Oxygen Thief

Oxygen Thief

Oxygen Thief is the solo project and alias of Barry Dolan, a musician from Bristol. He performs and records as an acoustic act, although his style is described as having the intensity and volume of a full band. He also performs with an electric line-up, expanding the project from solo acoustic shows into a louder three-piece format.

Career and collaborations

Dolan shares stages with Frank Turner, Jonah Matranga, Mongol Horde and Ben Marwood, and appears at festivals including T In The Park, 2000 Trees and ArcTanGent. He tours in both solo and band form, including support slots for Jonah Matranga and Jamie Lenman. His first band shows include a Bristol date supporting Left Side Brain and a London appearance at Lexapalooza in March 2013.

Releases and label connection

Oxygen Thief releases the mini album Accidents Do Not Happen, They Are Caused. Before that, Dolan releases the split EP Exclamation At Asterisk Hash with Ben Marwood and Jim Lockey in 2009. The opening song, “There Can Be Only One”, appears on that split in acoustic form before being used on the later band release. Oxygen Thief becomes part of the Xtra Mile Recordings roster after having already appeared on several bills and stages connected with the label.

Performance style

Dolan is known for playing acoustic guitar with exceptional force, a style summarised by Tom Robinson of BBC 6Music as sounding as if it could “take the top of your head off”.