After years of crafting anthemic EPs and steadily carving their name into Australia’s heavy music scene, To Octavia are finally stepping into a new era with the release of their long-awaited debut album, MELODRAMA. Darker, heavier, and more ambitious than anything they’ve released before, the record captures both the struggles and triumphs the band has overcome from the last seven years. We caught up with To Octavia to talk about the meaning behind MELODRAMA, the turning points that kept them going, and what it really takes to persevere when the odds are stacked against you.
After years of releases, MELODRAMA marks To Octavia’s first full-length album. What does finally releasing a debut album mean to you on both a personal and creative level?
Personally, it means the absolute world! We have all been dreaming of putting together an LP since we were teenagers. All of our releases and efforts up to this point feel like they have been leading to this album, and we think it shows in how it turned out. That is also true creatively. An LP gave us the opportunity to explore more avenues that we just can’t on an EP. All 3 of our EPs feel like they represent a different side of us creatively and because of the amount of tracks we can fit on an LP, we feel that all of those sides had the ability to come together and mix to show everything that we have in us. ‘MELODRAMA’ feels like the best representation and the most cohesive release we have so far of what ‘To Octavia’ is naturally.
From the singles so far, it feels like To Octavia are heavier, bolder, and more confident than ever. What made now the right moment for an album?
We’ve grown so much as human beings through the 7 years of ‘To Octavia’ and there were times we were pushed to our limits. We were made to question how much we really wanted this. Our EP ‘Wonderland’ felt like it came at a time where in hindsight, we were hanging by a thread. We were struggling to remember why we fell in love with music to begin with, we wondered whether all the heartache and challenges we faced were worth it. After time to reflect and acknowledge how much had changed and how much WE had changed, we came to realise that ‘To Octavia’ wasn’t going anywhere and we weren’t going to let it. When we began writing for the next chapter, we knew quickly that an album was the only way we could show ourselves and others that we deserve to be here.
Both “bury me.” and “Talk Is Cheap” explore different angles of strength – one inward and resilient, the other outward and confrontational. Is perseverance a central theme of MELODRAMA?
Absolutely! We didn’t go into writing the album with that intention though. We were writing about what we were feeling at the time, and the album came together around a time when we were all navigating a difficult period in our lives. Getting together in a room to write music WAS persevering for us. We were hyping each other up while we were writing, and what came out was a feeling of empowerment and confidence that we feel is coursing through the whole album.
“bury me.” tells a story of rising above pain and isolation to chase down your dreams. Looking back, was there a defining moment or period in the last few years where you felt yourselves truly becoming stronger as people and as a band?
Funnily enough, I think it was when we wrote the demo for what would become ‘bury me.’ It was the first time we had gotten together to write in quite a long time and we all knew there was something about it that felt different, stronger, more sure of ourselves. It took us a long time to get to that point mentally and it just seemed to change the way we wrote and I think that point was a turning point for us.
With Nav joining on guitar, how has he impacted the overall vision for the future of To Octavia?
Nav has brought a different mindset to ‘To Octavia’. He has helped us see the whole picture. There are times where we have struggled to look past things that feel bigger than they really are and Nav has changed the perspective, just by HAVING a different perspective. It is so easy to get caught in your own head and having Nav to help us get out of it, came at the perfect time for us all.
MELODRAMA is said to embrace a darker, heavier direction, what inspired this current era of your sound?
There was lots of emotion in our camp going into this album. We were frustrated, angry and it was easy to get into the “why me” mindset. Writing became therapeutic and a way for us to release the emotions we had been carrying. That culminated and came out heavier and darker than anything we have released in a while.
That’s not to say that ‘MELODRAMA’ doesn’t contain some more upbeat styles but there is an overall darkness that was definitely a symptom of our emotions at the time of writing.
From each release taking on its own identity, to Merry’s work on Sonic Frontiers, you’ve proven you can transcend sounds and scenes. How does that versatility feed into MELODRAMA?
We have always felt that our releases have had the ability to move through different styles and emotions while remaining cohesive in its overall identity, but we got to take that up a notch on ‘MELODRAMA’. There was more room to explore because we had room for more tracks. All the stops on the album feel reminiscent of things we have touched on in previous releases. Whatever EP that may be your favourite from us, we think there is something for you on ‘MELODRAMA’
What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned about yourselves as individuals and as a band in the journey to releasing your debut album?
That we are stronger than we think, as a band and as individuals. There were times where we didn’t feel strong, but we were getting through, we weren’t giving up.
Looking back, there were things I don’t understand how we got through, how we had the motivation to get up every day and keep going, but we did, and we are here because of it.
For fans or fellow artists going through their own storms, what’s one piece of advice or truth you’ve learned through making MELODRAMA that you wish you knew earlier?
Do things for the love of it. Don’t let anything prevent you from doing what makes you happy. No one really can stop you from doing that other than yourself. People might come along and make that harder for you to see, but it’s never worth stopping. We only have one chance to live each day the way we want to and once it’s in the past, you can’t get it back.
Follow To Octavia on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for future updates.
Photo Credit: Andrew Vaughan
