Okapi (band)
Okapi | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Chicago, Illinois, US |
| Genres | Experimental |
| Members | Scott Mitchell Gorski, Lindsey Paige Miller |
| Website | okapiduo |
Okapi is an American musical duo composed of Scott Mitchell Gorski (upright bass/voice) and Lindsey Paige Miller (cello), based in Asheville, North Carolina.[1]
History
The two met and began performing in Chicago, IL in 2012, but have called Appalachia home since moving there in 2017.[2]
Sound
Okapi's music draws from experimental music, avant-garde music, classical music, art rock, folk music, progressive rock, jazz, tango music, and Eastern European music, and through his lyrics, Gorski tries giving artistic voice to a doctrine and philosophy written like a mission statement on the Okapi website.[3]
Approach
Hailing from differing musical backgrounds but sharing a passion for various types of songwriting and structures, they began formulating candid, cathartic, and intentionally intricate orchestrations rooted in honesty and rawness. With evocative works abundant with lyrical paintings, they present ideas both intimately and aggressively, which challenge perceptions that stimulate universal confrontations with our absurd reality, while also encouraging consciousness, healthy growth, and individual empowerment.
Big Ears Festival
Okapi was selected to perform at the 2022 Big Ears experimental festival alongside illustrious performers such as John Zorn, Patti Smith and Animal Collective.[4]
The Wire
Okapi was featured in The Wire (magazine)'s "The Wire Tapper" (No. 63), a series of CD anthologies of new underground music that The Wire staff compiles three times a year. A track of theirs was selected to be included with The Wire Magazine's Issue No. 477.[5]
Collaborations
In October, 2019 Okapi collaborated with Luke H. Walker on his play The Wake of Dick Johnson, composing the score for the third run of the play at Performance Space 122 in New York City. A review of the play by Broadwayworld.com lauded their "chilling" performance, citing the band's unmistakable talent and eerie sounds. Broadwayworld wrote, "Throughout the play, the two perform with both a creepy rawness changing the tempo as quick as Dick's moods."[6]
References
- ^ Peiken, Matt (November 18, 2021). "Music duo Okapi channels anger into heady music for higher consciousness". NPR. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
- ^ "Okapi: Carousel (Part I)". The Laurel of Asheville. 31 October 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
- ^ Peiken, Matt (October 29, 2018). "All About That Bass—and Cello—in Asheville Duo's Quest for Higher Consciousness". NPR. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
- ^ "2022 LINEUP". Big Ears Festival. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
- ^ "The Wire Tapper 63". thewire.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
- ^ Chesanek, Carissa (November 1, 2019). "THE WAKE OF DICK JOHNSON Comes To The East Village". Broadwayworld.com. Retrieved 14 February 2022.