Kormac
Background information
Birth nameCormac O'Halloran
Also known asKormac, DJ Kormac
OriginDublin, Ireland
GenresHouse, jazz, electronic
Years active2007–present
LabelsBodytonic, Scribble Records
Websitedjkormac.com

Cormac O'Halloran, DJ Kormac, or Kormac, is a DJ, producer, and composer from Dublin.[1] In the mid-2000s, Kormac was a turntablist and multi-instrumentalist in the Irish experimental band 8Ball.[2][3] In 2007, Kormac released his first solo EP, Scratch Marchin'. Kormac has performed with a full ensemble of brass, strings, drums, electronics, bass, and guitar as Kormac’s Big Band.[4] In 2014, Kormac's song "Wake Up" from the album Doorsteps was nominated for the Choice Music Prize of Irish Song of the Year.[5]

Kormac has played festivals including Glastonbury, Bestival, Electric Picnic, Sonar and toured the UK, Europe, Eastern Europe, Australia and Canada alongside luminaries Portishead, Nas, Flaming Lips, Sonic Youth, Snarky Puppy and a host of others. Current streaming figures are estimated to be in excess of 30 million.

After nearly a decade-long hiatus, Kormac released Equivalent Exchange, featuring the Irish Chamber Orchestra, on 11 November 2022.[6][7]

Early life

After learning guitar at the age of twelve, O'Halloran began sampling French and German tapes from his school, making demos on a 4-track recorder. He graduated from Trinity College, Dublin's Music and Media Technology Masters programme in 2004.[8]

Career

As a turntablist and multi-instrumentalist for alternative rock band 8Ball, Kormac performed on two full-length albums, 8Ball in 2005 and With All Your Friends in 2009.[2][3]

Kormac released his first solo record, The Scratch Marchin' EP in 2007 via Scribble Records.[9] The record fused heavily processed, obscure jazz samples with his own recordings.[10] He subsequently made several DJ appearances.

He followed with the Good Lord EP in 2008, this time using early Gospel music recordings for source material and inspiration.[11]

With a background in playing in bands and performing live, Kormac began to recreate his music live on stage with a group of musicians (bass, drums, brass, vocalists, guitars, electronics) and VJs. Kormac's Big Band performed their first full show at the Electric Picnic Festival in 2008. Kormac's Big Band performed at the Galway Arts Festival in 2013.[4]

Kormac released his first LP record Word Play in 2010.[12] The record featured collaborations with DJ Yoda, DJ Cheeba, MC Little Tree, Messiah J & The Expert and Koaste.[12] The album featured the track "Wash My Hands", which was used in several international ad campaigns and was licensed to several compilations.[13][14][15]

He later toured in the UK, Western and Eastern Europe, Australia, Canada and Africa.

Kormac released Doorsteps in 2014 on Bodytonic Records.[16] A largely collaborative affair, it took nearly two years to complete. Kormac visited the homes of Scottish author Irvine Welsh (Trainspotting, Filth, Acid House), Texan singer/songwriter Micah P. Hinson, Mercury Music Prize winner, Speech Debelle, Koaste, MC Little Tree and Bajka.[17]

The lead single "Wake Up" was nominated for a Meteor Choice Music prize award.[5] Kormac's Big Band played sold-out shows in Ireland, the UK, Australia and Europe to support the release.

He was commissioned by Jameson to make tracks using only sounds he recorded at their factory in County Cork.[18]

In 2021, Kormac set the poem "Bushmills" by Dublin-born spoken word artist Stephen James Smith to music for a video commissioned by Old Bushmills Distillery's Causeway Collection.[19]

Discography

Doorsteps (album)

  • Released: 17 October 2014
  • Label: Bodytonic
  • Singles: "Superhero (ft. Irvine Welsh and MC Little Tree)", "Wake Up"

Word Play (album)

  • Released: 26 April 2010
  • Label: Scribble Records
  • Singles: "Wash My Hands"

Show Time (EP)

  • Released: 11 May 2009
  • Label: Scribble Records

Good Lord (EP)

  • Released: 7 April 2008
  • Label: Scribble Records

Scratch Marchin' (EP)

  • Released: 26 March 2007
  • Label: Scribble Records

References

  1. ↑ White, Lucy (12 June 2022). "My Cultural Life: DJ, Producer, and Composer Kormac". Independent.ie. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  2. 1 2 "The New Contenders". The Irish Times. 19 August 2005. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Ten Irish Acts We Wish Were Still Making Music Now". The Irish Post. 24 August 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  4. 1 2 Quigley, Maeve (28 July 2013). "Review: DJ Kormac's Big Band at the Big Top". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  5. 1 2 "The Irish Song of the Year nominees for the Meteor Choice Music Prize have been revealed | JOE.ie". JOE.ie. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  6. ↑ Lambert, Andrew (1 November 2022). "HeadStuff's Best New Irish Music - 9 Best Tracks of October". HeadStuff. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  7. ↑ Clayton-Lea, Tony (11 November 2022). "Kormac: Equivalent Exchange - Long Awaited Album from Collaborative Artist". The Irish Times. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  8. ↑ "Interview with DJ Kormac". Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  9. ↑ "Kormac – Scratch Marchin' EP". discogs. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  10. ↑ "KORMAC – Scratch Marchin' (12" EP)". Stop Me If You Think You\'ve Heard This One Before. 8 April 2007. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  11. ↑ "Kormac – Good Lord EP". discogs. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  12. 1 2 "Kormac – Word Play". discogs. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  13. ↑ "O2 CZ Ad" – via YouTube.
  14. ↑ "Hyundai Ad" – via YouTube.
  15. ↑ "Hyundai Solaris" – via YouTube.
  16. ↑ "Kormac – Doorsteps". discogs. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  17. ↑ "We spoke to writer Irvine Welsh and producer Kormac about their new collaboration 'Another Screen' | NOISEY". NOISEY. 6 October 2014. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
  18. ↑ Cleary, Andrea (15 June 2017). "Watch: Kormac Shares Video for "I Believe"". HeadStuff. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
  19. ↑ McAleer, Ryan (25 September 2021). "Irish artists collaborate in new project for Bushmills". Irish News. Retrieved 2 November 2022.
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