The Ophelias are an American rock band from

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

, Ohio. The group first met at a time when each were independently serving as the "token girl" in various male-fronted bands from their hometown. "Coming from varied musical backgrounds (ranging from

garage-rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

, to surf, to opera), the distinct talents and influences of each member collided in unexpected ways at the band's first rehearsal. It was here the band discovered that their chemistry wasn't rooted in a shared musical reference point, but in the creative relief from the expected censorship of being a side person." In 2015,

Yoni Wolf Jonathan Avram "Yoni" Wolf (born April 30, 1979) is an American alternative hip hop and indie rock musician and co-founder of the record label Anticon. From 1997 until 2004, Wolf released music under the stage name Why?. In 2004 he transferred t ...

of Why? saw the band playing at a Fourth of July festival in Cincinnati. "There they were— The Ophelias: four teenage girls up on a temporary stage, playing, what to me at the time, sounded like a mix between

Velvet Underground Weave details visible on a purple-colored velvet fabric Velvet is a type of woven tufted fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabri ...

, underground British psych-noise-folk-rock from the late ‘90s / early 2000s (think

Hood Hood may refer to: Covering Apparel * Hood (headgear), type of head covering ** Article of Academic dress#Hood, academic dress ** Bondage hood, sex toy * Hoodie, hooded sweatshirt Anatomy * Clitoral hood, a hood of skin surrounding the clitori ...

, Movietone,

Crescent A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. In Hinduism, Lord Shiva is often shown wearing a crescent moon on his ...

), and some kind of softer side of punk..." Wolf submitted their debut LP, ''Creature Native'', to

Joyful Noise Recordings Joyful Noise Recordings is an independent record label from Indianapolis, Indiana. The label was founded in 2003 in Bloomington, Indiana by Karl Hofstetter, who also played drums on many of the label's first releases. Joyful Noise maintains an a ...

' White Label Series, and it made the cut. ''Creature Native'' became the first entry released through the series. In the summer of 2018, The Ophelias went on tour with

the Low Anthem The Low Anthem is a band from Providence, Rhode Island formed in 2006 by friends Ben Knox Miller and Jeff Prystowsky. The current lineup consists of Knox Miller (vocals, guitars, trumpets, saws), Prystowsky (vocals, drums, double basses, synths), ...

. The group's second full-length album, ''Almost'' (produced by

), followed in July 2018; with its first single "Fog", premiering at ''

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

'' and the video for "Lunar Rover" premiering at ''New Noise Magazine''.

Discography

Albums

* ''Creature Native'' (2015) *
Almost
' (2018) *''Crocus'' (2021)

EPs

*
For Luck
' (2020)

Singles

* ''Mermaid-Like'' - Low/These Days (2015) * ''Night Signs'' (2017) * ''Fog'' (2018) * ''General Electric'' (2018) * ''Lunar Rover'' (2018) * ''Grand Canyon'' (2020) * ''Last Christmas'' (2020) * ''Neil Young On High (featuring Julien Baker)'' (2021) * ''Sacrificial Lamb'' (2021) * ''Vapor'' (2021) * ''Twilight Zone'' (2021) * ''Silver And Gold'' (2021)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ophelias Musical groups from Cincinnati Joyful Noise Recordings artists All-female bands American art rock groups