Oh Wonder Talk Sudden Fame, Childhood Favorites, and Weird Fan Mail in Preparation of Upcoming Neptune Theater Performance

The London duo of Anthony West and Josephine Vander Gucht recently unveiled the music video for their latest single “Without You.” Recently named as one of Buzzfeed’s “Songs You Need in November,” over delicate piano, glistening electronics, and a simple beat, the pair entwine in a soulful and striking harmony. In less than a week, the clip accumulated over 300k views. Watch it HERE.

Back in September 2014, Oh Wonder began releasing one song per month online. All 14 songs released went on to top Hype Machine, and they now comprise their self-titled debut album, Oh Wonder. Along the way, they’ve accumulated over 100 million streams and have landed in Spotify’s Viral 50 Top Ten in the US, UK, and Global charts. We were lucky enough to be able to sit down and chat with the duo about a whole host of different topics before their upcoming Neptune Theater Performance on January 18th.

NWMS: How did you pick the name?

Josephine: We love the word ‘wonder’ and its dual meaning of curiosity and an admiration of beauty. Asking questions is the most important thing of all. 

NWMS: Whose idea was it to release a song every month leading to the full album?

Anthony: Ours! We wanted to challenge ourselves as songwriters and write, record and release one song every month. An album release at the end of it was never really the goal; that was something that only emerged as a possibility halfway through the project when we realized that we were building a substantial audience.

NWMS: How did you decide to both be leads in the songs?  Was is something from the beginning that just worked?

Josephine: We started Oh Wonder with a view to building a portfolio of songs that we could pitch to other artists. We wanted to be songwriters first and foremost. We both took the duty of lead vocals so that the songs were eligible for either a male or a female artist, and we weren’t typecasting the song. When we recorded ‘Body Gold’ we realised our voices actually blended really well and just decided to keep the dual vocal. It was a pure accident.

NWMS: What changed after you played your first gig together in September?

Anthony: We realised that our music isn’t about the two of us; it’s something way bigger. We really want to try and harness that potential and help it grow in a positive way.

NWMS: Was it weird to have it connect with a live audience?

Anthony: Weird yes, but also them most affirming thing out of everything. We were somewhat anxious that these songs wouldn’t translate beyond online statistics, but actually the music feels way more powerful in a live setting. The lyrics, melodies, beats and instrumentation are all enhanced when we perform live.  

NWMS: How are you dealing with the sudden success?

Josephine: It’s bizarre. We have always felt successful because we have been fortunate enough in the last few years to wake up and make music every day. We are successful because we have friends, a family that loves us, and enough money left at the end of the month’s bills to be able to go out for dinner. What we are doing now is just an extension of that success. My mum puts it slightly more succinctly, in that when her friends ask her ‘Are you proud of Josephine now that she’s touring the world?’, she replies that she is no more proud of me than she has ever been, even when I was four years old and in the school play as a reindeer. Our current success isn’t greater than before, it’s just different. So success as an entity in itself is manageable. But people stopping us in the airport to take photographs with us is slightly odd. The idea of celebrity and fame is one that quietly unnerves me. I’d hate to be famous. I want to be recognized for my music, sure. But when that translates into people being interested in what you ate for breakfast, who you’re dating, how much you weigh, what you look like without make up on… that’s weird. It’s irrelevant, and very intrusive. I don’t think I’d ever deal with that well and hopefully that won’t ever happen to us. It’s all about the music!

NWMS: Playing a sold out tour on your first try, do you feel overwhelmed?

Anthony: Overwhelmed, yes. But also hugely humbled and very grateful for the opportunity to perform our songs live. Each night is so wildly different and special in its own way, so we are excited rather than nervous!

NWMS: How is the tour going?

Anthony: Really well! The shows are sold out so there’s an air of hype and excitement in the crowds, and it’s been lovely to meet our listeners from around the world. We’re also getting to grips with the actual performance side of things – we’re still only on our 30th show, so each night we feel that we really progress as performers and as a band. 

NWMS: What was one thing you brought with you that you absolutely needed to remind you of home?

Josephine: Photos of our home studio. We miss it. 

NWMS: What do you like the most about it?

Anthony: Meeting people and experiencing different cultures. And eating. We get to eat so much good food! 

NWMS: What do you like the least?

Josephine: Being away from home, our friends and families. And not having the time to write songs. 

NWMS: What song are you enjoying the most playing live at the moment?

Anthony: “Landslide”! It has this whole other personality when we perform it live. 

NWMS: Weirdest mail from a fan?

Josephine: “I just wanted to let you both know that I lost my virginity to your album last night and it was so special.”

NWMS: What music influenced your childhood?

Anthony: We both listened to the same artists growing up – Joni Mitchell, James Taylor, Death Cab for Cutie, Feist, Elton John, Labi Siffre…

NWMS: When did you start playing? Writing?

Josephine: I started having piano lessons when I was 5 years old, and began writing songs in my early teens. Anthony taught himself guitar and also started writing songs at a similar age. We’ve always been in bands and written songs – always. It’s part of who we are and how we express ourselves. 

NWMS: Hobbies outside of music?

Anthony: We love reading, going out for brunch, hanging out with our friends, cooking dinner and also home DIY. Josephine spent her day off at Christmas gilding the table legs of her desk in gold leaf, and I spent it painting a piece of wood to look like a watermelon. Sounds random, but being creative with your hands is hugely fulfilling. It access a whole different realm of creative fulfillment. 

NWMS: How have your daily lives changed in the last year with all the success?

Josephine: We no longer have control over our day-to-day lives, in the sense that we can no longer wake up and decide that we want to eat muesli and go on a run and then play the piano for a few hours. We have been self-employed musicians for years and accustomed to doing what we want, when we want. We have always worked hard, but touring and being in Oh Wonder is way more demanding because we have so many obligations to our team, crew and fans, and are effectively working 24/7. We don’t get to be normal people on tour, but the payoff the is gig in the evening. Everything is worth it for that one hour’s performance. 

NWMS: Tell me something interesting about yourselves that you don’t really mention in interviews.

Josephine: We both have “Heart Hope” (one of our songs) tattooed on us, which we got done at our first show in LA. My Dad lost a bet when we were at our New York show, and the penalty was that he had to get a matching tattoo. He’s a man of his word, so he got his first ever tattoo aged 59, but he went one further and added the OW logo to his Heart Hope tattoo. It’s on his leg, and it’s hilarious. 

(Oh Wonder will be playing the Neptune Theater this Monday, January 18th. You can get tickets and find out more information here.)