- Mariya Ocher
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Mariya (Mary) Ocher
self portrait, Jan 2011Background information Born November 10, 1986 Origin Moscow,
RussiaGenres Avant pop, experimental, Post Punk, Art rock, Garage Punk, folk Instruments vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, synthesizer, piano, keyboard Years active 2006 - present Labels Haute Areal Associated acts Mary and The Baby Cheeses Website www.maryocher.com, myspace.com/maryocher Singer-songwriter, poet, director, artist and occasional dj, Born Maria Ocheretianskaya (Russian: Мария Очеретянская, Hebrew: מאריה אוצ'רטיאנסקי) an only child, to a voice and puppet theater actor father and an unemployed engineer Mother, on November 10, 1986, in Moscow, Russia, then part of the Soviet Union. Her family immigrated to Israel on February 21, 1991. first to a kibbutz in the Negev, in the south of Israel and several months later to Tel Aviv.
Later forced to change her name to Miriam, while studying at a religious Jewish school in Israel. studied film in an art high school in Tel-Aviv, which she had left in the beginning of the 12th grade.
at the age of 18 she adopted Ocher as a last name.
Not surprisingly, with such a background, Ocher deals mostly with the topics of alienation and social commentary.
In December 2006 formed Mary and The Baby Cheeses, a highly noted band in the Israeli underground circles and media in 2007, in October of the following year the band has moved to Berlin, where later she had changed the entire line-up. The band released several DIY releases, the most notable one was a collection of studio recordings called "Analog music for a digital generation".
In December 2008 released "War songs" with 13 acoustic apocalyptic folk songs (and a single "bonus" track) about war, crime and related discriminations.
In mid 2009 several of her poems and "the origins of evil" photography project have been published in several on-line and printed magazines.
some of the poems may be found in the links in the end of this page. ("Firsts", "Electrocution" and "Proper adjustments"):
In April 2009 she organized The Queens and The Rebels (of Unpopular Culture) Festival, for theatrical music/performance art and multimedia at the legendary Tacheles complex in Berlin. the second edition of the festival was held on April 18, 2010 at the RAW Temple, Berlin.
In mid 2009 took part in "Voices" - a fundraiser event for Physicians for Human Rights in Gaza that was held at Filmbuehne in Berlin, the event was repeated on the 10th of May 2010 in the city of Muenster and is planned to be held again in Paris in late 2011 or 2012.
In Feb 2010 she had organized The 15 Minutes Festival in Tel Aviv, on Rothchild BLVD, where several musicians and poets performed for a mixed crowd.
In Dec 2010 participated with three drawings in a group exhibition "Zum Schein" in The Neurotitan gallery in Berlin.
In Jan 2011 she joined the German Indie band 1000 Robota on their 2nd leg of their German tour.
The re-issue of the War songs by the German label "Haute Areal" came out in Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Austria on the 11th of March 2011 and its first single, "On the streets of hard labor" two weeks prior, on Feb 25th.
Is currently working on a second album with King Khan of King Khan and The Shrines and The King Khan and BBQ Show.
So far "Thunderbird/Eden" has emerged. a 12min long, 4-part ambient symphony about a mystical bird emerging from the ashes. influenced by Brian Eno's soundscapes and Nico's aery vocals. it's the prequel to the theme of the next album - "Eden" which will be about a dying, corrupt civilisation.
As of 2008 has been working on the mockumentary "The Sounds of Softness" with a variety of collaborators and guest appearances, amongst which members of Malaria!, Einstürzende Neubauten and Cluster (band). The film is about a fictional late 1970s avant-garde movement.
In March 2011 she was asked to participate in a campaign for Lomography, "LomoAmigo", for which she was asked to shoot everyday situations for several months with their analog cameras.
Has been collaborating with various artists over the last year. amongst which - a couple of remixes with Samim and TUSK, a duet and a few live shows with Alexander (the disco persona of actor John Joseph Bibby). and lending her voice to various acts for back-up vocals. the German Jolly goods, the Spanish The Mustache (in whose video she also did a cameo earlier in 2010) and Khan's new Electro-Goth project with Bela B and Rummelsnuff.
On dec 2nd 2011, Haute Areal will release a 7" EP with four new tracks: King khan's version of "The sound of war", the synthpop "Address yourself entirely to me", "Man of 1000 faces" and "Ugly, ugly girls" - from the "War songs" sessions.
And on Nov 26th Ocher will participate in a show based on Andy Warhol's autobiographical novel "The philosophy of Andy Warhol" at the Hans Otto Theater in Potsdam.
Resident DJ at Berlin's Rock & Roll restaurant, White Trash.
Directing
The documentary - "All of my problems are imaginary (but my friends are real)" (link provided at the end)
The mockumentary - "Sounds of Softness" (still in progress)
Music videos: "Address yourself entirely to me (TUSK remix)" (own song)
"Casi todos los Canibales" (for Fee Reega)
Among the festivals she has played:Folkale (2008, Tel Aviv)
Berlin Festee (2010, Berlin)
Oddpop (2010, Berlin)
Antifolk festival (2009, 2010 London)
Mother - A feminist festival (2009, 2010 - Tel Aviv, London)
Tel Aviv Music Festival (2010, Tel Aviv)
What's Queer About Queer Pop Today (2010, Berlin)
Avant-garde festival (Tel Aviv, 2011)
Chewing the scenery - 54th Venice Biennale opening (Venice, 2011)
Down by The River III (2011, Berlin)
Kampnagel (2011, Hamburg)
Steirischer Herbst (2011, Graz)
TRAMA (2011, Porto)
External links
- Article in Haaretz - http://www.haaretz.com/culture/arts-leisure/putting-some-punch-into-the-protest-song-1.361987
- Article in Siegessaeule - http://www.siegessaeule.de/queere-welt/mary-ocher-whos-that-girl.html
- Article in TAZ - http://www.taz.de/1/archiv/digitaz/artikel/?ressort=ku&dig=2011%2F03%2F12%2Fa0045&cHash=881c4cfa08
- http://www.echoes-online.de/blog/index.php?/archives/870-Mary-Ocher-WAR-SONGS.html#comments
- I-Tunes music chart history - http://www.music-chart.info/artist/145671/Mary-Ocher
- Article in Spex - http://www.spex.de/2011/05/27/mary-ocher-war-songs/
- Article in The Tagesspiegel - http://www.tagesspiegel.de/kultur/die-neue-diaspora/4270848.html
- Review in an Israeli magazine - http://www.hasharat.co.il/html/article_23477.php
- LomoAmigo project - http://www.lomography.de/backend/magazine/posts/92784/?auth=fc8f934c4f940c831fb0793de470c033eca6a3a6#
- offshoot magazine - volume one: http://issuu.com/offshoot/docs/issue1
- http://www.ukpoetrylive.page.tl/Mary-Ocher.htm
- http://poetrysz.blogspot.com/2009/08/mary-ocher.html
- http://www.unlikelystories.org/09/ocher0909.shtml
- http://www.hauteareal.de/
- Haute Areal store - http://www.hauteareal.de/shop/start.htm?---_mary_ocher.htm
- "All of my problems are imaginary..." (doc) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EA2qQsdqu_s
Categories:- 1986 births
- Living people
- Israeli singer-songwriters
- People from Moscow
- Russian emigrants to Israel
- Russian Jews
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