Gor Mkhitarian
Gig Seeker Pro

Gor Mkhitarian

| INDIE

| INDIE
Band World Folk

Calendar

This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

Music

Press


"From KPFK 90.7 FM"

"Complimented by wonderful vocals, reflective lyrics and tasteful arrangements, GOR's melodies are simple, yet beautiful and fresh to the ears"
- Yatrika Shah-Rais, Host and Producer of Global Village (KPFK 90.7 FM) - Global Village


"From All Music Guide"

Singer/songwriter and electrifying guitar player Gor Mkhitarian leads the march out of the Armenian underground with a wicked blend of traditional Armenian folk music and Western-influenced rock. His sophomore release Godfather Tom picks up right where the gorgeous and pastoral Yeraz left off, but this time around Mkhitarian has a full band to contend with, and he does so with remarkable results. From the opening notes of the leadoff track -- and album namesake -- it's clear that the artist has found his inner Springsteen. Despite the mostly acoustic arrangements and simple but effective melodies, Mkhitarian and group burn through each track like an Eastern European Soweto band in a sweaty, beer-soaked West Texas dancehall. Each song is anchored by the singer's intricate guitar work which is nestled beneath a flurry of banjo and mandolin leads that seem to leap out of the speakers with each repeated listen. Vocally, he exudes laid-back warmth than can occasionally rise up out of nowhere and demand attention like an angry father, but the singer never looks down on his protagonists, rather he invites them in for an impromptu harmony. Western listeners need not worry about the record's language barrier, as Mkhitarian has unveiled a collection of songs that require only the voluntary movement of the feet to appreciate them, and it's the involuntary movement of the heart that follows and serves as Godfather Tom's most rewarding attribute. Highly Recommended. - Christopher Monger


"From Dirty Linen magazine"

Finding a fulfilling balance between tradition and modernity, hometown and global village, in difficult for any artist reaching out to an audience beyond the borders. How much for so more artists whose native cultures have been targeted for extermination or are threatened by expedient assimilation into a regional imperial power and/or the Newer World Order. Unlike cultural and political exile troubadours such as Algerian Amazigh (Berber) icon Idir or Zimbabwe’s Shona bard Thomas Mapfumo, young Armenian singer/songwriter and bandleader Gor Mkhitarian maintain a presence on the cultural scene of his native country. Known back home as the lead guitarist for such cutting-edge Armenian rock bands as LAV ELI and Force Major, beginning in 2001, Mkhitarian has stepped out into solo projects released on the Pomegranate Music label based in both Yerevan, Armenia, and Cambridge, Massachusetts. Pomegranate insured his solo acoustic debut album Yeraz, Dream, in the months following 9/11. Although issued with English translations of the romantic and socially penetrating Armenian verse in the CD booklet, and featuring extraordinary acoustic guitar and banjo melodies paced by tasty Armenian percussionist Jason Demerjian, even the most receptive world-music sectors within the America market seemed shut off to sounds coming from “over there”.
Like Idir, Mkhitarian’s sense of musically liberating 1960s-70s folk-rock ethos of simplicity, using acoustic guitars, percussion, and soulful harmony singing, adds fresh appeal to some indigenous traditional tunes such as Episod’s opener “Shogher jan”, while sliding back a window shade to his own melodic explorations of the wider world coming into view.
- Mitch Ritter


Discography

"United Fantasies: Exit Ahead" - 2008 LP
"Acoustic Folklore" - 2007 - EP
"GOR" - 2006 - EP
"Episode" - 2004 LP
"Godfather Tom" - 2003 LP
"Yeraz" - 2001 - LP

Photos

Bio

ATTENTION WOMEX 7 SAMURAI- FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION
Gor Mkhitarian- Armenia/USA
Official Womex 2008 Application Submission Biography on Sonicbids

"Singer/songwriter and electrifying guitar player Gor Mkhitarian leads the march out of the Armenian underground with a wicked blend of traditional Armenian folk music and Western-influenced rock."- James Christopher Monger/All Music Guide

Singer/songwriter Gor Mkhitarian hails from the tiny South Caucuses republic of Armenia via Los Angeles. His trademark "everyman" vocals and inventive folk/rock arrangements of Armenian music has endeared him to thousands of listeners in both Armenia as well as North America through live performances and his critically acclaimed recordings. Using instrumentation as varied as the Armenian duduk (Djivan Gasparian, Jr.), Turkish oud (John Berberian), banjo, African djembe, as well as acoustic/electric guitars, Mkhitarian has pushed the boundaries of Armenian music challenging his audiences to embrace a more progressive approach to one of the oldest musical legacies. Often described as "The Armenian Dave Matthews", Gor Mkhitarian stands firm as an important independent world music artist ready to expand his North American fan base, while creating a new one in Europe.