Marcus O'Dair is an English writer, musician/manager, broadcaster and lecturer. He is most notable for his work as part of the band Grasscut, described by Clash magazine as "genuinely daring electronica artists".[1] He is also notable for his 2015 biography of musician Robert Wyatt, a book described in the London Review of Books as "fascinating".[2]

Career

O'Dair works as both a music lecturer and journalist.[3] He is also the author of Different Every Time: the Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt,[4] which was published by Serpent's Tail[5][6] and features a foreword by Jonathan Coe.[7] The book was described by The Guardian as "exhaustive and affectionate",[8] and as a "meticulous and vivid account".[8] He co-compiled the accompanying compilation, released by Domino Records.[9]

As a writer, he has written for publications including The Guardian[10] and the Financial Times.[11]

O'Dair is a regular studio guest on The Freakzone (BBC 6 Music) with Stuart Maconie,[12] and in 2015 recorded an essay about swimming in the Lake District for BBC Radio 3.[13]

Along with the songwriter Andrew Phillips, O'Dair is one half of Grasscut, who have previously released two albums on Ninja Tune (1 Inch: 1/2 Mile[14] and Unearth[15]) and a third on Lo Recordings, 2015's Everyone Was A Bird.[16] The band have been described as building their reputation on "writing about situations and places, rather than standard pop songs",[17] with The Quietus reviewing Everyone Was A Bird as "that rare slab of post-rock that uses the genre's textures and general ethos of exploration to create new sounds instead of rehashing old ones".[16]

O'Dair is also a lecturer in Popular Music at Middlesex University.[18]

In 2016 O'Dair co-authored a report on the use of blockchain technology within the music industry titled Music On The Blockchain.[19]

References

  1. Cullen, Miguel (5 March 2010). "Ones To Watch: Grasscut". Clash. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  2. Harding, Jeremy (20 November 2014). "Short Cuts". London Review of Books. 36 (22). Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  3. Delingpole, James. "Double vision". The Spectator. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
  4. O'Dair, Marcus (9 July 2015). Different Every Time: The Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt. London: Serpent's Tail. ISBN 9781846687600.
  5. "Different Every Time: The Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt". Serpent's Tail. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  6. Review: Thomson, Ian (21–27 November 2014). "Rock bottom and back again". New Statesman. 143 (5237): 51.
  7. "Different Every Time". Allen & Unwin. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  8. 1 2 Penman, Ian (26 November 2014). "Different Every Time: The Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt by Marcus O'Dair – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
  9. "ROBERT WYATT – DIFFERENT EVERY TIME – 17TH NOVEMBER 2014". Domino Record Company. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  10. "The Guadian – Marcus O'Dair". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  11. "I'm enjoying myself with words". The Financial Times. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  12. "Stuart Maconie's Freakier Zone". BBC. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  13. "Marcus O'Dair – Swimming Stories". BBC. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  14. "Grasscut 1 Inch / ½ Mile Review". BBC. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  15. "Grasscut – Unearth (Review)". Indie London. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  16. 1 2 Brusse, Bryan. "Reviews, Grasscut – Everyone Was A Bird". The Quietus.
  17. "Grasscut – Everyone Was a Bird (Lo Recordings) – Review". god is in the tv. 19 May 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
  18. "Marcus O'Dair". Middlesex University. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
  19. Ward, Rich. "Interview: Music on the Blockchain – Marcus O'Dair". 11 is louder than 10. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
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