Tag: Torus Eyes

Cosmic Odyssey – Torus Eyes Blends Space, Mythology for Introspective ‘Pythia’ Debut EP

Torus Eyes will celebrate the release of their debut EP, “Pythia,” tonight at UFO Factory.

For their debut EP, Torus Eyes enters a new sonic orbit toward another mythological dimension.

That dimension blends ethereal synthscapes, intergalactic drumbeats and Greek myths to form “Pythia,” an otherworldly, prophetical release from the Detroit-based electronic music duo of Rho Solomon and Gwendolyn Dot.

“Pythia was a Delphic oracle back in the day, and she was really respected and someone who we consider as a person of deep intuition and wisdom,” Dot said. “That’s something we both value in a person, but also in a woman, so we’re talking about the goddess within us all like this intuition and free spirit that we all have within us that guides us.”

Together, Dot and Solomon serve as wise, spiritual EDM leaders throughout their introspective four-track journey filled with intuition, chance and growth. On “Pythia,” they effortlessly move through a spectrum of new sonic boundaries ranging from darkwave to synth and goth pop to Italo disco.

Their musical journey encompasses heady, uplifting lyrical content aimed at evoking a soulful, calm intensity. At first listen, “Pythia,” which drops Friday, results in a space odyssey of the mind filled with endless possibilities and seeks creative inspiration from Enya, I Break Horses and Chairlift.

“I think in general we have a healing philosophy, it’s something that is in our personal lives. It’s like health and wellness, but it’s not so catchy like that. It’s a deep, spiritual aspect to both of our lives independent even of each other that we bring through to our creative work,” said Dot about the EP’s overall inspiration and creative direction.

“We don’t journal lyrics, we’re not diary lyricists. We’re both into concepts and big ideas and working with the collective unconscious and archetypes. I think mythology is something we’re both influenced by, and we both read a lot. Carl Jung is an inspiration for us.”

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Saturday’s WhateverFest 9 Boasts 40 Emerging Detroit Acts at Tangent Gallery

A Detroit grassroots music and arts festival will showcase some 40 emerging artists Saturday at Tangent Gallery.

Known as WhateverFest 9, the homegrown festival will feature the Motor City’s Torus Eyes, Jemmi Hazeman, Violet Sol, Panda House and others as well as artists from Columbus, Indianapolis and Cincinnati.

Originally scheduled to take place June 1 at Dequindre Cut Freight Yard as an outdoor festival with overnight camping, WhateverFest 9 organizers postponed the event due to inclement weather.

Instead, they’ve moved the event to Tangent Gallery, which will host WhateverFest for the third time. The festival also was able to retain most of the original lineup, including out-of-town acts, said Sophocles Sapounas, WhateverFest co-founder and co-organizer.

“There’s not that much of a difference other than the cool factor of the Tangent Gallery itself. You can go out, you can go in. It’s got a big ballroom and a gallery space, so the experience is more centered around Tangent,” he said. “Tangent is an institution. If more people can learn about it, then more people can have a good time there. That’s the experience we want to give people.”

WhateverFest offers a platform to Detroit artists of all practices who might not have one or who are having a hard time getting onto the music circuit. It also emphasizes collaboration and camaraderie in some of the city’s hippest and most unconventional live music spaces.

“We’re incredibly grateful to be able to put on all these artists,” Sapounas said. “It gets tough going through submissions because there’s so much talent in and around this city. Our goal is to show you your favorite Detroit artist you’ve never heard of.”

In its ninth year, the one-day WhateverFest will feature three stages and include live art, a photo booth and an after-party DJ set starting at 12:30 a.m. To get a preview, check out the WhateverFest 9 playlist on Bandcamp.

A mainstay since 2011, WhateverFest started as a Detroit apartment-based event hosted by Sapounas and several friends that morphed into a multi-day festival at Tires, Tangent Gallery and Scripps Park.

This year, the festival’s organizers, including Brent Szczygielski, Jake Cramer, Jakob Harris, Anthony Zito, Nick Sapounas, Kelsey Hubbel, Steve D’Agostino and Sapounas, decided to scale back WhateverFest to a one-day event.

“We had a WhateverFest at Scripps Park that was a three-day one, that was awesome, but it was also super taxing,” Sapounas said. “After that, we decided to keep it smaller, rethink ourselves and figure things out because it was a lot of money, and it was a lot of people working.”

To support this year’s event, WhateverFest is charging a $10 admission fee at the door. The fee will allow the festival’s planning team to bring the event back for its 10th installment next year.

“For years, we’ve been getting by DIY, but we want to elevate the experience for both artists and those attending. This could end up being ‘that’ music festival in Detroit, but one where the importance is on local and not national headliners,” Sapounas said. “It’s an opportunity to bring everyone together from all scenes for an amazing day of music, good vibes and whatever the day brings.”

Festival details:

WhateverFest 9

Saturday, noon to 3 a.m.

Tangent Gallery, 715 E. Milwaukee Ave. in Detroit

Admission | $10