What is the band’s name?
Sally Draper
What are your names?
Ryan O’Leary and Bob Osowski.
How did you come up with the band’s name?
Ryan: I’m a big fan of Mad Men and always said if I ever started another punk band it’d be called Sally Draper, since she’s such a great character. When we made our first EP, I assumed it’d be a one off thing and figured “why not?” go with the Sally Draper name.
Bob: To this day I’ve never seen the show.
What is your genre of music?
Ryan: I like to say punk because it’s easy and forgives my vocals, but I saw someone call us ORGCORE recently and as someone who still reads punknews.org, I think I like that!
Bob: I usually say it’s political/emotional punk rock with an abundance of heroic guitar work.
Give us a little bio about you.
Ryan: Bob wrote the essential Sally Draper bio recently. So essential, we put it on the back of our new shirts.
What made you go into music?
Ryan: My dad always had music playing growing up, I remember hearing Green Day’s Dookie and Rancid at a very young age. At some point I decided to start trying to play music, and much to the dismay of the world, it’s been something I’ve always found myself coming back to.
Bob: Andy Summers played a power chord during the pre-chorus of The Police’s “Can’t Stand Losing You”, and it changed my life.
Who are your influences?
Ryan: With Sally Draper, I’d say my biggest influences have been Against Me!, Weezer, and Thin Lizzy.
Bob: In regards to recording an album, Paul Kolderie/Sean Slade, Glyn Johns, and Thin Lizzy
Are you signed?
Ryan: We’re currently in the middle of a contentious deal with Smash Lady Records. The folks at that label are CRAZY!
Bob: Smash Lady Records is New Jersey’s own independent, non-profit, barely legit, specialty record label, and as Ryan said, the deal is very “lucrative”. In other words, SIGN US!
You released your new Album ‘American Dream’, tell us more about the single and the meaning behind the album.
Ryan: Back in 2017, I moved to California thinking this band would be something we’d only get around to doing every once in a while. Thankfully, I was miserable out there and wrote our second album HOW IS THAT FAIR? about the experience. But even more luckily, I managed to meet my now wife weeks before I moved back to Jersey. American Dream as an album comes from a place of immense loss, but also personal growth. The couple years leading up to the album consisted of losing close friends and family, some of the absolute worst tragedies imaginable, but I also got married and found out we were expecting our first child. I think the album reflects the whole circle of life and is an introspective look on how to move forward in spite of everything.
Describe each track in two words.
LWKY – Fast Furious
Reflecting Absence – 9/11 Museum
Me And Marl And The Dying Dog – Sad Lab
Dipierro’s Hit – BIG TIME
Social Socialist – Rose Twitter
Dance Like No One’s Watching (No One’s Watching Anyway) – Dirty Dancing
Heavy For Real – Heavenly Creatures
Fragile Egos – Wendy Clear
The American Dream Is A Shopping Mall – Metlife Stadium
Shatner In Space – Space Balls
Infinitely Beyond – REAL SAD
What was the writing and recording process like?
Ryan: I wrote the songs over the course of about a year, then we fleshed out the songs and recorded them throughout all of 2023 on a regular basis, but never more than a couple days or so a week. We also all got COVID recording gang vocals. I do not recommend getting COVID like that!
Bob: We’ve always recorded very quickly. And I thought that was the case with this album, but looking back on it now, I think it took us half a year. Ryan is a very busy guy. But taking our time paid off in the end because this one is pretty clearly our best work.
Who did you work with on the album?
Ryan: We recorded everything in the basement of the Fruit Cellar in Edison, NJ with Bob functioning as producer/engineer. Nick Bolton at Bolton Sound mastered the album. We were also lucky enough to get heavy hitters like Brian Dipierro, Will Kraemer, Shana Fitzpatrick, John Warren, and John Petrick to contribute with things like additional vocals, shredding guitars, and xylophone.
Are we expected to see a music video for any of the tracks and if so what can we expect from the creative process?
Ryan: I’m a filmmaker by trade and have always been hesitant to make videos for my own bands for whatever reason, but this album I had some ideas I really wanted to pursue. So the first video we made for the album was for Shatner In Space. We shot that one on my iPhone at the American Dream Mall with my good friend and super talented actor Vikens Anderson. Then we did a really silly single take video of us dancing for Dance Like No One’s Watching (No One’s Watching Anyway) at this weird house near where I live.
Bob: We wore suits for the “Dance” video so that was a very cool experience.
Do you have any live shows coming up?
Ryan: We just had our album release show a couple weeks ago, but will probably won’t be playing that many shows this year due to my first child being born and a big film project I’ve been working on. But never say never, if something special comes up, maybe we’ll squeeze in a one off before the end of 2024.
Bob: I just do what the boss tells me.
What else can we expect in 2024?
Ryan: I’ll probably be exploiting my baby’s image on social media to sell our merch within days of her being born, so watch out for that.
Where do you see yourself now in 5 Years?
Ryan: I hope we’re still challenging ourselves musically and having fun playing shows when we can. Making this album was the creative experience of a lifetime and it would be an immense privilege to keep getting to make music together.
What quote or saying do you always stick by?
Ryan: The wrong decision is better than indecision.
Bob: Keep It Simple, Stupid.
When you are at a gig, what are 5 things you cannot forget?
Ryan: Always eat before playing, especially if you’re drinking. Sit whenever possible between sets. Don’t forget to breathe. Dance like no one’s watching. Always Rock, but never Dwayne your Johnson.
Do you have social media accounts so your fans can follow you?
Instagram
