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Apr 08, 2021 By Caleb Campbell

Ohr is the latest experimental electronic venture from Berkeley-based musician George Cory Todd. After two releases DC-based imprint Atlantic Rhythms Todd found new inspiration in the early months of the pandemic. Todd was inspired by the liminal space of lockdown when a world-changing global catastrophe was brought into the confines of the household. As Todd explains, “The first six months of pandemic life felt both maximal and minimal. The world was experiencing a trauma not seen in generations, yet at the same time life became much smaller - a room or two in a house; very little to do. To me, it really brought out the meaning in the minimal.”

Out of that isolation and newfound territory came Adapter, Todd’s first release as Ohr, due out May 14th. In addition to announcing the record, Todd has also shared the percussive first single, “Captain Forever,” premiering with Under the Radar.

Unlike their more explicitly ambient releases with Atlantic Rhythms, Todd’s debut as Ohr takes a heavily rhythmic form, while still retaining those records’ insular bent. The percussive electronics feel simultaneously feather-light and startlingly visceral. Todd delivers shimmering intimate constructs at rapid-fire speed, forming into an ever-shifting mercurial soundscape. Even at the track’s most frenetic, there remains a solitary undercurrent. Similarly, even in the track’s chilly ambient portions, the rhythms remain intense. That meeting place of maximal and minimal is where Ohr thrives.

Todd says of the track, “Captain Forever comes from a space of introspective rhythm - it’s about living inside of your own pulse, your own propulsion. I wanted to create something that felt both intimate and exciting. A sort of celebration of silent head-nods. The video is meant to capture, in a more abstract way, the sounds themselves - their timbre, their somewhat unexpected steps within-and-without time. Chase Jackson lends an incredible vibes sample to the piece that truly makes it its own.” Check out the track below and watch for Adapter, coming May 14th.