Who … indeed?
Well, we are not famous, you haven’t heard of us. Neither of us were in a well-known band previously and neither of us have had a hit record. We’ve had, and continue to have, very eclectic and interesting lives and have both done things many people perhaps only dream of. But being successful musicians from a commercial or fame perspective is not one of them!
So who are we then?
OLDER is the songwriting partnership between Kiwis Jel Legg and Julie Legg. Jel is originally from the UK having moved to NZ in the early 90s. As musicians Jel has always been a bass player and music producer and Julie a singer and both have been in many bands over the years. Until we formed OLDER in 2012 neither of us regarded ourselves as confident or prolific songwriters having always been in bands where there were others leading the charge. From the outset we had to write songs ourselves and thankfully found we could – close to 70 of them as of 2026.
Good name, bad name ...
In settling on the name ‘OLDER’ for the band it was perfect because it made clear we were not young, and as youth is a vital asset in the music business - that momentary phase has long since departed us. No spring chickens here. Equally it was a terrible band name because it’s not unique enough for SEO. But it is honest and simple and besides, we’re stuck with it now.
Because we want to, because we can
We keep writing, recording and releasing albums that are not typical of musicians our age because we love the process, and because we can. When we first met in 1992, in another band lost in time. Jel had already worked out that ‘owning the means to production’ rather than forever paying for studio time was a great investment in the future. House sold, first studio built. It has paid off many times over and is still where we record (Studio109).
“We’re neither daft, nor deluded; we know there is zero interest in unknown artists of our age. But that does not stop us producing music to a high standard – if anything it enables us to have genuine creative freedom as we have no obligation to please an established fan base. Yet people of all ages do listen to and enjoy our music, for which we are grateful. Even one stranger enjoying our music means the world to us, after all art is meant to connect people.”
Being involved in music has been a life-long endeavour for us both, in one guise or another, but it has never put food on the table, let alone paid for houses and kids. There have been years of professional acting, voice-over work, marketing, web designing, engineering and even some stints building space satellites and even working on the development of the Bugatti Veyron. Even that lot had to be subsidised by constantly renovating houses and living in building site conditions.
What if we had been famous?
We often reflect that had we had successful careers in music then perhaps by now we would have lost our passion for new material. Perhaps we would have been cursed to keep playing a handful of hits live until our last string snapped. Maybe we would have struggled to find meaning in life once the fame had faded. That we have no baggage, no single or album that defined our place in the history of music, or fan’s nostalgic hearts, is arguably a blessing.
Each new song for us is fresh, as fresh as when we were in our early 20s learning our craft. Perhaps writing the kind of music we do helps keep us young at heart – we still get stupidly excited when a song comes together. We don’t get excited by what most of our Generation X seem to enjoy – another cruise, a new boat, a new car or a bigger TV.
The OLDER we get, the OLDER we want to get
Our lyrics are often uplifting and positive, even at times anthemic - simply celebrating being alive, which everyone which is has a duty to do. The older you get the more you appreciate life and its brevity. Equally our lyrics are observational, casting a wry smile at life and its varied situations and especially at the expense of pompous characters. Personal freedom also strongly underpins our worldview. Lots of freedom, above all else. Our kids have grown and our responsibilities are largely, and happily behind us. Perhaps we have come full circle to our youth wrapped up in older frames.
We are happy to be known as a studio-based band. We are writers and producers but no longer performers, though we have had plenty of experience being on stage.
What's with this funny symbol with dots?
OLDER’s band symbol is linked to Jel’s Welsh lineage (Carmarthenshire, Dyfed, Cymru) and is inspired by the Celtic symbol for the Awen - loosely translated as ‘flowing spirit,’ ‘divine inspiration,’ or ‘poetic genius.’ Historically, an awenydd was a seer, bard, or soothsayer revered for channeling the awen. We adapted the neo-Druid symbol for the Awen which broadly means: ‘The three lines relate to earth, sea and air; body, mind and spirit; or love, wisdom and truth. It is also said that the Awen stands for not simply inspiration, but for inspiration of truth; without Awen one cannot proclaim truth. The three foundations of Awen are the understanding of truth, the love of truth, and the maintaining of truth.’
Living simply
We live rurally surrounded by nature where, as ambiverts, we are happiest when away from the bustle of city life. We've done city life, lots of city life in our time. Ours is the kind of space retired rock-stars tend to end up in, the irony of which is not lost on us! We treasure the simple things in life and value people with interesting stories to tell or conversations to share. If you get to come into our world you’ll find the house is called Awenydd – a fitting name for our sanctuary as we grow OLDER, literally and metaphorically!