Alex Ookpik

Alex Ookpik is a Montréaler who writes, performs and produces avant-pop music, and now and then electroacoustic music, as well as music for theatre and film.

Her music bridges the worlds of pop and experimental music; taking in acoustic instruments, synthesis, field recordings, and studio manipulations, while remaining ever true to the heart of the song. Love, loss, walking through the city at night, leaves and trees, espresso, perfect imperfection…

She has been singing and writing songs since she was a child—soaking up her Dad’s experimental and classical records, and her Mom’s soul and jazz records, and pop from the radio.

She spent 10 years as the lead singer, keyboardist, and co-songwriter of Montreal’s post-rock and shoegaze band Marlowe; releasing two full-lengths, and sharing the stage with bands such as Tindersticks, Snowpony (ex-My Bloody Valentine & Stereolab), April March, Broken Social Scene, The Dears, Feist, The High Dials, and The Besnard Lakes.

As a DJ she has held down various weekly residencies in Montreal and Toronto, under the name Polly Six; playing venues and events such as: Roy Bar, The Beaver, Green Room, Cameron House, O Patro Vys, Casa del Popolo, Laika, the MIMI Awards, and Moondata Productions’ LABProject).

As a performer her extra-curricular activities have included: guest singer with Raising the Fawn (on their record as well as at Broken Social Scene’s annual Island show), synth player with Eiyn Sof (playing Toronto events such as Wavelength and X-Avant); performing with Sonar Mara--Anne Bourne’s all women’s improvising choir based around Pauline Oliveros’ Deep Listening practices. As a producer & mix engineer, she has worked with artists Clara Engel, and Jordi Rosen, as well as on a remix collaboration with Australian artist Soft Enerji. She also took part in Little Fury Things (NYC) Gamehenge project, as well as in OraMIX— The Science Museum, London’s tribute project to electronic music pioneer Daphne Oram.

As a composer, her work has appeared in the films “The Independents” and “Stand Sentry” and on Rabble.ca’s Podcast. Her work for theatre has included sound design for Horsecart production's 2008 Fringe Festival hit "Rum and Vodka", as well as composing and performing the original score and sound design for “Stranger” -- Praxis Theatre’s stage adaptation of Camus’s “L’Etranger”.

As an electroacoustic composer, her piece "Rust" was featured in Vox Novus's 60x60 (2010), and presented in Montreal, NYC, Berlin, and Italy. Her newest piece for 60x60 "Hot Water" will premiere at Concordia, with improvising dancers, as part of the Canada Mix. She was also a participating composer in the Orford Art Centre’s Sound Art Composition workshop (2009).

Most recently, she was asked to contribute a mixtape to the wonderful Mitamine Lab---an emerging project of artist-made, exclusive mixes/mixtapes, based out of Mexico city and L.A., supported by Steven Hall—member of Arthur's Landing and Buddhist Army, and former collaborator and friend to the late, great Arthur Russell.

Her first solo record is forthcoming (actually, her second is as well).

+ + + + +

"...the minimalist score by Alexandra Olsen, [is] likely...to facilitate moody existential musing."
- Best Bets, Eye Weekly, 2009

"...haunting..."
- Byron Laviolette, Eye Weekly, 2009

“hypnotic”
-- Jordan Zivitz, The Gazette, 2004

“the voice of a honey-fairy”
-- Olivier Robillard Laveaux, Voir, 2004

+ + + + +

I've had the pleasure of working on and participating in a number of different projects, competitions and collaborations over the years. Here are some:

• My electroacoustic miniature, "Rust" was featured in both the Vermillion mix and Canada mix of Vox Novus's 60x60 and was presented in Montreal, NYC (ICMC 2010), Berlin, and Italy.
  Rust by alex ookpik
  
  
• I created the original score and sound design for Praxis Theatre's 2009 "Stranger"-- a stage adaptation of Camus’s “The Outsider”.
  
  
• I had music featured in the short films “Stand Sentry” and “The Independents”.
  
  
• I took part in the Daphne Oram tribute competition OraMIX (2012), as well as the collective project Gamehenge (2009).

Some of the music from the above projects can be found here.