MAKING MUSIC IS A SCIENCE
& THE LOCAL MUSIC GROUP SIANTZ HAS GOT IT DOWN TO AN ART
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rowing up in a military family, brothers Josh and Josiah Fiveash moved around a lot. Music was always a part of their lives, with Joe singing “since he came out of the womb,” according to Josh. Around the age of 14, Josh’s mom made him learn to play the piano, which he eventually traded for a guitar. But first, he perfected his piano skills. After someone told him he couldn’t play the piano, Josh stayed up nights learning to play. The musical skills he determinedly developed on the piano led to his success when he picked up the guitar, and his musicmaking expanded from there. The music of Siantz is an eclectic representation of the different musical styles that have influenced each brother. While Joe finds that his influence often stems from folk and cinematic types of music, Josh’s influences come from rock, pop, EDM, and dance styles of music. These influences lead to a fusion of sound that forms a
Joe & Josh
style unique to Siantz. “What inspires us is completely opposite, but it comes together so well,” Josh explains. The result is music that draws its listener in, dreamy and melodic, vocals both ethereal and powerfully soulful, a sound that is not just a song to perform, but a story to tell. A story of humanity in which we can all find something relatable. Though the brothers explored music individually for most of their lives, it wasn’t until the end of their teenage years that they began making music together. Around the end of high school, the brothers wrote their first song together spontaneously from start to finish. After that, Josh and Joe began regularly writing songs together. For them, songwriting has always been collaborative. “It starts out with an idea,” says Josh, “then we’ll just start singing something and it will branch out from there, and eventually we’ll have a full song.” Though the name of the band comes from combining the two brothers’ names, it is a tongue-in-cheek allusion to the process of making music. “It really becomes a science,” says Joe. The brothers remember writing the song “Rip Van Winkle” while Joe was getting his hair braided. Josh was playing around on the guitar, waiting on his brother, when he played a riff that caught Joe’s attention. Joe asked him to play it again, and he started to sing along as the tunes evolved into a song by the time Joe’s hair was finished. LocaL
By Natalie Downey Siantz went on to perform at local open mic venue No Shame Theatre, hosted by the Springer Opera House. Their performance of “Let Go” at No Shame went viral and word was out about the music of Siantz. The brothers have played in some interesting places, one being Columbus’ National Civil War Naval Museum. Their performance at the museum was especially interesting because they performed on the ship that used to sit in front of the museum, the “Water Witch.” They are the only people who have ever played live on the ship. Josh and Joe have introduced their music to places other than Columbus, traveling to Tennessee and Atlanta to perform. Last year they won the first round of a competition at the Atlanta venue Eddie’s Attic, known for their open mic night where multiple famous artists got their start. The final competition was set for this summer, though the pandemic has caused this to be postponed. Playing in Columbus is all about reaching the community. “I feel like, as far as Columbus goes, it’s really about touching the individual through our music,” says Josh. Siantz has found support in the local community, as well as the challenge to expand and continue to create in unique and new ways. “As small as Columbus is, it always finds a way to throw you a curveball,” Joe says, noting that “Playing the type of music people don’t expect is a good thing.” While the brothers are still actively creating and playing music, they have had to do it from home for the past few months due to the pandemic. Though they have missed public performances, they say they are trying to find something positive in the situation, “using the silver lining to work on music.” They are currently working on a new album, and while they do have collaborators on recording, they do most of their work at home. For this reason, Siantz has been able to keep working on their latest project - a new album. They hope to have a release party when the album is finished and local venues are once again allowed to safely host crowds for events. For Josh and Joe, music is a form of self-exploration and expression that offers a camaraderie of perspective to its listeners. “We have a plethora of parts of ourselves we explore through our music,” Joe muses. Our community is fortunate to have the opportunity to experience firsthand the talent of Siantz as it unfolds. Along with an upcoming album, Siantz has more live events on the horizon. Be on the lookout for opportunities to watch them perform in person. u
Josh & Joe 13
JUNE 2020
