Black Oxygen’s lead singer David Lyle recently performed at Piere’s in Fort Wayne, Indiana. David says that the band is in the early stages of prepping for their sophomore album. (Photo property of Mike Deak from Stacey Page Online.)
By: Jacob Elyachar
If you have not had the chance to read part one of my interview with Black Oxygen’s David Lyle, click here: https://jakes-take.com/2012/08/17/jacob-interviews-black-oxygens-david-lyle/
Ever since seeing Slash perform on MTV and finding his grandfather’s guitar in a basement, Black Oxygen’s David Lyle wanted to be a performer for the rest of his life.
He formed the band: Black Oxygen with his younger brother, Nick and friends Jordan Myer and Matt Venegoni in 2007 and five years later, the group has traveled across the country multiple times and performed alongside established acts including Saving Abel, Skid Row, Saliva and Sevendust. They also released their debut album: The American Dream earlier this year and their single: “Take It to the Limit” jumped from #90 to #60 in the course of three weeks on the United States Rock Chart.
In part two of my interview, David and I talked about the group’s favorite songs to perform, their opportunity to open for Saliva and what advice he would give to aspiring musicians.
Jacob Elyachar: What are some of your favorite songs that you have performed on tour?
David Lyle: We perform all of our own music on tour but I really enjoy performing “Take It to the Limit.” I really love performing a song off of our album called “Insane.” We actually shot a music video for it and the video will be out in the next couple months or so. “Insane” is a true story about a crazy relationship for a guy or girl and it is one of those songs that really gets the girls involved.
I also enjoy performing “Tonight,” which is the final song that we end our set with and the whole crowd is usually going absolutely crazy and it’s really fun at our show because the crowd gets really involved and everyone has a really great time. After every single show, we sign autographs and sell merchandise and we make sure every person who wants an autograph gets one, even if it takes three or four hours.
JE: On behalf of fans everywhere, I want to thank you for doing that because there are not a lot of bands out there, who hang out with fans after they just performed their set.
DL: We are very thankful to be able to be where we are and we are going to keep working hard and keep getting better in everything.
JE: You stated that you perform a majority of your songs. Has the band ever thought performing cover songs?
DL: We have not thought about it at this point because we love doing our own music. But if it ever comes up, you will hear about it. (Laughs) But I would not count on it though.
JE: The band had the opportunity to open for Saliva. What was it like working with them?
DL: Saliva’s tour was a blast too. We played from anywhere between 500 and 1,200 people a night and they (Saliva) are such a great band because they sold millions of records to get to have the bigger bands grab us because they believe in us and it is a really cool thing.
JE: Another big band that grabbed you was Sevendust. What was one of the highlights of your time touring with that band?
DL: While the Saliva tour was great, the Sevendust tour was even bigger. We played at the House of Blues in Atlantic City in New Jersey. Our concert was sold out and it was crazy because we were playing right next to the ocean and the House of Blues is a legendary venue to play at and this tour really made me say: “I can’t believe this is all happening and its really interesting.”
JE: If Black Oxygen had the chance to collaborate with any major rock band who is currently recording right now, who would it be and why?
DL: Foo Fighters and Nickelback. They sell out arenas and they have influenced the band.
JE: What are your plans for the rest of the year?
DL: For the rest of the year, we will be touring the United States and I think we may have some dates coming up outside the United States and we are slowly working on the next CD.
JE: If you had any advice for aspiring musicians who want to start a band, what would say to them?
DL: First of all, if you dream it, you got to believe it and once you set your mind to it. It is totally possible to achieve it. The only person that would stop you is yourself and I believe if you really work hard enough anything is possible. You also need to show people that you can do what you can do as an artist or as a band.
Recently, the band premiered their latest music video “Escape the Pain” on AOL Noisecreep. Click here to watch the music video: http://youtu.be/QSGZT-6x6eY
For more information about Black Oxygen, visit their website: http://www.blackoxygenmusic.com/
