Jim O'Rourke (born January 18, 1969) is an American musician, instrumentalist, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his numerous solo and collaborative music projects, many of which are instrumental, and has been acclaimed for his music that spans varied genres, including

avant-garde In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...

styles such as ambient,

noise Noise is sound, chiefly unwanted, unintentional, or harmful sound considered unpleasant, loud, or disruptive to mental or hearing faculties. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrat ...

and

minimalism In visual arts, music, and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in the post-war era in western art. The movement is often interpreted as a reaction to abstract expressionism and modernism; it anticipated contemporary post-mi ...

, and styles of rock like

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

and

post-rock Post-rock is a subgenre of experimental rock that emphasizes Texture (music), texture, atmosphere, and non-traditional song structures over conventional rock techniques. Post-rock artists often combine rock instrumentation and rock stylings wit ...

. He has been associated with the Chicago

experimental An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs whe ...

and

improv Improv may refer to: *Improvisation, an act of spontaneous invention **Improvisational theatre (includes improvisational comedy) **Musical improvisation Musical improvisation (also known as musical extemporization) is the creative activity of im ...

scene, as well as with

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

when he relocated there in 2000 for his tenure as a member of American indie rock band

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

Biography

O'Rourke was born on January 18, 1969, in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. He is an alumnus of

DePaul University DePaul University is a private university, private Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from ...

. O'Rourke has collaborated with

Thurston Moore Thurston Joseph Moore (born July 25, 1958) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter best known as a member of the rock band Sonic Youth. He has also participated in many solo and group collaborations outside Sonic Youth, as well as running ...

Lee Ranaldo Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known as a co-founder of the rock band Sonic Youth. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' ranked Ranaldo at number 33 on its "Greatest Guitarists of All Time" li ...

Kim Gordon Kim Althea Gordon (born April 28, 1953) is an American musician, singer and songwriter best known as the bassist, guitarist, and vocalist of alternative rock band Sonic Youth. Born in Rochester, New York, she was raised in Los Angeles, Califor ...

, Steve Shelley, Derek Bailey,

Mats Gustafsson Mats Olof Gustafsson (born 29 October 1964) is a Swedish free jazz saxophone player. Career Gustafsson came to the attention of lovers of improvised music as part of a duo with Christian Munthe (started in 1986), as member of Gunter Chris ...

, Mayo Thompson, Brigitte Fontaine,

Loren Mazzacane Connors Loren Mazzacane Connors (born October 22, 1949) is an American guitarist who has recorded and performed under several different names: Guitar Roberts, Loren Mazzacane, Loren Mattei, and currently Loren Connors. His music has touched on many genre ...

, Merzbow, Nurse with Wound, Phill Niblock, Fennesz,

Organum ''Organum'' () is, in general, a plainchant melody with at least one added voice to enhance the harmony, developed in the Middle Ages. Depending on the mode and form of the chant, a supporting bass line (or '' bourdon'') may be sung on the sam ...

, Phew, Henry Kaiser and Flying Saucer Attack. He has produced and instrumentally contributed to albums by artists such as

Wilco Wilco is an American Rock music, rock band based in Chicago. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo after singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently during its fir ...

Stereolab Stereolab are an English people, Anglo-French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's sound incorporates repetitive motorik beats with the use of vintage electronic keybo ...

, Superchunk, Kahimi Karie, Quruli, John Fahey,

Smog Smog, or smoke fog, is a type of intense air pollution. The word "smog" was coined in the early 20th century, and is a portmanteau of the words ''smoke'' and ''fog'' to refer to smoky fog due to its opacity, and odour. The word was then inte ...

Faust Faust ( , ) is the protagonist of a classic German folklore, German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust (). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a deal with the Devil at a ...

Tony Conrad Anthony Schmalz Conrad (March 7, 1940 – April 9, 2016) was an American video artist, experimental filmmaker, musician, composer, sound artist, teacher, and writer. Active in a variety of media since the early 1960s, he was a pioneer of both ...

, Red Krayola,

Bobby Conn Jeffrey Stafford (born June 13, 1967), known professionally as Bobby Conn, is an American musician based in Chicago, Illinois. He often collaborates with other artists and film-maker Usama Alshaibi. Career Conn was born as Jeffrey Stafford in ...

Beth Orton Elizabeth Caroline Orton (born 14 December 1970) is an English musician known for her "folktronica" sound, which mixes elements of folk and electronica. She was initially recognised for her collaborations with William Orbit, Andrew Weatherall ...

, and U.S. Maple. He mixed

's ''

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot ''Yankee Hotel Foxtrot'' is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Wilco, originally self-released on September 18, 2001, on their website, and in retail stores on April 23, 2002, through Nonesuch Records. Recording sessions for the a ...

'' album and produced their 2004 album, ''

A Ghost Is Born ''A Ghost Is Born'' is the fifth studio album by the American rock band Wilco, released on June 22, 2004, by Nonesuch Records. It features singer Jeff Tweedy on lead guitar more than any previous Wilco album. The band streamed the album online ...

'', for which he won a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for "Best Alternative Album". During the recording of ''Yankee Hotel Foxtrot'', O'Rourke collaborated with Wilco member

Jeff Tweedy Jeffrey Scot Tweedy (born August 25, 1967) is an American musician, singer songwriter, author, and record producer best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the band Wilco. Tweedy, originally from Belleville, Illinois, began his music care ...

and pre-Wilco Glenn Kotche under the name Loose Fur. Their self-titled debut was released in 2003 with a follow-up in 2006 entitled '' Born Again in the USA''. He also mixed the unfinished recordings that made up a planned third album by the late American singer-songwriter Judee Sill, recorded in 1974 and mixed by O'Rourke for a 2005 release. In 2006, O'Rourke mixed

Joanna Newsom Joanna Newsom (born January 18, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. After recording and self-releasing two EPs in 2002, Newsom signed to the independent label Drag City (record label), Drag City. Her debut album, ''The Milk-Eyed ...

's album '' Ys'', and in 2009, he also mixed several tracks on Newsom's follow up ''

Have One On Me ''Have One on Me'' is the third studio album by the American singer-songwriter Joanna Newsom, released on February 23, 2010, via Drag City (record label), Drag City. It is a triple album produced by Newsom and mixed by longtime collaborators Jim ...

''. O'Rourke has previously been a member of Illusion of Safety, Brise-Glace with Darin Gray and Dylan Posa,

Gastr Del Sol Gastr del Sol (derived from a combination of the name of a race horse (Gato del Sol) and David Grubbs' previous band Bastro) was an American, Chicago-based band, consisting for most of their career of David Grubbs and Jim O'Rourke. Between 19 ...

with

David Grubbs David Grubbs (born September 21, 1967) is an American composer, guitarist, pianist, and vocalist. He was a founding member of Squirrel Bait, Bastro, and Gastr del Sol. He has also played in Codeine (band), Codeine, The Red Krayola, Bitch Magnet a ...

and

. Beginning in 1999 he played bass guitar, guitar and synthesizer with

, in addition to

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, re ...

and mixing duties with the group. He withdrew as a full member in late 2005, but continued to play with them in some of their side projects. O'Rourke has also released many albums under his own name on a variety of labels, exploring a range of electronic and avant-garde styles. His most well-known works may be his series of releases on Drag City, which focus on more traditional songcraft: '' Bad Timing'' (1997), ''

Eureka Eureka often refers to: * Eureka (word), a famous exclamation attributed to Archimedes * Eureka effect, the sudden, unexpected realization of the solution to a problem Eureka or Ureka may also refer to: History * Eureka Rebellion, an 1854 g ...

'' (1999), '' Insignificance'' (2001), '' The Visitor'' (2009) and '' Simple Songs'' (2015). The titles of the first four albums all refer to films by the British director

Nicolas Roeg Nicolas Jack Roeg ( ; 15 August 1928 – 23 November 2018) was an English film director and cinematographer, best known for directing ''Performance (film), Performance'' (1970), ''Walkabout (film), Walkabout'' (1971), ''Don't Look Now'' (1973) ...

; the first three by direct reference to film titles, the fourth being titled after a fictional album within Roeg's film ''

The Man Who Fell To Earth ''The Man Who Fell to Earth'' is a 1976 British science fantasy drama film directed by Nicolas Roeg and adapted by Paul Mayersberg. Based on Walter Tevis's 1963 novel of the same name, the film follows an extraterrestrial named Thomas Jerom ...

''. With music director

Takehisa Kosugi was a Japanese composer, violinist and artist associated with the Fluxus movement. Early life Kosugi was born in Tokyo in 1938, and studied musicology at the Tokyo University of the Arts, graduating in 1962. Early musical influences Kosug ...

, he played for the

Merce Cunningham Mercier Philip "Merce" Cunningham (April 16, 1919 – July 26, 2009) was an American dancer and choreographer who was at the forefront of American modern dance for more than 50 years. He frequently collaborated with artists of other discipl ...

dance company for four years. He was a guitarist for the 1999 premiere of Cunningham's ballet ''Biped'' with

Gavin Bryars Richard Gavin Bryars (; born 16 January 1943) is an English composer and double bassist. He has worked in jazz, free improvisation, minimalism, Musical historicism, historicism, Avant-garde music, avant-garde, and experimental music. Early lif ...

in Berkeley, California. O'Rourke received a 2001

Foundation for Contemporary Arts The Foundation for Contemporary Arts (FCA), is a nonprofit based foundation in New York City that offers financial support and recognition to contemporary performing and visual artists through awards for artistic innovation and potential. It was ...

Grants to Artists Award. Since 2013, O'Rourke has used his ''Steamroom''

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

page to release reissues of rare and older material, as well as original newer pieces. O'Rourke is currently in a relationship with Japanese musician

Eiko Ishibashi is a Japanese singer-songwriter and musician. She has frequently worked with Jim O'Rourke (musician), Jim O'Rourke, with O'Rourke producing several of her albums and Ishibashi playing on his album Simple Songs (Jim O'Rourke album), Simple Song ...

, with whom he frequently collaborates. The two met when Ishibashi played flute on an album of

Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; May 12, 1928 – February 8, 2023) was an American composer, songwriter, record producer, and pianist who is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential figures of 20th-century popular music. Start ...

covers that O'Rourke was producing. They live and work closely together, but "keep a professional distance, sending each other data files to work on rather than jamming." In 2024, O'Rourke contributed to the soundtrack of A.S. Velasca (football club and total work of art created by Wolfgang Natlacen) by composing the Theme. With

Oren Ambarchi Oren Ambarchi (born 1969) is an Australian musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist who plays mainly electric guitar and percussion. Biography Oren Ambarchi was born in Sydney to an Iraqi Jewish family. Ambarchi has been performing live since ...

, O'Rourke has released three collaborative studio albums: ''Indeed'' (2011), ''

Behold Behold may refer to: * Behold (furniture polish), an American brand of furniture polish * "Behold" (song), a song by Phil Wickham and Anne Wilson * ''Behold'' (My Epic album), 2013 * ''Behold'' (Oren Ambarchi and Jim O'Rourke album), 2015 * B ...

'' (2015), and ''Hence'' (2018).

Work in films

* O'Rourke worked as a music consultant for the 2003 film ''

School of Rock ''School of Rock'' (titled on screen as ''The School of Rock'') is a 2003 comedy film directed by Richard Linklater, produced by Scott Rudin and written by Mike White (filmmaker), Mike White. The film stars Jack Black, Joan Cusack, White and Sa ...

'', in which he taught the child actors in the movie how to play the songs. He was supposed to have a cameo role in the film as well, but couldn't do it as he was on tour with Sonic Youth. * The song "Happy Days" was featured in the

Harmony Korine Harmony Korine (born January 4, 1973) is an American filmmaker, actor, photographer, artist, and author. His methods feature an erratic, loose and transgressive aesthetic, exploring taboo themes and incorporating experimental techniques,Alicia Kn ...

film ''

Julien Donkey-Boy ''Julien Donkey-Boy'' is a 1999 American experimental drama film written and directed by Harmony Korine. The story concentrates on Julien, a man with schizophrenia, played by Scottish actor Ewen Bremner, and his dysfunctional family. The film ...

''. * He scored the 2002 film ''

Love Liza ''Love Liza'' is a 2002 American tragicomedic drama film directed by Todd Louiso and starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Kathy Bates, Jack Kehler, Wayne Duvall, Sarah Koskoff and Stephen Tobolowsky. The film is written by Gordy Hoffman, a playwrigh ...

'', directed by

Todd Louiso Todd Louiso is an American actor and director. He is best known for his role as timid record store clerk Dick in ''High Fidelity (film), High Fidelity'', opposite Jack Black and John Cusack. Career Louiso directed his first film in 2002, ''Love ...

. * He scored the 2004 video installation "Fireball" and did the sound design on the documentary "Red Orchestra" by

Stefan Roloff Stefan Roloff (born 1955 Berlin) is a German-American painter, video artist, filmmaker, and pioneer of digital video and photography, living and working in New York and Berlin. Roloff's documentary, ''The Red Orchestra'', a portrait of his late fat ...

. * He has also scored films by

Werner Herzog Werner Herzog (; né Stipetić; born 5 September 1942) is a German filmmaker, actor, opera director, and author. Regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema, his films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with unusu ...

Olivier Assayas Olivier Assayas (; born 25 January 1955) is a French film director, screenwriter and film critic. Assayas is known for his eclectic filmography, consisting of slow-burning Period Piece Films, period pieces, psychological thrillers, neo-noirs, an ...

Shinji Aoyama was a Japanese film director, screenwriter, composer, film critic, and novelist. He graduated from Rikkyo University. He won two awards at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival for his film '' Eureka''. Biography Shinji Aoyama was born in Kitakyushu, ...

Kōji Wakamatsu was a Japanese film director who directed such pink films as and . He also produced Nagisa Ōshima's controversial film '' In the Realm of the Senses'' (1976). He has been called "the most important director to emerge in the pink film genre," an ...

and others. * His own short films have been part of the 2004 and 2006

Whitney Biennial The Whitney Biennial is a biennial exhibition of contemporary American art organized by the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City. The event began as an annual exhibition in 1932; the first biennial was held in 1973. It is considered ...

and the 2005 Rotterdam Film Festival. * His first three full-length albums for Drag City are named after three successive films by director

: '' Bad Timing: A Sensual Obsession'', ''

'', and '' Insignificance''. His fourth Drag City album, '' The Visitor'', is named for an album that appears within Roeg's ''

The Man Who Fell to Earth ''The Man Who Fell to Earth'' is a 1976 British science fantasy drama film directed by Nicolas Roeg and adapted by Paul Mayersberg. Based on Walter Tevis's 1963 novel of the same name, the film follows an extraterrestrial named Thomas Jerom ...

'', recorded by the film's protagonist Thomas Jerome Newton. * He scored

's film ''

United Red Army The (URA) was a militant organization that operated in Japan between July 1971 and March 1972. The URA was formed as the result of a merger that began on 13 July 1971 between two extremist groups, the Marxist–Leninist–Maoist , led in 1971 ...

'' in 2007. * He scored Kyle Armstrong's 2012 documentary film ''Magnetic Reconnection'' (narrated by

Will Oldham Joseph Will Oldham (born January 15, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. From 1993 to 1997, he performed and recorded in collaboration with dozens of other musicians under variations of Palace (Palace, Palace Brothers, Palace Son ...

). * He scored the 2014 British film '' The Creeping Garden''. * He produced and played on the soundtrack for

Ryusuke Hamaguchi is a Japanese film director and screenwriter. An alumnus of the University of Tokyo and the Tokyo University of the Arts, Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, he started gaining attention in his home country with the graduate film ...

's '' Drive My Car'', composed by

. * He mixed, mastered and played guitar on the soundtrack for Ryusuke Hamaguchi's '' Evil Does Not Exist'', composed by Eiko Ishibashi.

Discography

Drag City

* '' Bad Timing'' (1997) * ''

'' (1999) * '' Halfway to a Threeway EP'' (1999) * '' Insignificance'' (2001) * '' The Visitor'' (2009) * '' Simple Songs'' (2015) * ''Hands That Bind (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)'' (2023)

Solo

* ''Some Kind of Pagan'' (Sound of Pig, 1989) * ''It Takes Time To Do Nothing'' (Audiofile Tapes, 1990) * ''Secure on the Loose Rim'' (

Sound of Pig Sound of Pig was a cassette culture label started in 1984 by Al Margolis in New York City. The label released hundreds of original cassettes between 1984 and 1990. It featured Margolis' own audio art projects that he recorded under the name of ...

, 1991) * ''The Ground Below Above Our Heads'' (Entenpfuhl, 1991) * ''Tamper'' (Extreme Records, 1991) * ''Disengage'' (

Staalplaat Staalplaat is an independent record label that is located in Amsterdam with a separate store in Berlin. Founded in 1982, the company's founding mission was to create a sound forum for sound artists, who write and perform new and experimental music. ...

, 1992) * ''Scend'' (Divided Records, 1992) * ''Remove the Need'' ( Extreme Records, 1993) * ''Rules of Reduction'' (Metamkine, 1993) * ''When in Vanitas...'' (

Skin Graft Skin grafting, a type of graft (surgery), graft surgery, involves the organ transplant, transplantation of skin without a defined circulation. The transplanted biological tissue, tissue is called a skin graft. Surgeons may use skin grafting to ...

, 1994) * ''Terminal Pharmacy'' (

Tzadik Records Tzadik is a record label in New York City that specializes in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995. He is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases. Tzadik is a not-for-p ...

, 1995) * ''Happy Days'' (

Revenant Records Revenant Records is an American independent record label based in Austin, Texas, which concentrates on folk and blues. Revenant was formed in 1996 by John Fahey and Dean Blackwood. Revenant's 2001 box set, '' Screamin' and Hollerin' the Blues: ...

, 1997) * '' Bad Timing'' ( Drag City, 1997) * ''

'' (Drag City, 1999) * '' Halfway to a Threeway'' EP (Drag City, 1999) * '' Insignificance'' (Drag City, 2001) * '' I'm Happy and I'm Singing and a 1, 2, 3, 4'' ( Mego, 2001) * ''Mizu No Nai Umi'' (vector7/HEADZ54, 2005) * ''Corona / Tokyo Realization'' (

Columbia Music Entertainment , often pronounced ''Korombia'', operating internationally as , is a Japanese record label founded in 1910 as Nipponophone Co., Ltd. It affiliated itself with the Columbia Graphophone Company of the United Kingdom and adopted the standard UK C ...

, 2006) – Japan only release. Dedicated to

Tōru Takemitsu was a Japanese composer and writer on aesthetics and music theory. Largely self-taught, Takemitsu was admired for the subtle manipulation of instrumental and orchestral timbre. He is known for combining elements of oriental and occidental phil ...

* '' The Visitor'' (Drag City, 2009) – Dedicated to Derek Bailey. * ''All Kinds of People ~ Love Burt Bacharach'' (AWDR, 2010) * ''Old News #5'' (Mego, 2011) * ''Old News #6'' (Mego, Aug 2011) * ''Old News #7'' (Mego, Feb 2012) * ''Old News #8'' (Mego, Sep 2012) * ''Old News #9'' (Mego, Oct 2012) * '' Simple Songs'' (Drag City, 2015) * '' Flying Basket'' (Family Vineyard, 2015) * ''Sleep Like It's Winter'' (Newhere Music, 2018) * ''To Magnetize Money and Catch a Roving Eye'' (Sonoris, 2019) * ''Shutting Down Here'' (Portraits GRM, 2020) * Too Compliment (DDS, 2021)

Collaborations

* ''Indeed'' (with

, Editions Mego, 2011) * ''

'' (with Oren Ambarchi, Editions Mego, 2015) * ''Hence'' (with Oren Ambarchi, Editions Mego, 2018)

References

External links

Jim O'Rourke for "Steam Room" Music
at

* * * *
Complete discography and filmography up to 2008
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orourke, Jim 1969 births Living people American rock bass guitarists American male bass guitarists Noise rock musicians American expatriates in Japan DePaul University alumni Grammy Award winners Hurdy-gurdy players Tzadik Records artists Drag City (record label) artists Rune Grammofon artists Guitarists from Chicago American male guitarists 20th-century American guitarists Free improvisation American experimental musicians Boxhead Ensemble members Wilco members Gastr del Sol members Sonic Youth members Incus Records artists Domino Recording Company artists Love Da Records artists