Ever Expanding: Geoff Smith of De Osos

It's every true artist's dream: move away from home, and everything you know, and set out in pursuit of your creative vision. Actually, that's much easier said than done, and once reality hits, some artists do lose sight of their imaginative quest.

Enter De Osos, an indie rock band with just such a trip in mind. Its members, all originally from Jersey, migrated to Boston in order to find themselves a following and allow their art to mature.

Their lead vocalist and guitarist, Geoff Smith, is just now learning the ropes of being a rock musician in the "real world." Luckily for bands like De Osos, Myspace and other such websites provide a starting point for those who are just a blip on the radar screen.

"Myspace is insane," says Smith. "You can hear anybody's music, and they all get just as much web space as anybody else. I've made friends with plenty of bands in the area and all over the country." De Osos' Myspace page, while relatively simple, provides a sneak listen for the band. Like most artists who use the site, they have several songs on their page, just enough to stir a craving in you.

At the moment, the band has four members, but that is about to change. According to their website (http://www.myspace.com/deosos), bassist Jacob Upham is also responsible for "jokes and toy keyboards." Every band should be so lucky. If this sounds crazy, drummer Joe Stohlman describes his role as "kid drums" and "Russian pilot costumes." As to what this means, you may have to figure it out for yourself. However, it isn't unusual, these days, for bands to depict themselves in this way; on Marilyn Manson's LP Portrait of an American Family, the band members are credited with such things as "accusations," "child manipulations," and "psychoacoustical guitars."

Guitarist Ian Beckett will be leaving the band soon, so De Osos will be in search of a replacement. "Ian was interested in doing his own thing," says Smith, "but we brought him in for the time, workshopped some of his songs, until he could get his gears turning. About a week ago he said he had found some other guys to play with, so we're about to lose him, but it's for the best."

Smith first learned to play guitar in high school. "Jake and some other friends of mine decided we were in a band before we ever touched an instrument...I got one for Christmas and it wasn't 'til next Christmas that I picked it up and picked out some Bob Dylan songs." You might think that Bob Dylan is a bit advanced for a beginner. "Everything was difficult," explains Smith. "'All Along The Watchtower' was the first song; that was pretty simple, just three chords. But you could make it sound cool if you moved around a lot and strummed hard."

Much of Geoff Smith's stage experience comes from his college days at Adelphi University. Every other Friday night, the school held open mics at their Cyber Café, a.k.a. "The Ratt." These performances helped Smith "100 times over. The open mics were a way to have fun and experiment. I mostly played covers and would sometimes sneak an original in there." Audiences were often surprised at Smith's vocal and guitar talent.

Newcomers may ask what the name "De Osos" means. It literally translates to "Of Bears," which doesn't answer a whole lot. Elaborates Smith, "I was studying some Spanish, and came across that word. Oso. Really, it just comes down to my fascination with bears...I seem to be drawn to animals that I would be scared to death of in person. I was watching a lot of 'Planet Earth' when I came up with it, just in awe of the natural world."

De Osos has a somewhat unusual sound; ironically, this isn't so unusual for indie bands. It is a bit of a mixture of rock, blues, and folk. Among De Osos' influences are Neil Young, Flaming Lips, Neutral Milk Hotel, and Broken Social Scene. The band may not necessarily sound like that diverse list; however, "It's more about their aesthetic," says Smith. "They're all artists whose processes really [interest] me...those bands are all really dedicated to their own truth, and I think that's really important."

Some may wonder whether it was difficult to relocate to Boston; Smith, however, puts it this way: "It just seemed like the most natural thing for me; I had spent so much time in New Jersey and, where I was from, there was relatively no scene. Philly had some options, but it turns out I just knew more people in Boston."

Soon enough, Smith and his bandmates grew accustomed to the town and its atmosphere. "It was absolutely exciting; it's a low key town with enough going on to sustain your art. And any anticipation I had about leaving just served as inspiration."

The band's Myspace page features some amazing photos by independent photographer Conrad Gangone (http://www.myspace.com/ganghiscon), a budding artist himself. Most are of the band performing live, but with a little fancy camerawork, the lighting looks like some kind of digital acid trip.

De Osos is friends with another band, The Paper Moons, who come from the same town. Ironically, they had never met until finding one another on Myspace. "That's how the scene is where I grew up," clarifies Smith, "...we meant to get some shows together, but it never worked out. I guess there's still time, though."

The band is just gradually becoming used to playing live. "We've only played out a few times; it's been mostly friends, but they bring their friends and some people wander in accidentally...we're on our way to having some diverse audiences."

In his days of playing at college, Smith did a lot more cover songs than he does now. "We played one show at a VFW we rented out for a party; we had about two hours of time to fill. We played a few covers there. But when you're playing at clubs, you've only got 45 minutes to let the audience know who you are. We've been doing a revved up version of the Modern Lovers' 'Pablo Picasso.' But we've been concentrating on our own material."

Are the fans expecting more material? You bet. De Osos hasn't officially released any albums yet, but "we're heading into the studio in July to record a 5-song EP. There's a studio in Boston that I've talked to; we've booked a weekend there and are going to bang it out, then we'll see how hard it is to promote. Right now, we've just got some demos I made in my bathroom that I have on Myspace, and people have had to trust us based on those."

Like many great artists, Geoff Smith's tastes have matured and changed over time. During college, he was an avid listener of Dave Matthews Band, Jeff Buckley, and Howie Day, some of whom have influenced his guitar playing. "[I listen to] Jeff Buckley still, but I've grown away from the other two. You find at a point in your life, or I hope other people do, that there's an infinite amount of music out there. And the further you dig, the more beautiful and enchanting it gets."

"But you realize some of the stuff you grew up on just wasn't the way. It's like growing up and finding out your parents were wrong...ideally, music leads to better music, in a healthier way than drugs." Smith cites The Flaming Lips as an example of what he's referring to. "It's like the universe, ever expanding."

For those that don't remember them, The Flaming Lips had an alt-radio hit in the '90s with "She Don't Use Jelly," notable for lines like, "She don't use nothin'/that you buy at the store/she likes her hair to/be real orange." Just as Smith and his bandmates have grown artistically, however, so have The Lips. Smith mentions the album Zaireeka as among his favorites.

"Talk about ever-expanding," he gushes, "I don't know there's anything like it." The album consists of four CDs meant to be played simultaneously, each with different parts of the sound on it. He also jokes that everyone should listen to it on drugs at least once.

If you live in the Boston area, definitely take the opportunity to come and see De Osos perform. They will be playing May 31, at Razzy's Bar with Desmond Reed, in Somerville, Massachusetts. Go support them, and have an ever-expanding experience.