Marcus O'Dair explained

Marcus O'Dair is an English writer, musician/manager, broadcaster and lecturer. He is most notable for his work as part of the band Grasscut, described by Clash magazine as "genuinely daring electronica artists".^[1] He is also notable for his 2015 biography of musician Robert Wyatt, a book described in the London Review of Books as "fascinating".^[2]

Career

O'Dair works as both a music lecturer and journalist.^[3] He is also the author of Different Every Time: the Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt,^[4] which was published by Serpent's Tail^{[5] [6]} and features a foreword by Jonathan Coe.^[7] The book was described by The Guardian as "exhaustive and affectionate",^[8] and as a "meticulous and vivid account".^[8] He co-compiled the accompanying compilation, released by Domino Records.^[9]

As a writer, he has written for publications including The Guardian^[10] and the Financial Times.^[11]

O'Dair is a regular studio guest on The Freakzone (BBC 6 Music) with Stuart Maconie,^[12] and in 2015 recorded an essay about swimming in the Lake District for BBC Radio 3.^[13]

Along with the songwriter Andrew Phillips, O'Dair is one half of Grasscut, who have previously released two albums on Ninja Tune (1 Inch: 1/2 Mile^[14] and Unearth^[15]) and a third on Lo Recordings, 2015's Everyone Was A Bird.^[16] The band have been described as building their reputation on "writing about situations and places, rather than standard pop songs",^[17] with The Quietus reviewing Everyone Was A Bird as "that rare slab of post-rock that uses the genre's textures and general ethos of exploration to create new sounds instead of rehashing old ones".^[16]

O'Dair is also a lecturer in Popular Music at Middlesex University.^[18]

In 2016 O'Dair co-authored a report on the use of blockchain technology within the music industry titled Music On The Blockchain.^[19]

External links

• http://www.marcusodair.com/
• https://twitter.com/marcusodair

Notes and References

1. Web site: Cullen. Miguel. Ones To Watch: Grasscut. Clash. 5 March 2010 . 25 September 2015.
2. Harding. Jeremy. Short Cuts. London Review of Books. 20 November 2014. 36 . 22 . 25 September 2015.
3. Web site: Delingpole. James. Double vision. The Spectator. 20 August 2015.
4. Book: O'Dair. Marcus. Different Every Time: The Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt. 9 July 2015. Serpent's Tail. London. 9781846687600.
5. Web site: Different Every Time: The Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt. Serpent's Tail. 26 July 2015. 28 March 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190328221613/https://serpentstail.com/different-every-time.html. dead.
6. Review: Thomson, Ian . 21–27 November 2014 . Rock bottom and back again . New Statesman . 143 . 5237 . 51.
7. Web site: Different Every Time. Allen & Unwin. 26 July 2015.
8. News: Penman. Ian. Different Every Time: The Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt by Marcus O'Dair – review. The Guardian. 26 November 2014 . 20 August 2015.
9. Web site: ROBERT WYATT – DIFFERENT EVERY TIME – 17TH NOVEMBER 2014. Domino Record Company. 26 July 2015.
10. Web site: The Guardian – Marcus O'Dair. The Guardian. 26 July 2015.
11. Web site: I'm enjoying myself with words. The Financial Times. 26 July 2015.
12. Web site: Stuart Maconie's Freakier Zone. BBC. 26 July 2015.
13. Web site: Marcus O'Dair – Swimming Stories. BBC. 26 July 2015.
14. Web site: Grasscut 1 Inch / ½ Mile Review. BBC. 26 July 2015.
15. Web site: Grasscut – Unearth (Review). Indie London. 26 July 2015.
16. Web site: Brusse. Bryan. Reviews, Grasscut – Everyone Was A Bird. The Quietus.
17. Web site: Grasscut – Everyone Was a Bird (Lo Recordings) – Review. god is in the tv. 19 May 2015 . 20 August 2015.
18. Web site: Marcus O'Dair. Middlesex University. 26 July 2015.
19. Web site: Ward. Rich. Interview: Music on the Blockchain – Marcus O'Dair. 11 is louder than 10. 2 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20190328221615/http://www.11islouderthan10.com/2016/07/interview-music-blockchain-marcus-odair.html. 28 March 2019. dead.