Mary Ocher

Returning to the US for the first time since the pandemic, Berlin’s Mary Ocher has been pushing the boundaries between pop and avant-garde for almost two decades, with playful and colorful form, and clever content that winks at everyone who recognizes its cultural and historical references.

Ocher is a self-taught punk poet, sound artist, director and visual artist, who toured the whole world and counts artists such as Animal Collective, Sean Lennon, Karen O (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), and Nan Goldin among her admirers. Her new album joins a series of apocalyptic and politically charged concept albums.

The critically acclaimed new album Your Guide To Revolution is a joyful ode to hope, released just six months after its predecessor, the edgy and experimental Approaching Singularity: Music for The End of Time.

The new recordings range from cumbia, post-punk, folk and field recordings, to cosmic synth compositions and deconstructed techno, and feature collaborations with post-rock giants Mogwai, psych-rock guru King Khan, electronic moguls Red Axes, Mary’s drummer duo Your Government, pieces by fusion harpist Dorothy Ashby and 12th century Persian poet Omar Khayyam, a homage to electronic music pioneer Delia Derbyshire and much more.

Photo credit: Kai Hemberg