Photay
Photay
Entry Requirements: All Ages
One of team RMH has the biggest, fattest smile in the world! Why? Because we are announcing a brilliant Friday night show for April 6th.
The artist in question’s LP of 2017 was his Numero Uno of the year! That LP is ONISM, and the artist is Evan Shornstein, aka… PHOTAY.
At the very least, there will be 1 person stood jiving his ass off in the middle of the venue – give the LP a listen if you missed it, you may learn to love it as much as him – “it’s a modern marvel" he says!
MARVEL – ˈmɑːv(ə)l/ Synonyms: be amazed, be filled with amazement, be astonished, be surprised, be awed, be full of wonder, not believe one's ears
REVIEW: Taken together, for its somewhat lofty inspirations and complex construction, Onism is above all a magnificent listen, full of discovery, whimsy, and musicality. And it's got a good beat – 9/10 AllMusic
The back story: Photay is the solo musical endeavour of Evan Shornstein, hailing from the lush and peaceful evergreen valley of Woodstock, NY.
Introduced to Aphex Twin at the tender age of 9, he quickly began to embrace music in many forms. This early introduction to sound lead quickly to drumming, turntablism and eventually composition. Drawing on a wide range of global influences, he dove headfirst into the world of audio experimentation.
Then, an eye-opening trip to Guinea in West Africa and Photay was born.
Combining his newly acquired knowledge of polyrhythmic percussion and years of experimenting with sampling and field recordings, he went on to create and self-release his first EP’s.
Photay’s sound is a balancing act of analog and digital, of natural and synthetic. It is not designed for headphones nor the dancefloor – but feels genuinely at home in both.
Ultimately the music is teeming with emotional depth, unexpected sample flips, restlessly playful and with wild acoustic gymnastic elements – it has a genuine soul and grooves like bastard!
Fans: Gilles Peterson, Mary Anne Hobbes, Mister Saturday Night, SBTRKT and Bonobo.
Shornstein’s popularity skyrocketed as his music featured on mainstream US TV.
I’d come and join this RMH team member, Friday 6th April 2018.
MORE REVIEWS:
What Photay achieves on Onism is the contrast between full auditory saturation and expanding silence, brought to life by brilliant production – 9/10 Exclaim
To listen to Photay, is to be continually taken aback by new sounds and sensations, and to marvel at how artfully Shornstein dissolves them together – 8/10 The Skinny