Nedelle Torrisi is an American musician who lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Biography

Torrisi grew up studying classical

violin The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...

and performing in musicals. Her mother is an ex-nun and pianist, while her father was an ex-Jesuit priest and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

drummer. Her brother is a clarinetist and neuroscientist. Torrisi studied jazz voice at Berklee College of Music, and earned her BA in jazz/world music history from

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...

Musical career

She has released and toured using her first name only, her full name, and as Cryptacize with

Chris Cohen Christopher David Cohen (born 5 March 1987) is an English former professional footballer and is currently assistant manager at Southampton. Primarily a midfielder, he was able to operate equally in the centre or on the left, but was also emplo ...

. As a solo act, she has opened tours for Of Montreal,

Deerhoof Deerhoof are an American musical group formed in San Francisco in 1994. They currently consist of founding drummer Greg Saunier, bassist and singer Satomi Matsuzaki, and guitarists John Dieterich and Ed Rodriguez. Beginning as an improvised no ...

, Destroyer, Fred Thomas,

Jens Lekman Jens Martin Lekman (; born 6 February 1981) is a Swedish musician. His music is guitar-based pop with heavy use of samples and strings, with lyrics that are often witty, romantic, and melancholic. His work is heavily influenced by Jonathan Ri ...

Julia Holter Julia Shammas Holter (born December 18, 1984) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, composer, artist and academic, based in Los Angeles. Following three independent album productions, Holter released ''Tragedy'' as her first official ...

, Magnolia Electric Co., and

Xiu Xiu Xiu Xiu ( ) is an American experimental band, formed in 2002 by singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart in San Jose, California. Currently, the line-up consists of Stewart (the only constant member since formation) and Angela Seo. The band's name co ...

. Her first solo album, ''From the Lion's Mouth'' was released by

Kill Rock Stars Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but was originally know ...

on February 22, 2005. The album ''The Locksmith Cometh'' was released in 2007 via the Tangrams7 label. Her debut album using her full name was self-titled, and released in 2013. It was made available through online distribution only. In February 2015 this self-titled album was reissued on vinyl LP through the Ethereal Sequence record label, and distributed by

Drag City Records Drag City is an American independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois. Established in the city in 1990 by Dan Koretzky and Dan Osborn, its first release was a Royal Trux single ("Hero Zero" - DC1).Howland, Don (1993)Drag Kings: Chicago's D ...

. The vinyl LP was renamed ''Advice from Paradise.'' In 2017 Torrisi released a collaborative split 7" with

, Ramona Gonzalez, aka Nite Jewel, and the producer Cole M.G.N. The 7" record, released by the Domino record label, featured two versions of a Depeche Mode cover song, "Condemnation." Proceeds from the sales were donated to a mental health organization in honor of their late friend and collaborator, director Travis Peterson. In May 2018 a solo album ''Only For You'' was released on

Frenchkiss Records Frenchkiss Records is an independent record label based in New York City. The label was started in 1999 by Syd Butler, bassist and founder of Les Savy Fav. The label's first purpose was to release Les Savy Fav's second album ''The Cat and The Cobr ...

. Torrisi has also collaborated with Billy Uomo on a series of ten EPs that he is currently releasing on Terrible Records.

Collaborations

She was a member of the band Cryptacize, who as of April 2009 had released two full-length albums on

Asthmatic Kitty Records Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, coug ...

entitled ''Dig That Treasure'' and ''Mythomania''. Torrisi has performed background vocals on an album by

Ariel Pink Ariel Marcus Rosenberg ( ; born June 24, 1978), professionally known as Ariel Pink, is an American musician, singer, and songwriter whose work draws heavily from the popular music of the 1960s–1980s. His lo-fi aesthetic and home-recorded alb ...

's Haunted Graffiti, entitled

Before Today ''Before Today'' is the eighth studio album by American recording artist Ariel Pink, credited to "Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti", and released on June 8, 2010. The album marked Pink's debut on the record label 4AD. It was his first official LP ...

, Sufjan Stevens'

Carrie & Lowell ''Carrie & Lowell'' is the seventh studio album by American musician Sufjan Stevens. It was released on March 31, 2015, by Asthmatic Kitty. It is executively produced by Stevens, and features guest contributions from Thomas Bartlett, Sean Care ...

, and a

Devonte Hynes Devonté Hynes (born David Joseph Michael Hynes, 23 December 1985), also known as Blood Orange and formerly Lightspeed Champion, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and director based in New York City. From 2004 to 2006, Hynes was ...

/ Blood Orange album called Coastal Grooves. She played violin on an album by

, and provided lead vocals for a song by Saturday Looks Good To Me. Torrisi sang and played keyboards in the touring lineup of

The Rentals The Rentals are an American rock band fronted by vocalist Matt Sharp. Sharp has been the only consistent member since the group's inception. The band's best selling single is "Friends of P" (1995). The Rentals released two albums, ''Return of t ...

in 2014, supporting the album

Lost in Alphaville ''Lost in Alphaville'' is the third full-length studio album by The Rentals, released on August 25, 2014, through Polyvinyl Records. The album is available on CD, vinyl, cassette and as a digital download. It marks the band's first full-length ...

. She also sang on their 2020 album, ''Q36''. She was a touring member of The Curtains in 2006. She has performed with Sufjan Stevens intermittently from 2009-2012 as a background singer, dancer, keyboardist, and violinist during his U.S. and world tours for The Age of Adz album, also appearing on

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...

. Following this, Torrisi played in Stevens' band for a Christmas-themed tour in 2012. Cryptacize was also the opening band for Steven's U.S. tour in the fall of 2009. Torrisi collaborated with Terrible Records solo artist Billy Uomo on several shared musical projects. Torrisi and Uomo have appeared in music videos, and produced scores for film and television. In 2021 Torrisi self-released an EP of jazz and pop cover songs with jazz organist and pianist

Larry Goldings Lawrence Sam “Larry” Goldings (born August 28, 1968) is an American jazz keyboardist and composer. His music has explored elements of funk, blues, and fusion. Goldings has a comedic alter ego known as Hans Groiner. Life and career Golding ...

, entitled ''Five Songs''. She has performed as a singer and multi-instrumentalist in Rodrigo Amarante's live band for performances and tours in 2021-2022.

Discography

Albums

* ''Republic of Two'' (2003) * ''Summerland'' with Thom Moore (2004) * ''From the Lion's Mouth'' (2005) * ''The Locksmith Cometh'' (2007) * ''Dig That Treasure'' Released by Cryptacize (2008) * ''Mythomania'' Released by Cryptacize (2009) * ''Nedelle Torrisi'' (2013) * ''Advice From Paradise'' (2015) * ''Only for You'' (2018) * ''Five Songs'' EP Released by Nedelle Torrisi and

(2021)

Singles

* Split cassingle with The Curtains (2006) * "Friends and Ancestors" with Fred Thomas of Saturday Looks Good to Me (2005) * "I Love Thousands Every Summer" b/w "Psychic Returns" Thin Wrist Recordings (2012) *
Condemnation
Depeche Mode cover in collaboration with Julia Holter, Ramona Gonzalez and Cole M.G.N. Domino (2017)

References

External links

''Don't Play Dumb'' video directed by Travis Peterson''Can't Wait'' video directed by Forrest Borie''Double Horizon'' video directed by Robert Schober''Sufjan Interviews Nedelle'' Pitchfork article''Condemnation'' single press release Stereogum article''Only for You'' review at San Francisco ChronicleNedelle Torrisi interview at Vacaville Reporter newspaper''From the Lion's Mouth'' review at NadaMucho''Summerland'' review at SF Weekly''Nedelle Torrisi'' review at AllMusic
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torrisi, Nedelle Living people 1980 births Kill Rock Stars Musicians from Oakland, California Singer-songwriters from California 21st-century American singers