Today we’d like to introduce you to Harrison Flynn and Olivia Beck.
Harrison and Olivia, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Harrison Flynn: Olivia and I both grew up in the east bay area and met through a music performance class at Diablo Valley College that was taught by Steve Sage. We ended up playing together in a few groups through this class and eventually formed our own group and started playing out in various bay area venues. We honed our skills by consistently playing gigs and learning songs (mostly covers which gave us a strong musical foundation for writing songs). We both have our own influences which give us an interesting dynamic. I grew up listening to artists steeped in the blues, folk and rock tradition ranging from Eric Clapton, Robert Johnson, Bob Dylan and The Beatles. Olivia comes from a soul, r&b and blues background as well with influences like Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Mahalia Jackson. I relocated to LA about four years ago and Olivia about two years ago.
We had written this song, “The Shadow” together about three years ago while I was in LA and Olivia was still living in the bay area. I composed this piece of music that was heavily influenced by Stephen Stills and other singer/songwriters from the 60’s/70’s era of Laurel Canyon as well as Indian Classical music. Laurel Canyon is a neighborhood that I tend to frequent quite often so that sound definitely comes out in my writing and I’ve always had a deep love for exotic sounds and open guitar tunings that bring to my mind eastern sensibilities. I sent it to Olivia who then wrote lyrics about an ex-lover that she had just finished seeing at the time and it had this beautiful melody and with her voice on top of that, it was the icing on the cake. It all seemed to come together from there. We performed it for the first time at the Lafayette Town Hall Theatre. It got such a positive reaction that we kept performing it whenever we could.
Flashforward to January 2020, we decide to book a session at my friend Aaron Gross’s studio in Laurel Canyon and record it. We got it in a few takes. Myself on guitar, Olivia on vocals and our friend Ben Torres recorded a beautiful tabla part with us which only added to the exotic nature of the song. My friend Dylan Nelson recorded bass in a separate session a few days later. Flash forward to now and this song is finally out for the world to hear. Every piece of The Shadow has been a labor of love. Like Olivia says, what you’re getting is 100% her and 100% me and it has turned out to be a very magical and beautiful process.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Olivia Beck: As soon as we chose our path in music, we knew it wouldn’t be easy. & it only gets harder from here. Doing what you love doesn’t always start out as a lucrative option. So we are still on that road, & it’s a bumpy one at that. But Harrison & I are prepared for that & wouldn’t trade our lives for anything else.
Harrison Flynn: I’m with Olivia on that one! It’s not an easy path, that’s for sure. It takes a lot of courage and patience to chase a dream and do something that you love. Times will be tough and we all have our moments of self-doubt and crippling creative blocks. My personal life has sometimes taken a hit because of the work and time that I need to put into my craft. That can be hard but I know and accept that it takes a lot of practice and persistence to get where you want to be.
It is incredibly rewarding to be able to share my passion of music with others and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. Believe in yourself. Dive deep into that soul of yours. There are people out there that want to hear what you have to say.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Olivia Beck: As a singer & songwriter, what sets me apart is my dedication to balancing the old with the new. I’m a sucker for the traditional AABA pop standards, & I also love the more abstract influences from music today. So whether it’s for my own work or for a collaboration, I always strive to keep that balance. No use trying to fix what isn’t broken, but also important to keep things sounding & feeling fresh. The Shadow is sorta the perfect example of that because it sounds familiar & unfamiliar at the same time!
Harrison Flynn: My instrument of focus has always been the guitar. I am also a vocalist and writer as well. I would say the root of my playing comes from American roots music; blues, folk, country, jazz and rock and roll. I’ve always had this desire to discover different sounds and ways of playing the guitar. I experiment with a lot of open tunings in addition to slide guitar and I generally play without a pick.
For “The Shadow” I use an open modal tuning (EEEEBE) that I picked up from listening to a lot of Stephen Stills. I’ve always been intrigued by different genres and instruments as well and try to implement that into my playing. Indian Classical Music in particular has been a fascination for me and it found its way into our song. I am very proud of the work Olivia and I have done together and there will be lots more to come! I’m also excited about a lot of other recordings and projects that will be out shortly!
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
Olivia Beck: I personally don’t really believe in luck; Harrison regards it a little more than I do. Ultimately if it plays any part at all in our journey, it’s a small role. We rely much more on hard work. We sound amazing when we play together because we rehearse, & The Shadow came to fruition because of the time & energy we put into it; including the marketing & distribution. As grateful as we are for every cool experience we receive, those experiences aren’t entirely random once you account for all the effort put in.
Harrison Flynn: I firmly believe in hard work and the desire and belief to achieve whatever it is you’re striving for. I do consider myself very lucky and fortunate to be able to chase my dreams in Los Angeles and to have friends and family that encourage my passion. That is one thing that has kept me going so I feel very lucky to have those people in my life.
Pricing:
- iTunes: 0.99
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.harrisonflynn.com/
- Instagram: Harrison (https://www.instagram.com/harrison_flynn/)
Olivia (https://www.instagram.com/itsoliviaaah/) - Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9hFID-_OnITagyO9XGWQ4w
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/olivia-beck-5
- Bandcamp: https://oliviaharrison.bandcamp.com/releases
- Other: https://songwhip.com/oliviaharrison/the-shadow?fbclid=IwAR0Ra0B-ZgqULCqelQXij3HGUFweNq01MiaPBJPnJBSoyhoeg6Y7O0M3Wwg
Image Credits
Photos by Nicole L. Galinson | NLG photo Ⓒ Throwback photo by Phillip Liborio Gangi
