Country Showcase Preview: The Olson Bros Band

The Olson Bros Band, headed by family duo Luke and Isaac Olson, will be bringing its talents to the Country Showcase on Saturday.

Despite their great country sound and deeply Southern image, the two grew up in Olympia, Washington. Playing music together came naturally — they learned guitar together, sang in choir together and eventually began writing songs together. It seemed obvious to play music with his best friend, Luke said.

“Our mom actually got us our first gig at a restaurant next to her office after hearing us play around the campfire all the time,” said Luke.

This launched the two playing shows and competitions around Olympia, leading them to take a road trip down the West Coast, in which they busked in different cities to pay for gas.

After gaining a following, the Olson Bros began playing festivals and fairs, and Luke took a year off of school to pursue their music. After the year, Isaac stayed in Olympia, but Luke came down to Nashville to major in songwriting at Belmont. Isaac sometimes makes the trip to Nashville in order to perform with his brother.

“Playing with the Olsons is really a lot of fun,” said Olson Bros lead guitarist Zach Rowell. “They have no problem messing with each other or messing with me, but it’s all in good fun.”

The Olson Bros describe their sound as country with a bit of an edge and lots of other flavors mixed in. For example, they will have a metal drummer playing with them at Country Showcase.

The brothers’ influences include Zac Brown, Dierks Bentley, Sam Hunt and Rascal Flatts, who they discovered after finding a lost CD.

“It’s a funny story — we grew up on a lake and one day we found a Rascal Flatts CD at the bottom of our dock that still totally worked. I hadn’t heard of Rascal Flatts before then, but they helped me realize how amazing country music is,” Luke said.

They will be performing a Zac Brown cover as well as two original songs at the showcase.

“It’s great being in a band with my brother,” said Luke. “If we ever fight, we’ve been through it so many times we’re just best friends the next day again.”

Photo courtesy of Hannah Drake Photography.