Bishop Bash

The Mowgli’s talk creative process and Bishop Bash

By John Bonus, Transcript Reporter

Bishop Bash is around the corner and Ohio Wesleyan’s Campus Programing Board is bringing The Mowgli’s, an alternative rock band from Los Angeles, California.

Two members of the band, Katie Earl and Josh Hogan, talked about the origins of the band, their creative process, and what they plan to bring to Bishop Bash in an interview with The Transcript.

Q: How/when was the band formed?

A: We developed in the LA music scene in 2009. A lot of us (members) knew each other in the years leading up to that. Around that time, we were playing a lot of shows together and opening up for each other’s bands. The band came together in this big art scene in LA at the time.

Q: How did you come up with the band name?

A: Mowgli is actually the name of a dog that we all knew that had a crazy personality, and we all saw a little of ourselves in him, and that dog was named after the “Jungle Book” character.

Q: How would you describe your music to someone who hasn’t heard it before?

A: We try to make upbeat music that people can relate to and that people have a good time listening to. That’s our main goal. Sometimes that creates a pop sound, and sometimes it makes a more rockin’ sound. We just try to make people feel happy and that they aren’t alone.

Q: So is that what you’d say your music is about? Are there a lot of themes in your music?

A: Yes, there is definitely a theme of unity in our music. We definitely explore the themes of connecting with other people. We try to let people know they aren’t alone and drive a theme of self-love. The themes have also definitely expanded in the past couple year; we just try to write from a place of honesty and hope it reaches our listeners.

Q: What is the creative process like for your band?

A: It’s definitely something that changes all the time. Our first album’s process was nothing like the second album’s process and the third was different from that, so it’s something that is always changing. A lot of the last record was written on the road. It has changed a lot based on circumstances and we’re looking forward to seeing how that process continues to evolve.

Q: Are you working on any projects right now?

A: We just released an album in September. We’re going to continue to tour in support of that with The Maine and then who knows? There are a lot of songs and music projects that are in the works because it’s just a group of creative people who are always writing and exploring their abilities so a lot of cool stuff will continue to happen with our group.

Q: What artists and music have inspired your sound?

A: That’s a pool that’s also always expanding. We all listen to a variety of music and pull from that. So that question can change depending on the member you ask. Some of the bands/artists that we like are Portugal the Man, The 1975 and other groups.

Q: Do you play a lot of college shows? And do you notice a big difference between playing colleges and regular shows.

A: Yeah, we play a lot of college shows. It’s always really fun because college kids work so hard during the week … for something like a night out at a show. So the audience is always really fun and energetic and a really good time.

Q: What are some of your goals as a band in the short and long term?

A: We have so many hopes and dreams, but one specific goal for us this year would be to go international. That’s such a dream of ours and while we love touring the U.S., we really want to take the show we’ve worked so hard on to another country that isn’t Canada. We also really want to have a long career in this business. Within our band we have so many musicians, and in our fantasy, everyone will have their own project that they’ll end up doing, but at the same time we’ll still have this band, kind of like Wu-Tang Clan.

Q: What should OWU students expect from The Mowgli’s at Bishop Bash?

A: When we come out to play a show, we work hard to bring our A-game. We’re going to do our part to bring a great show and we hope a lot of people come out, so we can make sure everyone has a lot of fun.

CPB announces headliner

By Sara Hollabaugh, Online Editor

The Campus Programming Board (CPB) is bringing The Mowgli’s as the headliner to Ohio Wesleyan for Bishop Bash this year.

Planning since last year, junior Kristen Nooney, CPB president, said it was a long process of finalizing the event.

“[The] first step for us is to brainstorm a list of all of the different people we would like to see on campus,” Nooney said. “At [that] stage, we don’t take the price or availability of the artist into consideration.”

Nooney said the next step was to talk to Nancy Rutkowski, CPB’s adviser, who contacted Concert Ideas, the middle agent CPB uses to find talent for Bishop Bash.

After narrowing down a list of artists, Nooney said CPB ranks the potential artists.

“[The ranking is] based upon who we want to bring and who would be the best fit for the campus,” Nooney said. “This list then goes back to Nancy who works with our middle agent to get contracts.”

CPB then goes through the Wesleyan Council on Student Affairs (WCSA) to get funding for the event.

“We reached out to WCSA at the beginning of the school year because we wanted to keep them in the loop with our Bishop Bash plans,” Nooney said.

“This year we were hoping to bring Twenty One Pilots to campus or host a weekend music festival. However, with limited funds we weren’t able to make this happen so we adapted and created a new list of artists within the budget we received from WCSA.”

In addition to Twenty One Pilots, Nooney said CPB eliminated more than 26 different groups due to compatibility on campus, price and the groups’ availability.

Once deciding on The Mowgli’s, Nooney said their price was good enough for CPB to find a popular opener, too.

“We decided on Never Shout Never because the two bands have a similar message and complement each other’s sound,” Nooney said. “They were also well known while most of us were in middle school and high school, making their appearance exciting and nostalgic.”

Nooney said the estimated cost for Bishop Bash this year will be around $45,000 after the production, the bands, hospitality, security and housekeeping.

Junior Catie Kocian, a member of CPB, said she is extremely excited about seeing both bands perform at OWU.

“I have been a fan of Never Shout Never since middle school and our headliner is a new favorite of mine for sure,” Kocian said.

The Transcript reached out to The Mowgli’s and Never Shout Never, but have not spoken with either band yet.

*Free t-shirt not included

By: Matt Cohen and Ben Miller

We went into Bishop Bash with skepticism like most people on campus. After reading the Yik-Yak feed, hearing the bad reputation of Drake Bell and looking at the lack of Instagram followers of Liberty Deep Down, how could we not have some doubts?

Let us first start by saying Liberty Deep Down was amazing. The band most OWU students had never heard of rocked Gordon Field House this past Saturday night. Not only were the members of the band fun to talk to and easy to work with, they were also great performers with a lot of energy and passion.

Many students shrugged off the event with no questions asked because of the headliner Drake Bell and the unknown band Liberty Deep Down. This was the wrong move.

As fans of music and talent, the way they performed on stage was much appreciated and impressive. We can definitely see these guys making it big time one day. And we’ll be able to say that line everyone loves hearing: “we saw them before they were famous.” Where as you’ll be disappointed of your ignorance of Bishop Bash and music. You call yourself a fan of music? Please.

Being skeptical of Bishop Bash is one thing, but not going because you think you’re too cool is crazy. The band Liberty Deep Down that OWU provided was good. They took over the stage and energized the crowd. Just because we didn’t get Cage the Elephant or Beyoncé doesn’t mean you should not have gone.

The point we are trying to get across is if you weren’t at the concert on Saturday, you really missed out on Liberty Deep Down. Any music fan would have enjoyed their performance.

P.S. If the band is looking for some PR reps for this summer’s tour, we are available.

Bishop Bash bringing Bell

After months of speculation and wild rumors, Ohio Wesleyan’s Campus Programming Board (CPB) announced its mystery guest for this year’s Bishop Bash: Drake Bell.

Bell, known for his role in the Nickelodeon television show “Drake and Josh,” also has musical talent. Sophomore Maddie Oslejsek, the director of entertainment for CPB, said Bell was one of the board’s top choices due to his name recognition.

Bell will be joined by Liberty Deep Down, a band from Powell, Ohio whose members met at Liberty High School. Levi Harrel, a residential life coordinator and one of CPB’s advisers, said the band has a large local following and reflect a “boy-band style.”

Freshman Elle Benak, a co-president of CPB said, “[Bell] is well-known by our generation for his work on ‘Drake and Josh’ and we knew that would draw many people to the concert. We focused on finding a name that everyone would recognize and believed that his name would do that.”

Bishop Bash will be a new addition to OWU’s entertainment roster. Previously, CPB planned events such as Spring Fest, which was not as successful as the board had hoped. Junior Nathan LaFrombois, the other co-president, said through marketing research and surveying OWU students, CPB decided it would be beneficial to revitalize a concert series, and that required a name change.

“When talking to students on campus there was great desire for a concert,” Benak said. “And even among CPB members, everyone wanted to put on a large-scale concert with an artist.”

Liberty Deep Down. Photo courtesy of Liberty Deep Down's management. — Liberty Deep Down. Photo courtesy of Liberty Deep Down’s management.

Oslejsek said CPB made a large list of possible artists and narrowed them by availability and price. CPB used a company called Concert Ideas to negotiate the act’s appearance and price.

After attending a concert management lecture last summer to learn how to put a concert together, LaFrombois said CPB had the ability to revitalize concerts and make them better than in the past.

The budget, which was provided by Wesleyan Council on Student Affairs (WCSA), was $50,000. Bell will cost CPB about $20,000. LaFrombois said the rest of the money goes toward hospitality, technology required for the concert, housekeeping, security and any “hidden costs.”

“Once you know the performer, everything else falls into place,” Oslejsek said.

Harrel said CPB plans on continuing Bishop Bash, but will rotate yearly between singers and comedians. He said future Bishop Bashes are contingent on WCSA funding.

Bishop Bash logo courtesy of OWU’s communications office.

Nancy Rutkowski, assistant director of student involvement for leadership and CPB’s adviser, said funding for next year’s Bishop Bash will be submitted in the fall before the spring budget deadline.

“Believe it or not…$50,000 really covers a small concert so if we wanted to do a bigger name someday, it would take more than that,” Rutkowski said.

The concert will take place on March 28 in the Gordon Field House of the Branch Rickey Arena. Doors open at 7 pm and parking is free. Advance tickets can be purchased at owutickets.com by OWU students, staff and faculty for $10 and the general public for $20. All tickets are $25 at the door.

One hundred OWU students will be able to purchase VIP tickets for $15. Students with these tickets get early admission through a special entrance, a Bishop Bash t-shirt and a VIP lanyard.