Oliver Hazard is taking a little bit of Waterville to the world this summer
- Jul 9
- 3 min read
There is a town in northwest Ohio called Waterville. A few thousand people live there, pressed against the Maumee River, far enough from Toledo to feel like its own thing. Most people have never heard of it.
Oliver Hazard has spent the better part of a decade making sure that changes.
The trio of Michael Belazis, Devin East, and Nate Miner play indie folk that sounds like home, and the name of their current tour makes the connection literal: The Waterville Tour kicks off July 28 at Union Stage, where Corner Circuit last caught them in October 2024.
The band's origin has a decent bit of luck baked into it. Belazis had spent time in California leading camping trips before he moved back home to Ohio, where he linked up with two childhood friends. A Facebook raffle got them a single free song at a local studio, but when the day came, they skipped the prize and cut their entire debut album in one take instead. The result was 34 N. River, named for the address of the house where East and the band’s original keyboardist lived.
Before long, word spread well beyond northwest Ohio. Media outlets, indie playlists, and enthusiastic fans carried the record farther than the band could have expected, giving Oliver Hazard the momentum to trade local shows for national touring without sacrificing the intimacy that defined those early songs.
What followed was the kind of growth story that feels increasingly rare: no viral moment, no algorithmic shortcut. Oliver Hazard has been killing it the old-fashioned way, squeezing into a van and winning over fans one city at a time. They launched a Living Room Tour, playing acoustic sets in fans’ houses across the country. They started their own music festival in Waterville, which now draws artists from across North America. That steady climb has turned Oliver Hazard into one of indie folk's quiet success stories. They continue to headline rooms across the country while keeping the close connection with fans. In fact, the band's Tiny Lamp Fan Club boasts a coveted prize of a tiny lamp for any fan who attends 10 shows.
The music has grown alongside the audience. With their Raindrop River EP, released in December 2024 and produced by Grammy winner Jacquire King, Belazis said the goal was to merge the rawness of the first album with the clarity of the self-titled record from 2023. King came into the band’s orbit after attending one of their living-room gigs. The result is a six-track set that sits comfortably in their catalog without repeating it.
The Waterville Tour takes its name from the band’s most recent EP, released in April 2026 and featuring five tracks: “Vampire,” “Hold On,” “Sentimental,” “The Market,” and “Without You.” Several of those singles dropped in the months leading up to the tour, building out the setlist piece by piece. Where Raindrop River leaned into solitude and quiet reckoning, the Waterville EP circles back to the place and feeling that started everything.
Oliver Hazard has always understood that the smallest moments often leave the deepest impression. Their songs find beauty in ordinary places, familiar faces, and the pull of home, bringing a warm living-room glow wherever they go.
See below for a full list of tour dates:
July 28, 2026 @ Union Stage in Washington, D.C.
July 29, 2026 @ Ardmore Music Hall in Ardmore, PA
July 30, 2026 @ Sony Hall in New York, NY
July 31, 2026 @ The Sinclair in Cambridge, MA
August 1, 2026 @ Portland House of Music and Events in Portland, ME
August 2, 2026 @ Colony in Woodstock, NY
August 4, 2026 @ Higher Ground Showcase Lounge in South Burlington, VT
August 6, 2026 @ Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto, ON
August 7, 2026 @ The Pyramid Scheme in Grand Rapids, MI
August 8, 2026 @ SPACE in Evanston, IL
August 15, 2026 @ Oliver Hazard Day in Waterville, OH
August 28, 2026 @ Tønder Festival in Tønder, Denmark
August 30, 2026 @ Stanford Hall in Lutterworth, UK
September 1, 2026 @ The Lexington in London, UK
December 3, 2026 @ TBD in Hastings, NE
December 4, 2026 @ Marquis Theater in Denver, CO
December 5, 2026 @ The Urban Lounge in Salt Lake City, UT
December 7, 2026 @ TBD in Seattle, WA
December 8, 2026 @ TBD in Portland, OR
December 10, 2026 @ TBD in San Francisco, CA
December 11, 2026 @ TBD in Los Angeles, CA
December 12, 2026 @ TBD in Phoenix, AZ