Local band Fables has begun to emerge into the music world by sharing music that tells stories with multiple genres.

Fables began about a year ago in a living room of two roomates— Jake Webb, lead vocalist, and Ben Sheidlower, lead guitarist— when Sheidlower shared some of the songs he wrote.

They decided that it would be a great idea to start a band and bring the music to life. Now, the band has six members, including Ohio State alumni Brian Ellerman and John Allen, and it is currently working on its first record.

“It was something we always wanted but were unsure of,” Webb said. “After we moved in together, we realized that we really had something.”

The members of Fables describe themselves mainly as a folk band, but they have also written songs in other genres.

The cool thing about Fables is that it’s kind of been like this blank canvas where we draw from whatever mood or genre happens to be piquing our interest during the songwriting process,” Sheidlower said in an email. “We’ve taken elements from soul, old-time country, rock and Americana music,”

As an Ohio University alumnus with a degree in creative writing, Sheidlower does a lot of the song writing. He said the vision for the songs he writes is to tell a story, hence the band name.

“We really approach each song with a storytelling sensibility with the hope that if you hone in on the vocals or lyrical content alone, they can essentially exist independently as short stories with their own themes, settings and rotating cast of characters,” he said.

Both Sheildlower and Webb are thankful for the growth and experience they have had while playing in the band. They said they hope to share their music with even more people in the future and develop a larger fan base. The band is currently focused on becoming more active on social media, and the band members hope to expand their shows beyond Columbus in the next year.  

“The fact that I’ve been lucky enough to have found a creative outlet where I can collaborate with some of the most talented musicians and friends that I know is the definition of success in my mind,” Sheidlower said.  “But if we can find more opportunities to share our music with more people and continue having a great time doing it, all the better.”

Webb said he has a positive outlook on the future of the band.

“I think the goal in the future is to continue to grow, of course there is always new material to be written that will probably be beyond what we are putting down on record now,” he said. “The goal is to keep growing as a band, keep growing as friends, and keep growing as people,”

Fables’ next show is scheduled for May 12 at 6 p.m. at Woodlands Tavern in Grandview.