans Of: Knuckle Puck, Taking Back Sunday, Crucial Dudes
Socials Sites: Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Bandcamp
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Kaden Birdsong – Vocals
Ian Johnston – Guitar
Josh O’Dell – Guitar
Andrew Wasson – Bass
Chris Lewis - Drums
What’s your hometown (or what are your hometowns)?
We’re from Oklahoma City mostly, but Josh is from Muskogee, OK, and Ian is from Hutchinson, KS.
How did the band come together? How long has it been?
Andrew: We started when Kaden, Chris, and I got together in summer of 2013, so we’ve been a band a little over a year now. We had Kaden and fill-ins playing guitar for a while, but this summer we added both Ian and Josh on guitar, and that’s gone really well.
How have you grown since you started?
Andrew: We started out just playing really small local shows but we’ve been able to get on the road a little here and there. We’ve finally gotten out of state, and we’ll be hitting the road again right after Christmas. We also put out our first real EP in June.
Kaden: When we first started out, it was just Andrew, Chris, and I. Last February, Andrew was over in Europe studying abroad, and it was a challenge for us as a band. It was difficult to communicate, exchange ideas, and be a band that way. We wrote a lot of the music on our last EP with it being just Chris and I, and we recorded the EP that way as well. After Andrew got back, we made the decision to move me to vocals and add our guitarists Josh & Ian, and everything has been great since. We’ve grown a ton with our writing process, including new ideas and different opinions, and I think the extra voices in our band have really helped shape us into something new and better.
What sets you apart from other bands?
Kaden: We’re extremely dedicated to making this work. We’re all broke because of this band, and we put all the effort we can into it. We pull a lot of different ideas and styles into the way we write. We try to make our sound into the best mix of the music we like and are influenced by.
What’s the best part about being in your band?
Andrew: We’re all friends, and we get along really well and have fun together. These guys are the best. It’s not difficult to be in a band together when you play with guys you get along with. We also have a similar mindset with writing music. It’s pretty cool being in a band where there’s that kind of chemistry.
Kaden: We all are really similar as people. We have the same ideas, the same mindsets, and similar personalities. We work well together. We all have very easygoing attitudes, and that makes everything we do a ton easier to handle. Everyone in this band has something to bring to the table, and I think they’re all really talented.