Paul Megna has been releasing music under the moniker ‘The Oxygen Ponies’ since 2006. After a nine year hiatus, he released a new ep in the summer of 2020 as ‘Oxygenpony’.
Discography
‘Exit Wounds’ had a limited release in 2011 and is currently unavailble. It’s being remixed and reimagined for it’s tenth anniversary. But it may not be available until 2022.
In their heyday, The Oxygen Ponies performed on both sides of the Atlantic with such artists as the Mercury Rev, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Here We Go Magic, White Rabbits, Goldrush, Electric Soft Parade et al.
In 2009, UK radio legend Bob Harris added ‘Fevered Cyclone’ and ‘Love Yr Way’ into his rotation on BBC2 and personally invited Paul to play on his curated stage at the Truck Festival in Oxford, performing on a bill with the Jayhawks, Incredible String Band, Pete Molinari et al.
PRESS
BEST ALBUMS OF 2006
HITS IN THE CAR – w/Band of Horses, Razorlight, The Radio Dept., Muse, Phoenix
RAINDOG’S RANTS [honorable mention] – w/ Bob Dylan, Joseph Arthur, Flaming Lips
BEN KRIEGER’S BEST NYC ALBUMS - w/Jaymay, Leah Siegel, Lowry +
BEST ALBUMS OF 2009
EARTASTE – w/ The XX, Conor Oberst, Black Lips
FOLLY OF YOUTH [honorable mention] – w/ AC Newman, Animal Collective, Cymbals Eat Guitars
LUCID CULTURE
BEST LIVE SHOWS NYC 2009
LUCID CULTURE
The Oxygen Ponies (2006)
“Gorgeous, hazily atmospheric and intelligently written…” Thomas Bartlett, Audiophile - SALON.COM
“Sounds great. Fans of Leonard Cohen, Elliott Smith and ‘Blood on the Tracks’ era Bob Dylan will not be disappointed…” TAPE OP No. 55 2006
“Minor-chord folk/pop for the end credits, a dozen songs delivered in a raspy voice that sounds broken beyond repair.”MAGNET MAGAZINE No. 74
“Beautifully arranged, ‘The Quickest Way to Happiness’, and indeed this album, could become modern classics if given half a chance.” Aled Roberts AMERICANA UK
Harmony Handgrenade (2009)
“This is a really quite wonderful album… Really, really outstanding stuff…I think this music is amazing” Bob Harris BBC RADIO 2 LIVE 3/21/09
“Sexy and immediate, yet at times wistful. In many ways, it could prove timeless.” Danny Wadeson THE 405
“A thoroughly engaging listen.” THE LINE OF BEST FIT
“A towering journey of utterly raw emotion and barely-contained rebellion… it seems clear that he will soon take his place among the most influential of this generation’s musicians.” Delana Barnes STEREO SUBVERSION
“The powerful sophomore album of, yes, a potential songwriting genius.” NO RIPCORD
Exit Wounds (2011)
“Megna’s sparse arrangements (lots of space between the notes) and flair for the dramatic is cut from the classic stuff of Dylans’s Blonde on Blonde, Wait’s Closing Time and just about anything by Leonard Cohen or Elliott Smith.” Tom Semioli AMPLIFIER MAGAZINE
“EXIT WOUNDS is like a night-time walk down a street of boarded up shops, dreams crushed under foot like the broken glass and hearts hung up on meat hooks. It is a haunted album of Americana noire; haunted by the ghosts of broken love and selfish souls who throw away happiness for some tinsel tawdry chimera of a glamour dream. Make an exception for this one.” AMERICANA UK
“It is Megna’s pain that carries this album so beautifully, Even in the brighter moments there is an overarching sadness. The more upbeat sounding moments of the album, like “Wild Animals”, may be few and far between but these rays of hope in an otherwise bleak outlook make the entire recording a success.” Andrew Fersch PERFORMER MAGAZINE
How Aeroplanes Fly (2020)
“How Aeroplanes Fly holds heart and soul inside hands of rhythm and hope, a curious but interesting mix of mellow and melancholia - like an upbeat Dream City Film Club, a saddened Talk Talk, or Leonard Cohen Cracking a smile as lou Reed Tells a joke. It’s sad britpop for happy dreamers. These thoughts drift in with the songs, but over it all is a powerful and solid style and beautiful heartfelt music.” marcel Feldmar Big Takeover issue 86
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