40FALL STUDENT LIFE Just Around The River Band Two juniors make their own folk music as the duo Rivers West. JUNIORS ADDISON CARNEY AND JOE OLIVER formed the folk music duo Rivers West, releasing their first EP in the summer of 2021. However, they made music together long before that. “Addison and I officially formed Rivers West in the spring of 2021, but we started jamming out together at the end of the fall semester our freshman year,” Oliver said. The idea for Rivers West bounced around for a while, according to Carney. “There wasn’t one particular moment when we decided to form the band; it was more of a gradual process,” Carney said. “After we had written several songs, Joe suggested putting them out for people to hear. I was a bit reluctant at first. Over time, our desire for people to hear our music grew, and we decided to put them out.” Carney said they loved working together and had a friendship that went beyond music-making. “Working with Joe has been a blast,” Carney said. “He’s a very talented musician, singer and songwriter. More importantly, though, he’s a good and close friend.” Oliver reciprocated his gratitude in working with Carney. “Addison is one of my closest friends, and I feel so lucky to get to put out music with him,” Oliver said. “Our friendship runs much deeper than the band; we would still be friends even if we didn’t have the band.” Carney and Oliver’s chemistry helped them during the recording process. They also received help from audio events specialist David Robison. “David was extremely helpful,” Carney said. “He helped us record our songs during the end of a busy semester. He took time out of his schedule to spend hours with us in the studio, and we are very grateful to him for the time and effort he put in.” Robison enjoyed working with Rivers West and was able to use the group to test a new recording setup. “I probably drove them a little crazy because I kept tweaking and remixing the songs to figure out the new equipment,” Robison said. “So, in one sense, it was a learning process for all of us.” Robison added that he was impressed by the duo throughout the recording process. “They did a really good job of jumping in and playing their songs and working through the process,” Robison said. Carney and Oliver were unsure of the future for the group, but they wanted to continue what they were doing for years to come. “We won’t stop writing music,” Oliver said. “At the moment, we really just want to see if there are any doors that God opens for us along the way.” WRITTEN BY CARTER THWEATT
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