Dorian Wood

Artist Information

Biography

Los Angeles-based artist Dorian Wood is "armed with a vocal charisma that would befit a preacher and an experimental streak that would make avant-gardists swoon" (WNYC Culture). A wunderkind with a headstrong DIY discipline, Dorian has brought his emotionally-charged performances to concert halls, museums, music venues and performance spaces throughout the US, Mexico and Europe, with a voice that channels the skill and ferocity of such auteurs as Scott Walker, Nina Simone, Nick Cave and Tom Waits.

Born in Echo Park, California, Dorian began his musical education at a very early age, continuing his studies at Conservatorio de Castella in Costa Rica, and eventually making his way back to Los Angeles, where he first gained exposure performing on the queer bar circuit. His debut album, BOLKA, received wide critical acclaim for its impeccable merging of folk, soul, Bulgarian choral music and experimental music. His follow-up EP, Black Pig Suite, featured members of the L.A. experimental orchestra Killsonic, of which Dorian was a principal collaborator and performer for 3 years.

In early 2010, Dorian was joined onstage by legendary artist Little Annie at (Le) Poisson Rouge in New York. That same year, Dorian received critical praise for his performance and "picture perfect" art direction (Los Angeles Times) in the Killsonic opera, Tongues Bloody Tongues, presented at the REDCAT in Los Angeles. Dorian performed at the REDCAT again in 2011 in the opera Zoophilic Follies, along with TImur and The Dime Museum.

Most recently , Dorian was commissioned by LACE (Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions) to present a new work for the performance series Los Angeles Goes Live, part of Pacific Standard Time. Dorian's performance installation, Athco, Or The Renaissance of Faggot Tree, incorporated over 30 performers, and was presented at Barnsdall Art Park on October 9, 2011. Dorian also performed with acclaimed artist Marina Abramovic in her piece An Artist's Life Manifesto, presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) on November 12, 2011.

Dorian has also performed at LACMA, UCLA, Highways Performance Space (Santa Monica), Pacific Design Center (West Hollywood), The Stone (New York City), Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (San Francisco) and the Stockholm Fringe Fest (Sweden).

His 2010 album, Brutus, featuring only Dorian on vocal and piano, was recorded live at St. Giles-in-the-Fields, a church in London, in the midst of his European tour.

Dorian's most recent release, Rattle Rattle, is the official studio follow-up to BOLKA. An epic collection of original doomsday-themed songs that form one strong, continuous piece (think Scott Walker re-doing Brian Wilson's Smile), Rattle Rattle incorporates over 60 musicians, including a 45-member choir assembled by Dorian himself, The Difficult Women, as well as guitarist Michael Corwin (Correatown), bassist Sebastian Steinberg (Soul Coughing, Fiona Apple), trumpetist Daniel Rosenboom (Josh Groban) and members of Killsonic, and featuring duets with Angela Correa (Correatown, Les Shelleys), Leah Harmon (Petrojvic Blasting Company), Eddika Organista (El Haru Kuroi) and renowned French artist Nina Savary.

Instrumentation

Dorian Wood - Vocals, Piano and accordion
Michael Corwin - Guitar
Sebastian Steinberg - Upright Bass
Leah Harmon - Accordion, Backing Vocals.
princessFrank - Drums and Percussion.

Discography

- "Rattle Rattle" (2013)
(Featuring the singles, "La Cara Infinita" and "Pearline", as played on the following stations:

Aggie Radio - Logan, UT
CHRW - London, ON
CHYZ - Quebec City, QB
CISM - Montreal, QB
CJSW - Calgary, AB
CKDU - Halifax, NS
CKUA - Calgary, AB
KAFM - Grand Junction, CO
KAOS - Olympia, WA
KCSS - Turlock, CA
KFAI - Minneapolis, MN
KPFK - Los Angeles, CA
KRSC - Claremore, OK
KRUA - Anchorage, AK
KSPC - Claremont, CA
KSSU - Sacramento, CA
KTUH - Honolulu, HI
KUNM - Albuquerque, NM
KUWS - Superior, WI
KVCU - Boulder, CO
KZME - Portland, OR
KZUU - Pullman, WA
Osprey Radio - Jacksonville, FL
WBOR - Brunswick, ME
WERU - 2 - East Orland, ME
WESU - Middletown, CT
WGLS - Glassboro, NJ
WHRW - Binghamton, NY
WHUS - Storrs, CT
WICB - Ithaca, NY
WJCU - University Heights, OH
WMBR - Cambridge, MA
WMNF - Tampa, FL
WMUA - Amherst, MA
WNHU - Allentown, PA
WNSU - Ft. Lauderdale, FL
WOJB - Hayward, WI
WRPI - Troy, NY
WRSU - New Brunswick, NJ
WSPN - Saratoga Springs, NY
WSUM - Madison, WI
WUVT - Blacksburg, VA
WWUH - West Hartford, CT
WXOU - Rochester, MI
WZMB - Greenville, NC

- "Pearline" EP (2012)
(Featuring the single, "Pearline", as played on 90.7 FM KPFK in Los Angeles and 107.1 FM KZME in Portland, Oregon!)

- "Glassellalia" EP (2012)
(Featuring the single, "Glassellalia", as played on 90.7FM KPFK, 88.9FM KXLU and 89.3FM KPCC!)

Both streaming now: http://dorianwood.bandcamp.com


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Past releases:

- "BOLKA" (2007)
(featuring "The Mutual" and "Pianos and Bricks", as played on 88.9 KXLU Los Angeles)

Praise for "BOLKA":

"A beautiful, baroque work." - LA WEEKLY

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- "Black Pig Suite" EP (2009)
(featuring "Echo Round My Heart", as played on WNYC New York)

Praise for "Black Pig Suite":

"An emotional opus combining the melodrama of Queen with art rock ferocity and a touch of sophisticated, operatic gloss." - WNYC CULTURE

-----------

- "Brutus" (2010)
(featuring "Bodies", as played on 89.9 KCRW Los Angeles)

Praise for "Brutus":

"I was blown away when I heard it...creepy and lovely." - CHUCK P, KCRW

Official Website

http://dorianwood.com

Links

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Reverb Nation
• Tumblr
• Bandcamp

Audio

• Pearline
  Listen  
• Glassellalia (feat. Angela Correa)
  Listen  
• Well Well Well
  Listen  
• Brutus
  Listen  
• The Re-Creator
  Listen  
• Kletka ot Sniag
  Listen  
• The Mutual
  Listen  

Video

Pearline Edit

Bodies_V2_1080P.mov

Photo Gallery

Press

• Review by Buzzbands LA [+ Show ]
  

  Think Dorian Wood is a rude boy or a punk rocker? Not quite. The soundscapes of this avant-garde L.A...Think Dorian Wood is a rude boy or a punk rocker? Not quite. The soundscapes of this avant-garde L.A. artist find beauty in the delicate balance between dark and light, pain and joy. His eccentric synthesis of folk, soul and experimentalism is DIY enough to make him a rebel to anyone’s ears, all while recalling the intensity of Tom Waits and Nick Cave. If you haven’t heard of his highly regarded debut, “BOLKA,” an album fusing together all the previously mentioned musical elements with Bulgarian choral music, you’ve probably seen him leading the marching gang Killsonic around town, or you’ve probably seen him performing in and directing operas and exhibits at REDCAT. If there’s an unconventional artist space somewhere, Wood has already unleashed his virtuoso talent there. For the last three years, he’s been working on his forthcoming magnum opus, “Rattle Rattle,” which is slated for a release later this year. His “Glassellalia” EP is a nice teaser; the title track featuring Correatown’s Angela Correa is gorgeous as it is long.

• Review by LA Weekly [+ Show ]
  

  A fearless artist and performer whose voice inhabits a room like a choir of ghosts, this Echo Park n...A fearless artist and performer whose voice inhabits a room like a choir of ghosts, this Echo Park native cuts an unexpected swath through the respective oeuvres of Tom Waits and Nina Simone. Many will have witnessed Dorian Wood as the accordion-toting soul of L.A.'s finest left-field street orchestra, Killsonic, while others may know him from his commissioned theater works for arts organizations like Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, but even in an intimate venue such as this, the man's work is imbued with both bleeding rawness and dramatic flair. His most recent release is the haunting Glassellalia, whose eight-minute title track is a tautly beautiful contemplation of hardship featuring an unforgettable turn by local songstress Angela Correa. Wood will be accompanied at this show, but his warm vibrato and mastery over anything keyed (pianos, accordions) would be more than enough.

• Review by Village Voice [+ Show ]
  

  Just in case you thought that Sufjan Stevens was the only arty, ambitious folkie out there, there's ...Just in case you thought that Sufjan Stevens was the only arty, ambitious folkie out there, there's also the sweet-voiced Los Angeles singer/songwriter Mr. Wood.

• Review by la-underground [+ Show ]
  

  One listen to Dorian Wood and you'll be musically scarred for life and this is a good thing...he is ...One listen to Dorian Wood and you'll be musically scarred for life and this is a good thing...he is an enigma. A genius. Possibly a soothsayer. But, really, just a man that will move you with his words and his music unlike most any other artist you'll ever encounter.
  

• Review by Culture WNYC
  

  Artist and musician Dorian Wood makes mercurial pop that demands and deserves attention.

• Review by Out in the City (UK) [+ Show ]
  

  Dorian Wood is a Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter who – quite frankly – deserves much wider recog...Dorian Wood is a Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter who – quite frankly – deserves much wider recognition.Looking like the bastard-love child of Tom Waits, Scott Walker and a Marc and the Mambas-era Marc Almond, he first picked up a cult following with 2007’s self-released album, Bolka – an intoxicating and accomplished collection that combined everything from demented and soulful honkytonk to Bulgarian choral music.
  
  Rattle Rattle, which has been three years in the making, is another eclectic and bold collection that takes his sound to a whole new, richer level – helped by the inclusion of over 60 musicians and a 45-member choir. Labelled by Wood himself as ‘doomsday-themed songs’, this collection is by turns cacophonic, sinister, brooding, ambitious, bewitching and bold.

• Review by The Advocate
  

  Wood unleashes gospel-infused wails and testimony that bring the audience…to a frenzy.

• Review by LA Weekly [+ Show ]
  

  The androgynous emotionality of Wood’s singing voice lends itself to the demanding theatricality of ...The androgynous emotionality of Wood’s singing voice lends itself to the demanding theatricality of [his] lyrics, arrangements and production. The nakedness of a lover’s need and the wide-eyed madness that ensues when that need is not met twine around one another.

• Review by VINGT Paris [+ Show ]
  

  Lording over the keys, the living ghost of deep delta bluesmen, Wood's rapturous songs marry the fev...Lording over the keys, the living ghost of deep delta bluesmen, Wood's rapturous songs marry the fevered spirituality of Southern gospel to the virtuosity of golden era Tin Pan Alley composers. Stories swirling in apocalyptic imagery waltz through the looking glass, confronting Alice's hallucinatory wonderland. It's the blood and gore of Brothers Grimm undercut with Bertolt Brecht's savage social criticisms, tightly wound and careening around the corners without losing control.

• Review by Sessions From the Box [+ Show ]
  

  Dorian Wood creates epic yet intimate music that would be the perfect soundtrack to a fire and brims...Dorian Wood creates epic yet intimate music that would be the perfect soundtrack to a fire and brimstone love story. His powerful music is uniquely his.

Setlist

Basic Requirements

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