Wednesday 20 June 2018, 7.30pm
"Hurley remains one of the elusive masters of American folk" – Billboard
A pleasure to welcome back to OTO the legendary singer, songwriter, artist, folk hobo Michael Hurley for his first shows here in half a decade. Hurley is a true American iconoclast and one of that country's songwriting greats. These are two nights not to be missed.
“Michael Hurley's music is often coined as "outsider folk." His hobo lifestyle indeed could be looked upon as eccentric, but it might be better to regard him as one of the last insiders keeping alive the traditions of the folk troubadour.” – Perfect Sound Forever
“There aren’t very many American originals left. Michael Hurley is one of them.” – Boston Globe
Michael Hurley grew up in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. As a teenager in the 1950s he fell in love hearing the music of Fats Domino, The Everly Brothers and Bo Diddley blast from the radio, and was enthralled by the records of Blind Willie McTell, Hank Williams and Uncle Dave Macon that he sought for his own. This love for music, true and unvarnished, supplied him with a finely tuned musical compass he has not wavered from for 50 years and counting. Hurley's music sounds old, like it has always existed, and simultaneously singular, like something you've never heard anyone else play quite like that before. This timeless quality ensures that Hurley's audience constantly renews itself. From the the beatniks in the NYC Village where he started in the early 60s, to the hippies in Vermont, to the Americana fans, indie rockers and freak folkers from the last two decades, Michael's music never fails to find fresh new ears. Pressed for a description, Hurley has called it "jazz-hyped blues and country and western music".
Hurley's early records were released on Folkways, Warner Brothers/Raccoon, and Rounder, while in recent years stalwart independent labels like Gnomonsong and Mississippi have been carrying the torch. The great news is that there is no stopping Michael Hurley. An album with brand new recordings, Bad Mr. Mike, was released on the Mississippi label in 2016, plus another LP with archival 70s material came out on Feeding Tube Records in 2017. Besides being a truly unique musician, Hurley is also a cartoonist and watercolor artist of note — the instantly recognizable results of which grace his album covers.
Hurley resides on the US west coast near Portland, Oregon. His appearances on the British isles have been scarce the last decade. Old and new fans should not pass up the rare opportunity to catch Michael in action.
Sholto Dobie was born in Edinburgh and lives in Vilnius. He is an artist and organizer working with sound in it's broadest sense. He regularly performs in events, using loose structures, site specific methodologies and an array of sound sources including home-made organs and bagpipes. Over the years, he has explored ideas related to folklore, environment a sonic phenomenon. He is based in Vilnius where he co-organises the artist run space Studium P and curates a regular event and radio series for local and international experimental music called Progine.
He has recorded and performed with artists and musicians including Rie Nakajima, Judith Hamann, Lia Mazzari, Shakeeb Abu Hamdan, Ahti & Ahti, Antonina Nowacka, Malvern Brume, Lucia Nimcova and in the group Lo Escucho Lo Pinto. He has released solo and collaborative music with labels such as Mappa, All Night Flight, Kashual Plastik, Infant Tree, Takuroku, Penultimate Press and Thanet Tape Centre. He has toured widely, presenting performances at Cafe Oto (London), Fylkingen (Stockholm), De Player (Rotterdam), KM28 (Berlin), Kraak Festival (Antwerp), Organ Sound Art Festival (Copenhagen), Jauna Muzika Festival (Vilnius), Counterflows Festival (Glasgow) and most recently in Vietnam as part of the Counterflows / Len Ngan project Thanh Canh.
