Marykate O'Neil explained
Marykate O'Neil (born 1968) is an American indiepop singer-songwriter, currently based in New York City. She is known for her quirky, literate pop sensibilities. She released her fourth solo effort, Underground (Nettwerk/71 Recordings), on February 3, 2009, following 2002's self-titled album (which made it onto CMJ's 'Best of 2002' list), 2006’s 1-800-Bankrupt, and 2008’s mkULTRA EP. Her work has previously been hailed by critics as "witty, angsty goodness",[1] and "pure magic".[2]
Biography
While attending Boston University, O'Neil ended up singing and playing guitar in the indie-pop outfit piewackit. Although the band had a deal with I.R.S. Records and was pulling off shows with Ida, Mary Lou Lord, Juliana Hatfield, Lois, and Elliott Smith, things fell apart, and O'Neil moved to New York City.
In 2002, she recorded her self-titled debut album, financing the project with pre-approved credit cards. The record caught on among fans of literate pop, and reached the top 10 of the CMJ charts. Three songs from Marykate O'Neil were covered by Japanese film and television star Tomoyo Harada. The Nettwerk music group picked up 1-800-Bankrupt and re-released the album, broadening O'Neil's exposure. In 2006 O'Neil's song "Mundane Dream" was featured in the Sundance award-winning film Stephanie Daley starring Tilda Swinton, Amber Tamblyn, and Timothy Hutton.[3]
Along the way, O'Neil has befriended like-minded musicians and writers forming a community of players who reappear on all of her records and are her own 'wrecking crew' of sorts. Members include Matthew Caws (Nada Surf), Lianne Smith, Ken Maiuri (Pedro the Lion, The Soft Drugs), Brad Jones (Josh Rouse, David Mead), Roger Moutenot (Yo La Tengo, Sleater Kinney) and Jill Sobule. Jill Sobule has also co-written a number of songs as well as produced O'Neil's records. O'Neil and Sobule met in the 90's when O'Neil was a member of piewackit playing at a festival in LA with Jill Sobule, Frente!, and The Murmurs. O'Neil is also known for her DIY ethic and typically records song tracks in her home, as well as doing her own album artwork.
Discography
piewackit
- sockmonkee (1997, Rock-It Records), produced by Michael Deming (Lilys, Apples in Stereo, The Pernice Brothers)
- "boyfriend" 7" single (1997, Aargh Records)
- "prime time" 7" single (1997, Aargh Records)
- featured on Somewhere Between Heaven and Xanax compilation on Pop Narcotic
Solo
- Marykate O'Neil (2002, 71 Recordings), produced by Michael Deming & Jill Sobule
- 1-800-Bankrupt (2006, 71 Recordings), produced by Roger Moutenot & Jill Sobule
- mkULTRA (EP) (2008, Nettwerk/71 Recordings), produced by Marykate O'Neil, Roger Moutenot & Jill Sobule
- Underground (2009, Nettwerk/71 Recordings), produced by Marykate O'Neil, Jacob Lawson, Roger Moutenot, & Jill Sobule
Compilations
- International Pop Overthrow - Vol. 4, "Mundane Dream" (2001, Not Lame Records)
- Right to Chews: Bubblegum Classics Revisited, "Get Down" (2002, Not Lame Records)
- International Pop Overthrow - Vol. 5, "Still Waiting" (2002, Not Lame Records)
- What a Concept!: Tribute to Teenage Fanclub, "Traffic Jam" (2004, Not Lame Records)
Music videos
- "Nashville" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZH2C3RUaYO0, off Underground, directed by Michael K. Anderson
- "I Sleep With My Clothes On" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUpvbRk7hCQ, off 1-800-Bankrupt, directed by Marianne Petit
- "Past All The Stars" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULcyFSZ_Pko, off 1-800-Bankrupt, directed by Marianne Petit. This video was featured in a 2006 IFC short film series. https://web.archive.org/web/20070825193632/http://medialab.ifc.com/film_detail.jsp?film_id=2124[4]
- "The Sky Is Falling" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1gkM2DxayU, off 1-800-Bankrupt, directed by Marianne Petit
- "Secret War" https://web.archive.org/web/20070708010735/http://www.skifeets.com/secretwarweb.mov, off 1-800-Bankrupt, directed by Craig Eastland
- "Secret War" live from the Living Room in NYC, April 12, 2007 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmh9dcLmjUc
- "Green Street" live from World Cafe Live in Philadelphia, October 9, 2008, by Frantone https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNpV3aEI6_o
Selected press
- Artist spotlight & interview from NewBeats, 2002 https://web.archive.org/web/20080512000430/http://www.newbeats.com/oneilinterview.html
- Review of Marykate O'Neil from Splendid E-Zine, Jul. 23, 2002 https://web.archive.org/web/20070807120905/http://www.splendidezine.com/review.html?reviewid=3235394463330183
- Review of 1-800-Bankrupt from Filter Magazine, May 2, 2006 https://web.archive.org/web/20080725041023/http://www.filter-mag.com/artists/interior.174.html
- "My Favorite Things" feature article on PopMatters, Jun. 7, 2006 http://www.popmatters.com/features/mft/oneil-marykate-060607.shtml
- Feature in Worcester Telegram, Jul. 7, 2007 http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070607/COLUMN14/706070365/-1/eworcester
- Single review of 'Green Street' (off Underground) in the Boston Globe, Oct. 7, 2008 http://www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2008/10/07/green_street_by_mary_kate_oneil/
- Interview feature in the Cambridge Chronicle, Oct. 10, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20090109204354/http://www.wickedlocal.com/cambridge/fun/x811428801/Marykate-ONeil-sings-at-Lizard-Lounge
- "Under the Radar" feature on Metromix, Dec. 19, 2008 http://atlanta.metromix.com/music/article/under-the-radar-35/881064/content
- Underground included in Most Anticipated Albums of '09 from Blurt, Jan. 02, 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090628212811/http://www.blurt-online.com/features/view/252
- Review of Underground from Allmusic [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r1466868|pure_url=yes}}]
- Review of Underground from Sentimentalist Magazine, Feb. 3, 2009 http://www.sentimentalistmag.com/2009/02/03/marykate-o%E2%80%99neil-underground/
- Feature in the Hudson Sun, Feb. 4, 2009 https://archive.today/20130209132758/http://www.wickedlocal.com/hudson/homepage/x1596621747/Marykate-ONeil-releases-third-album
External links
Notes and References
- http://www.venuszine.com/articles/music/sounds/2282/Marykate_ONeil Venus Zine's review of 1-800-Bankrupt
- Web site: Filter Magazine's review of 1-800-Bankrupt . 2009-07-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080725041023/http://www.filter-mag.com/artists/interior.174.html . 2008-07-25 . dead .
- Web site: Stephanie Daley (2006) - IMDb. IMDb.
- IFC MediaLab
