Upcoming Releases

OK Cool - the band of Chicago shredders Bridget Stiebris and Haley Blomquist Waller - announced their debut album Chit Chat will be released on August 1 st, 2025. Its first single “ Waawooweewaa ” packs a zesty punch and finds the duo indulging in their most straightforward rock n’ roll sensibilities. “I wrote the demo for this song in 2019 after a recent breakup, and I was kind of just musing on the patterns of my past breakups and how I felt in that moment,” explains Stiebris. “Any breakup of a serious relationship just sucks and I was in my feelings about it ending. I had also recently seen the movie Borat, which is why the song has a dumb name... but I think assigning some of these songs dumb names also helps me make fun of myself and not take it too seriously.”

The charming union of Stiebris and Blomquist Waller reaches confident new heights on Chit Chat, an irresistible document of the duo's dogged DIY spirit and close knit creative connection. Arriving after three EPs released over the course of five years, their auspicious debut full-length finds them building upon the trademark sound that helped grant their status as one of the most exciting bands in their local scene.

While half of the songs that comprised 2023’s acclaimed fawn EP clocked in at under 2 minutes, Chit Chat sees the duo strengthening their oeuvre within more traditional song lengths. "This was definitely an intentional part of the writing process for the album,” Stiebris explains. “I'm into the idea of telling a story, communicating an idea,but not taking up more time than I absolutely need to —this often results in pretty short songs. With Chit Chat, I tried to feel more comfortable taking up that space. So many bands I admire find ways to settle into themselves and a song's groove, and I wanted to see what that would look like in my own writing – that process of taking a breath and settling for a moment within the song."

The 10-track LP was entirely written, performed, and produced by Stiebris and Blomquist, with engineering support from fellow Chicago musicians Avery Black, Brad Harvey, and Wesley Reno. “We love keeping our production minimal and just between the two of us,” says Blomquist. “It creates a comfortable environment for sharing and recording ideas. While we have some different influences, we’re very like minded when it comes to songwriting.” Chicago friends Josh Kayne (drums) and Tommy Kessler (guitar) round out their live band.

Chit Chat blends songs with hooky melodies (“Fading Out Forever”), shoegaze sensibilities (“Splitting”), guitar theatrics (“Jeans (I Get It Now),” “Ruined”) and even delicate piano (“Loop”), but these tracks never feel disparate thanks to the thoughtful songwriting and instrumentation that fans have come to expect from the duo. “This record to me definitely centers around communication, hence the title Chit Chat,” Stiebris says. “I think it’s kind of a tongue-in-cheek reflection of both how Haley and I write – sending voice memos and song demos to each other via text message – and the actual action of talking person to person. A lot of these lyrics look back on certain interactions I’ve had and how they could have gone better, what I could have done differently, et cetera, and how they ended up affecting me emotionally.”

Chit Chat is ultimately the sound of two best friends collaborating effortlessly to craft a singular sonic language.

 

Chit Chat tracklist:

1. Intro
2. Waawooweewaa
3. Safety Car
4. Splitting
5. Jeans (I Get It Now)
6. Loop
7. Sledding
8. Ruined
9. Fading Out Forever
10. Last