| Yowie | |
|---|---|
| Origin | St. Louis, Missouri, USA |
| Genres | Experimental rock Math rock Instrumental Rock Noise Avant-garde |
| Years active | 2001–present |
| Labels | Skin Graft Records |
| Website | [1] |
| Members | |
| Shawn O'Connor Jeremiah Wonsewitz Jimbo |
|
Yowie is a band from St. Louis, Missouri, founded in 2001. The band was formerly made up of Jeremiah Wonsewitz on electric guitar, Jimbo "Moppy" on electric guitar and Shawn O'Connor "The Defenestrator" on drums.
Yowie plays a complex style of unprocessed instrumental math rock, composed of meticulously arranged pieces that are often misinterpreted as being free improvisation. It is high-velocity music of intense discipline, rigid structure and focused force.[1] The music has been compared to other math rock bands such as Hella, Tera Melos, Arab on Radar, Ahleuchatistas, Don Caballero and even the Japanese Zeuhl enroached Koenji Hyakkei.[2][3] There have been many attempts at describing Yowie's unique sound, such as by Diana Benanti of the Riverfront Times, saying that "Music like this can't be made by mere people and yet, you couldn't write a computer program capable of producing this kind of brain damage. It's so grand in composition but honed and microperfected until words like "tempo," "rhythm" and "melody" become meaningless abstractions."[4]
Yowie have been signed to Skin Graft Records since 2001, and spent three years writing and recording their debut album Cryptooology, released in 2004.
After a few failed attempts at replacing guitarist Jeremiah, he rejoined the band, and since then, they have been perfecting material for the second album, which they will reportedly record in Michigan at the end of July. They have last played a show on June 11, 2011, their first time performing live since 2009, and plan on playing more shows and even touring after the recording and release of their sophomore album.