Orba Squara

Orba Squara, otherwise known as New York-based artist Mitch Davis, hit on some career "Perfect Timing" when his track of that name, from his 2007 debut "sunshyness," was featured in the first international TV campaign for the iPhone. Now, as he prepares to release "The Trouble With Flying" on Oct. 27, he's reeling from another unexpected opportunity -- the chance to record with his all-time favorite artist, rocker Billy Squier, who performed on the title track and the song "Tell Me." Here Billboard.com offers an exclusive listen of "New Guitar" from Orba Squara's upcoming album. We also sat down with Davis to talk about working with Squier and guitars new and old.


esides the obvious themes in "New Guitar," what inspired it, what were you thinking about in a broader sense?

It's funny, I was actually thinking about my guitar. I sat down with [it], started to write a song - it was my first acoustic guitar I ever had and it's still my favorite - and it just kind of flowed out. It was just inspired by the simplest thing that was just in my face. And of course it started with thinking about the guitar, and then became ruminations about what's old and what's new and what's better and what's worse.

You made the new record largely with old instruments that you've collected, what instruments did you use?

In "New Guitar" I mostly use guitars, some toy pianos; but some of the other songs wouldn't have existed if not for some instruments that I found and bought that were unique. "The Trouble With Flying" came from the viola da terra, a Portuguese instrument that's kind of like a guitar but has 15 strings; that inspired the sound for that song. I don't use them necessarily in the way they're intended to be [used]. For me, the viola da terra inspired a front porch, bluesy Americana kind of thing, even though it's a Portuguese folk instrument that usually plays very different things than what I did with it.

How do you find and choose the instruments you use, and what are some of your favorite discoveries?

These days how I choose them is I look for the crappiest, most beaten up guitars that look like they've fallen into a fire. It kind of comes full circle. You start out playing cheapo guitars, then you get better and get better guitars, then you get the best one, then you think now this sounds too clean, now I want something dirtier. So I stumble on something from the 1900s that sounds gritty, then I get used to that and look for something even dirtier. And the thing is I get these guitars really cheap, and you have to take a chance, see if they have that character. Some guitars are just old guitars, but with some, the years of struggle that they've been through come through when you play.

What's the first song you learned to play?

For some reason, the first song that I remember trying to figure out, before I even understood how chords and notes really worked, was "God of Thunder" by Kiss.

What was it like working with Billy Squier, and why is he one of your musical heroes?

That was amazing. He's my all-time favorite artist. I don't know how that happened, [his] was the first concert I ever went to. I was obsessed with his albums, somehow I just connected with that music and it became my favorite. It was probably the easiest, best collaborative working relationship I've ever had. I would never have expected to have him playing on my record at all. He was happy in his retirement, but he liked what I was doing fortunately. I had a couple of songs -- on "The Trouble With Flying" I had a part that I thought would be good for him to play, and on the song "Tell Me," I actually wrote that middle section for him to sing. And now I'm recording new Billy Squier songs for him, he's been writing now and we've been recording. Really cool.

Finally, what does Orba Squara mean, and why did you choose the name instead of just using your own name?

I wanted a name that didn't clue you in as to what you're going to hear. I wanted something that's almost like a Rorschach test, you hear the name and you make it what you want it to mean. You know, you say "what's your band called" and you say "Mastodon," you know what you're going to hear. I didn't want people to hear the name and say I don't like that kind of music I don't want to listen to it. People can interpret the music how they want, and the name isn't telling them it's a genre they're not supposed to listen to. The meaning of it was almost stream of consciousness.
- Billboard Magazine

I hate a song that makes you think that you are not any good. I hate a song that makes you think that you are just born to lose. Bound to lose. No good to nobody. No good for nothing. Because you are too old or too young or too fat or too slim. Too ugly or too this or too that. Songs that run you down or poke fun at you on account of your bad luck or hard traveling.
This Woodie Guthrie quote is the first thing that came to my mind when I first started listening to The Trouble With Flying. Not because Davis tries to build a listener up with endless compliments, but because Davis seems to make a conscious effort to write songs that are bound to put a person in a better mood than they are currently in and put a smile on your face for the duration of time that he has your attention. In his latest album he accomplishes this feat of uplifting the listener quite well.
Orba Squara is the stage name for singer/songwriter Mitch Davis. I’ll have to admit that Orba Squara was a completely new act to me when I received the latest album to listen to and review but upon further study and research I learned that he’s not as new as I initially thought. “Perfect Timing (This Morning)”, from his 2007 debut release Sunshyness, was used on this iPhone commercial and the track “Brand New Day” from The Trouble With Flying is on the soundtrack of the feature film Wedding Days. In fact, of the 10 tracks on Sunshyness 9 of them were licensed to be used for film and television projects. The last album to do that was Moby’s Play in 1999.
In the first track, “Treasure Map” Davis takes the listener to an imaginary land that is full of leprechauns, mermaids and fortune tellers. This track truly sets the mood for the rest of the album. There are no melancholy tracks to be found here, only songs of adventure and emotion. Davis provides us reprieve from our typical lives filled with work, kids, and other countless distraction by allowing the simpler things to be the subject of his songs. On a dreary day, when your responsibilities and worries seem to be rising like a tide, allow Davis’ songs to carry you away to a better place as he tells you how his day was or the stress that all musicians face as they purchase a new guitar and try not to feel as though they are turning their back on an old friend. These are just a few examples of some of the thoughts and emotions that, as a society, we typically throw by the wayside or just don’t take the time to analyze; luckily Davis takes the time for us.
In addition to Davis’ insight to the often ignored aspects of life, this new album also features a special guest appearance from Billy Squier on the title track as well in “Tell Me”. These two tracks have a definitive sound to them as Squier lends his guitar style to the tracks, which is quite different from the typical Davis form.
One of the best parts about this release, aside from the music, is the newly designed and innovative web page that Davis has launched. The site features a side scrolling design cataloging a ten day tour through New York, down south to New Mexico and Texas and up to Oregon. This site provides the viewer photos, lyrics and random thoughts about the album and touring, all the while listening to track samples. The website is definitely worth some time but make sure that you have quite a bit to spare as it is quite consuming. - The Muse In Music

You probably know Orba Squara, a.k.a. NYC singer-songwriter Mitch Davis best for the original iPhone soundtracker “Perfect Timing (This Morning)” and the eye-scrambling “Gravel” video.
As for Billy Squier, well — but for him, we wouldn’t have the ’80s AM-radio rock classics “The Stroke,” “My Kinda Lover” and “Rock Me Tonight” without him. Also: this hair. (Now sadly shorn; see photo, with Squier on the right.)
And so, the twain shall meet! Which they do, on the upcoming Squara album The Trouble With Flying, out October 27. According to Davis’ publicist, “After a fortuitous meeting backstage, Davis handed his childhood hero a copy of [his 2007 debut] sunshyness and the two started collaborating. Squier co-wrote and is featured on two of the album tracks.”


- Entertainment Weekly

Orba Squara is Mitch Davis. Mitch Davis plays what is being called “simple music.” Orba Squara made a debut record, sunshyness, in 2007, that made a huge splash. It was compared to Moby’s Play in terms of impact in the music business, for whatever that’s worth to you. So now, Mitch Davis, the project that is Orba Squara, is all set to do it again. The follow-up to one of the most licensed albums in music is about to be released and of course the big question is, “will it measure up?” Except, no… nobody’s asking that question out loud. Because, remember, Orba Squara makes “simple” music, darlings, get it?

Yeah, this indie/acoustic/folksy artist has very cleverly wound his way around this maze of second album disappointment by ensconcing himself in a genre that expects, no… requires understatement. What a fucking perfect psych out that is! Well, let me tell you, from having lived in NYC, it takes a New Yorker to dream that up and pull it off! Kudos, Mr. Davis, and well done!!

Do I sound bitter? I don’t mean to be. The single I was given is truly good. I love the feeling ”Trouble With Flying” evokes, it’s a kind of modernization of “Within You, Without You” from the first vinyl record I ever bought, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. It’s all the sitar and the story telling in each case here. Trouble With Flying has a beautiful indie beat, far from the Beatles attempt to adopt a more Eastern tempo. And the vocal is much less trippy, well… ok, a little less trippy, ha! But I love the way there’s aurally so much going on in this song and yet he’s convinced everyone that it’s all so simple! Bravo!

Go over to the official website here, and you can catch a rather large snippet of the songs on the album, it’s got cool pictures too! From what I have heard there, I eagerly await this album release. Hope you do too, xoxo - Love Shack, Baby

As a band whose first album contained the song of the iPhone campaign, folksy outfit Orba Squara, aka Mitch Davis & co, have remained decidedly grounded –literally. According to the band’s unique side-scrolling website:

To celebrate the release of the new album we decided to get on a bus and take a 10 day journey cross-country to play some new music, meet some new people and, along the way, see what we’ve been missing.

From there what unfolds (er, unscrolls?) is a refreshingly noncommercial, well executed modern masterpiece in collage. Reportedly measuring over 400 feet long (!), the site serves as an earnest scrapbook that is at times poignant, funny, obvious, and endearing –all the while clips from The Trouble With Flying provide the soundtrack. The whole thing feels like a lighthearted Wes Anderson film, at the very least the title card and diorama bits from those films. The album is solid, too, filled with straightforward baroque/folk pop (ba-folk pop?) reminiscent of The Boy Least Likely To. Check out the title track (MPfree!) and let us know what you think. The Trouble With Flying out July 27th.



There’s more Orba Squara behind the cut! Listen to their excellent cover of “Poker Face” (originally performed by Round Table fave bane Lady Gaga), PLUS watch the original iPhone commercial featuring “Perfect Timing (This Morning)” from debut album Sunshyness. - The Round Table

Orba Squara, which is basically New York-based musician Mitch Davis, is one of those musical acts who is hard to hate. Even if one is not a fan of bouncy uplifting pop songs which is Davis’ forte, one can’t ignore the fact he is a talented musician.
On his past recordings, Davis has played numerous instruments and not just your normal ones either. A few of the more unique instruments he has tinkered with include: mandolin, sitar, violin, glockenspiel, and xylophone.
Davis’ love for more organic sounds continues as he plays a bunch of those above mentioned instruments on his new cd entitled The Trouble With Flying. The 13-track recording is the follow up to his debut Sunshyness which was most notable for “Perfect Timing (This Morning),” a song that was played on a popular iPhone commercial.
Even though the sound of both discs is similar, there is a significant difference now—The Trouble With Flying is a more consistent collection of songs and it is a nice step forward for Davis. The biggest improvement on The Trouble With Flying is that it works better as an album because it is more theme-oriented than singles-oriented. (Sunshyness had eight other tracks licensed for movie and television projects.)
The theme of Davis’ newest release is best encapsulated in the title track. The song’s lyrics deal with man’s tendency to miss out on life and experience different things because of our fear of trying something new or our depending on technology too much.
The track’s words become more even special because of the engaging Spanish-Portuguese vibe a prominent viola gives. Surprisingly, there is also a unique bluesy sound to it, thanks to the appearance of classic rock guitarist/singer Billy Squier.
The title track isn’t the only highlight though. The opening track, “Treasure Map,” and “Picture Perfect” are simple yet fun songs that feature catchy melodies and bouncy acoustic guitars while still tackling the album’s themes.
The biggest drawback to The Trouble With Flying though lays in Davis’ vocals which don’t vary much from song to song. His high pitch works fine on the more uptempo numbers but it detracts a bit from the quieter ones. The best example of this is “Millionaires” which ends up sounding like a children’s ditty or a mediocre Broadway show number.
Even so, there is a good flow from song to song on The Trouble With Flying and its lyrical content and use of unique musical instruments is intriguing and rewarding. - Skope

Orba Squara is the indie pop brainchild of Mitch Davis, a New Yorker, a singer and a songwriter with an ear for simple, uncluttered melodies. Here’s the funny thing -- I am positive you’ve heard one of his songs before. Here’s why: his song, “Perfect Timing” was the one featured on the first Apple iPhone Commercial. Aha!

The project was launched in the mid-2000s, when Davis decided to replace his former approach to music — which involved the heavy use of electronics and electric instruments with a simple, homegrown sound. Using such “organic” instruments as mandolin, accordion, and toy pianos, Davis single-handedly crafted Orba Squara’s debut album, Sunshyness. Word of mouth brought the album to the attention of Universal Records, and Orba Squara’s debut soon became one of the most licensed albums since Moby’s Play, with nine of its ten songs being used in iPod advertisements, television projects, and feature films.

I’ve had the pleasure to sit down with Orba Squara for an interview, I’ve had some good questions to ask him. Also, he’s coming out with a new album titled “The Trouble with Flying“.

Daniel: What’s behind the name Orba Squara? Does it have any special meaning?

Davis: “Thinking of a name is always difficult. I didn’t want to just go by my name because I wanted it to be about the music rather than about me personally. I wanted your first impression of the music to be based on what you actually heard.

I figured that if I created a name that had no specifically defined meaning, listeners would be able to read whatever they want into it. It is like a Rorschach test. -- whatever it means to you. I thought it rolled off the tongue nicely.”


Daniel: When did you first realize that music was your true calling?

Davis: “There was never a time that I wanted to be involved with anything other than music. It was something I always felt a need to be around. I actually feel lucky that I even HAVE a “true calling” at all! I couldn’t imagine not having this thing that I feel compelled to do.”

Daniel: What inspires you to write?

Davis: Hearing new sounds inspires me to write. I look at music in a rather abstract way. It is not stories and situations. It is shapes and colors. It is rare if ever that I will sit down and say to myself “I am going to write a song about a lake”… I pick up an instrument and its sound inspires what I will write on it. Then that inspires something else.

Then I have something that makes me think “this song feels like a lake.”Hearing noises in the street and I loop them in my head and they become rhythms that inspire music. They *are* music.”

Daniel: You’ve gotten SO much recognition from the Apple commercial -- and you know that everyone in the world has seen & heard it. Did you know that it was going to get that viral?

Davis: “You never really know when something will become viral. Things just take on a life of their own for whatever reason and it is really hard to predict. I am happy, though, that people noticed it and people liked it!

The story is that Universal Music had the CD, they gave it to people, one of the people was working with Apple, they gave it to Steve Jobs, he liked it, it made its way into the iPhone ad.

Daniel: You’re very into “Organic Instruments” -- What are your favorite instruments to play?

Davis: “When I am recording, I do not have a favorite instrument. I really enjoy the process of recording music and playing different instruments and making it all fit together.

When I perform live, I prefer to play guitar. Guitar was my first instrument and it is the one that I feel most at home with when I just want to “play”.

Daniel: What part of the music life and your music career do you like the most?

Davis: “I like that I can wear whatever I want, look however I want and that I can work whatever hours I like!”

Daniel: This is the best answer I’ve heard anyone say about anything.

Daniel: Your new album is titled ” The Trouble with Flying” what’s the story behind the name?

Davis: “I knew as soon as I had written the song that it would be a good album title. The song is talking about the idea of needing to take a chance if you want an opportunity to succeed. It seemed appropriate for the album since a lot of that is there when you start writing an album.

You have a blank slate and you have to play that first note. It is the hardest note to play. You have whole thing ahead of you and it is as far away as it could possibly be. You kinda just have to lay everything out there and hope for the best.”

Daniel: What kind of change do you think your fans will see in the new album ‘The Trouble with Flying’

Davis: “The biggest change is that I didn’t play everything myself on this one. I have Billy Squier doing some guest vocals and electric guitar work on a couple of the songs. He adds so much to those tracks!”
- Bloginity

Mitch Davis is the man behind the quirky music of Orba Squara. Though Orba Squara has, for most of its life, been a one-man-band, Davis performs and collaborates with a collection of salvaged instruments. These reclaimed tools, saved from thrift stores and junk shops, gives Orba Squara its unique sound, one that is both derived from and a personification of reuse aesthetics.

It's an approach that pervades Orba Squara's approach to music. From second-hand instruments in the studio to a 10-day bus tour across the country, the focus is on the old and local, the slow and positive.

We had a chance to talk to Mitch Davis, who is releasing Orba Squara's second album, The Trouble with Flying, on October 26th.

Planet Green: What's the story behind your name, Orba Square - ah?
Mitch Davis: The story behind the name, actually pronounced Orba Skwa - ra...

PG: Oh, sorry about that.
MD: It's ok. There's no way anyone would know that because it's completely made up anyway. It serves me right for thinking of a name that is completely nonsensical.

First of all, I wanted to think of a name...that wasn't a person's name. I wanted it to be a band name and I wanted it to be an abstract name. I didn't want it to be something that would clue the listener into the kind of music it might be or what to expect, so they wouldn't have any preconceived ideas of what the music is or is supposed to be.

PG: You must get that question a lot.
MD: Yeah.

PG: OK, we can move on. Thanks for indulging me though.
MD: No problem.

PG: Listening to the album, the thing that sticks out to me is the unique sound of the instruments you use. Could you tell me a little about this?
MD: I kind of see myself as someone who rescues old instruments. I think these old instruments have a lot to offer. They have a lot more character to them than some new, shiny, pristine instrument. I like to look around different thrift stores and junk shops and look for guitars, accordions, cow bells, or whatever.

You find things like that, not only do you give an instrument some value it might not have had otherwise by actually putting it to use in a valuable sort of way, but it just has a lot more character. You know, a guitar might be cracked, or warped, and doesn't tune up exactly right, that's what gives it a sound. That's what gives it a personality.

Anyone can go out and buy a guitar but to find one that has had a long life and needs a home and some appreciation, that's harder to come by. They have a whole lot more interest to me.

And we kind of help each other, the instruments and I. They force me to do something I wouldn't have otherwise done.

PG: So the music comes from these instruments both literally and figuratively.
MD: Yeah, I think the instruments really tell me what they want to write, basically. You wouldn't play in a smoky honky-tonk bar with a big grand piano. The sound of the instrument tells you want it wants to play. If I have 10 guitars in front of me, each one will have its own sound and will want to play different things—and they'll inspire different things.

That's my starting point for writing new songs. I pick up a new instrument and see where it takes me.


Orba Squara's new album The Trouble with Flying. Image credit: Mitch Davis/Orba Squara

PG: The Trouble with Flying, comes out October 26th. What's the story behind this new album?
MD: I basically went about it the same way as the previous album, but one thing that was really different was that I used a lot of the same types of instruments but larger scale than the previous one. Where the other one was a lot more ukuleles and small glockenspiels, this one has more things like a nylon string flamenco guitar, a xylophone, or an accordion.

The first album came about as a spontaneous reaction to the things I was doing and other music I was making. By the time [The Trouble with Flying] came around, I had lived with the style, it became more a part of me.

PG: Does the album's title The Trouble with Flying speak to anything specific?
MD: Well, it came from the song, "The Trouble with Flying," but I chose it for the album title because it really feels appropriate for a second album. You think: you just got through the first one, you tied it up nicely and it's done. But when you start the second one, you're sort of starting over.

The hardest parts are starting something and finishing it. It's a scary thing to sit down with the blank paper and have to start from scratch all over again.


Sometimes, you have to take it slow. Orba Squara's bus-powered tour across the US. Image credit: Mitch Davis/Orba Squara

PG: When you're touring or writing an album, do you think about music as a tool for social change or a means of raising awareness of important issues?
MD: You can't really set out to make social change with music. But what you can do with music is try not to influence negative change. Even if I can't make someone go out and do something good, I won't influence them to do something bad.

PG: The fact that you make something creative from what would be other people's trash, or at least from things that have been forgotten, makes it seem that there is something inherently positive about your music.
MD: I think so. I would hope that it could make some small dent in the world and make people take a look at what they have—what people need to own and acquire—and what they can repurpose and continue using for a long time.


In this subtle way, the music of Orba Squara is a call for all of us to take a look at the old and forgotten. It demonstrates the value of the warped and broken over the new and shiny. As a sort of shepherd of abandoned instruments, Mitch Davis shows us the power of reuse culture.

The result: Unique music that has a powerful message but is still fun to listen to. - Planet Green / Discovery Channel