Q&A: Burr Oak
WITH LYRICS THAT SPEAK OF HOMEMADE MEMORIES - Burr Oak brings a sound of folk-pop with soft rock, and a visual aesthetic that seems to invoke the myths of old. Based in Chicago, the band is fronted by Savanna Dickhut but serves as a collaborative effort with drummer Tony Mest, guitarist Jeff Sullivan, and bassist Jake Gordon. Dickhut, who is set on making her mark in the singer-songwriter space, aims to make music that is soul food; the more real her lyrics are, the more enticing and enchanting the melodies become, enthralling you in the world she’s created. Read below to hear Dickhut’s self-taught musical start, cultivating her self in the current world, and Burr Oak’s soon to be released debut album.
LUNA: When did you know you wanted to be a musician? How did the transition from pursuing music as a hobby to a career come about?
DICKHUT: It was when I was fourteen, just before graduating the eighth grade, I asked my dad for this acoustic Alvarez I spotted hanging up inside the little music shop at Old Town School of Folk Music. During that time is when I realized I had developed this undeniable urge to learn how to play a musical instrument that would serve as an aid for me to flesh out my songs. (Prior to learning how to play the guitar I had been taking drum lessons.) I was attracted to the drums at first when I was eleven (fifth grade) but eventually put that down and moved onto a more melodic, rhythmic instrument that is the guitar. I had always been captivated by stories and storytelling since I was a little girl and remember “writing songs” as young as seven years old without really knowing I was doing so at the time. The songs were a lot simpler back then of course, I would recite short, spontaneous combustions of thought aloud to myself on the toilet.. or while mindlessly cleaning up my room. So many years later now I still find that those times of “mindlessness” are some of the best moments to come up with lyrics and throughout the years I have trained myself to capture an idea when it comes, like a firefly, and record it [a voice memo] onto my iPhone, then later when I have time to come back to it I do - I push myself to finish and half the time end up with a fully formed song. The other half stay as unfinished songs, voice memos on my iPhone that sometimes I never revisit. I guess I went off on a bit of a tangent there, but for me, wanting to be a musician sort of manifested itself out of my true love for telling stories and reflecting on my own life and personal experiences. I was able to find a perfect outlet for that: songwriting. I did end up going to music school eventually and do consider myself to be a musician, however, I would call myself a singer-songwriter first and foremost. Before going to school to develop my skills further I taught myself both how to sing and play the guitar when I was fourteen.
The transition - from “high school me,” upstairs in my attic bedroom after school most days my freshman year, (I would come home and write song after song for the pure joy of it) to “college me,” realizing this is what I am pursing for a career to try and make a living at it? That all came about I suppose just with time and the support of my family to be able to do so. I was always very passionate about baseball when I was younger before this whole “becoming a musician thing” came about. That love turned into a love for softball (because I am a female I was forced to switch when I was 13) which I played all through my four years of high school at Lane Tech.
Ultimately, I had to choose a “path”, [art school or athletics] and I chose music because I saw that as more of a career path for myself over playing softball. It was always those two passions I was balancing my time between in high school, amongst schoolwork, friends, family, hooligan teenage behavior, etc. I ended up going to the five-week summer program at Berklee College of Music when I was 17, the summer after my junior year of high school. During those five weeks is when I realized I think that I wanted to pursue a career in music. I ended up applying to Berklee my senior year, auditioning and getting accepted. I deferred for a year and started at Columbia College Chicago instead. I ended up staying at Columbia for a few different reasons, ultimately Chicago being home to me and I graduated in 2016 with a BA in music.
LUNA: Were there any musical artists or people that influenced you growing up?
DICKHUT: Most definitely, pretty much all thanks to my dad who has great taste in music. I grew up listening to the likes of Peter, Paul and Mary, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Fleetwood Mac – lots of folk/Americana music from the 1960s and early-mid 70s. I also fondly remember listening to the 1995 debut “Tigerlily” from Natalie Merchant many times on road trips to visit our extended family in Wisconsin. I was born in 93’, so as far as 90’s music goes, Natalie Merchant’s voice and music is definitely an influence ingrained in me.
LUNA: How would you describe your musical style? What elements are making the foundation?
DICKHUT: I would describe my musical style as folk/Americana influenced I guess if I had to, for reasons I just mentioned. And like I mentioned in the previous question as well, I tend to call myself a singer-songwriter, I believe that is a musical genre? I try to stay away from “genres” and all of that though. I don’t really take well to putting myself in a box of any kind.. haha But I do understand things need to be categorized to a certain degree and are undoubtedly dubbed certain names because they do in fact fit into that category, or so it seems. I would not actively push to secure my music in any genre because that could always change, and like I said I am not a fan of “genres” but I don’t mind it if people think it is “folk” or “dream pop” or describe it as whatever because that’s what they think and I can’t change that.
LUNA: Burr Oak, as a project, is your first solo work. How has the transition been from writing and playing with others to writing music by yourself? Have you felt freer, in a sense, or more lonely/pressured to make something?
DICKHUT:: Yes, you could say that. Burr Oak is definitely the most fully formed, thought out and matured solo effort thus far that I have given life to. The transition from being in my old band, Elk Walking, to balancing both bands, to then eventually shifting all the focus to Burr Oak was a process and it was nerve-racking at first for me to have all the focus it felt like suddenly be put onto me and my [very personal] songs. In Elk Walking, my songwriting comrade Julian Daniell and co-founder of the band took the reigns on writing for the group (for the most part) in the last year of us being a band, which I didn’t mind. (In earlier years, the writing was pretty much split evenly but we would always write separately then bring songs to each other and decided from there what fit/didn’t fit.) I wasn’t not writing at all towards the end of us being a band, Julian was just writing more than me and specifically writing songs that fit well into our existing repertoire that the other guys wanted to play. We were going in more of a “rock and roll” direction.
And also at that point, with no help of a manger or agent, I had taken on pretty much all business related responsibilities, so in turn really didn’t have too much time to or was not in the head space most days to write. I also enjoyed singing the songs Julian wrote for us and decided that I wanted to focus more on “the performance” for our live shows so gave up playing the guitar for a bit.
DICKHUT: Now that Elk Walking is currently on an indefinite hiatus, and I am the sole songwriter for Burr Oak, (the project is a band and a collaborative process when it comes to writing parts Tony Mest (drums), Jeff Sullivan (guitar) and Jake Gordon (bass) all write their own parts to the songs) I do admittedly sometimes feel a sense of so-called “creative pressure,” like it’s all on me to carry that weight. But that pressure comes with a pay off, I think, because it’s my opportunity to really do my own thing and be able to tell my own story. I feel ready to do that finally, more than ever before I think because I’ve learned from my mistakes over the years and have experiences to look back on and put into my songwriting that I wouldn’t have had if I had pushed myself to get this solo project off the ground sooner when I wasn’t ready.
LUNA: Something I love about your music is that each song tells a story. "Rosemary" and "Southsider" both pull the listener into this really beautiful world. What's your songwriting process like? (Are the songs based on fiction or fact? Do they start with experience or melody?)
DICKHUT: Thank you : ) I already explained, at least a little bit I think, how my overall “process” works during my initial tangent answering your first question. But to explain even further in depth; a lot of my songs prove to be about inner-personal struggles or past relationships, so they are indeed factual based on real life events, but I like to “embellish” on the truth, I guess you could say, to make for a more interesting story of course. What fun would storytelling be if not for a little exaggeration. In my experience, it’s a balance of taking that “creative spark” per se, and elaborating on a specific idea or thought to eventually expand it into a fully formed song. “Fully formed” could mean something different to me however, than another songwriter or person.
It depends on the song, but to say that a song is complete is totally up to its creator. Sometimes I will aim to write a very familiar formed song, intentionally using a ‘standard pop formula’ such as A B A B or A B A B C B. Other times I like to neglect that normalcy and just do whatever I want, or whatever I feel like writing in that moment and not think about form at all. It depends on the day, the song, my mood, the topic of that specific song, etc. I personally am a fan of structured songs, however, so even though I do sometimes enjoy thinking outside of those commonly used forms, I enjoy repetition and writing songs that prove to be in a classic, well-known form and think that that just comes more naturally to me than writing in any obscure song form.
LUNA: Is there a debut album in the works? Can you give any insight into the process of the album: Is it story based or just a collection of thoughts? How's the selection process coming together?
DICKHUT: There is a debut album in the works ! The process has been lengthy, however, and is currently put on hold due to COVID- 19 and our inability to be together in the studio to finish up recording. We plan to get back to it as soon as it is safe to do so. I am eager and excited to share new music. The debut record will be a culmination of old and new songs, like most debuts I think, it will showcase some songs that I wrote when I was in my late teens and early 20s, and some songs that I’ve written only a few weeks ago while in quarantine. I have written out a “master song list” in my spare time during this lock down and have more than enough songs for a full length LP. Some are already recorded and are in the production stage while others still need to be arranged with my band, parts need to be written and recorded in the studio. Ultimately, my end goal is to have a cohesive sounding debut body of work to release when the time is right.
LUNA: How do you stay true to yourself in the music industry? What is at the core of your being as a musical artist?
DICKHUT: Good question. Sometimes it’s hard not to, but I try to refrain from comparing myself to others in life and in the industry that may be younger than me (for example) that have already achieved a certain “level of success” I strive to attain. I’ve lived my life and made mistakes, just like anyone, I could say I’ve wasted time not working and doing stupid things instead but how I stay true to myself is by having no regrets and just trying my best to wake up every morning with a positive attitude and a mindset that is- if I work hard and focus on what I can control, focus on the future not the past, good things will come of that. I know that if I do nothing and focus on the negatives, then evidently nothing will happen and I will end up sitting around with a negative attitude and no progress to show of myself.
Of course I do feel off some days, that is unavoidable, but I try to channel that negative energy when it comes into my songwriting as much as I can instead of self-destructive behavior.
LUNA: Are there any specific goals, in terms of career, that you want to achieve?
DICKHUT: Once it is safe to travel again, a European tour is on our bucket list.
LUNA: In these times of social distancing; how are you feeling during these times? How do you cultivate yourself and your music right now?
DICKHUT: I feel blessed to be healthy during these times and to be able to be with my family who live across the street (my mom, dad, and sister) and friend/roommate Jeff (guitarist in Burr Oak) who I am currently quarantined with, and am thankful that they are all happy and healthy as well. I am anxious of course, as we all are, to be able to get back outside again, play and go see shows once again, be with friends or just simply walk outside without a mask/ fear of getting sick. I know these things will come with time, we just have to abide by what the scientists are recommending to do right now and be patient. This pandemic has been life-altering in so many ways for our society and personally has really changed my way of thinking about the outside world we live in and not to take for granite the simple pleasures in life. Like I mentioned, I have been trying to take the negative energy and channel it into my songwriting. I actually recently wrote a new song that is about coming out of seasonal depression and realizing that it is perfectly ok to be a “late bloomer” in life or as I express in the song, “it's okay to not be ahead of the crowd.” The demo, which is set to release at the end of May, is about coming to terms with where you are at in your life and being content with the progress you have made so far. Accepting where you stand currently and telling yourself not to dwell on all of the things you think you could have or should have done differently in the past and focus on moving forward.
I was feeling frustrated at first, when this all began, aggravated about the situation and that I would have to wait even longer to put out the first single from the new record. To resolve this overall feeling of frustration due to the inability to continue working on the album until quarantine is up, I decided that recording and putting out a demo version of a new song, (which will eventually appear on the debut record in a higher quality and more intentional way) was the solution to my problem, so that’s what I did.
