OCT 2010: After smashing it up again in Canada for another northern hemisphere summer tour, OKA are back in Australia for a string of festival dates. Highlights of the Canada tour include jammin onstage with Arrested Development @ Winnipeg Folk Fest and Finley Quaye @ Vancouver Folkie. They played alongside Thievery Corporation, Black Eyed Peas and Santana @ Quebec Summer Festival and played for the first time @ Shambhala in the Rocky Mountains and Evolve Festival in Nova Scotia.
REVIEW FROM WINNIPEG 2010
My day began at the Green Ash stage for the "It Takes a Global Village" set featuring Delhi 2 Dublin, Oka, and The Peatbog Faeries (foreshadowing the end of the night). Mixing fiddles, bagpipes, horns, and all sorts of other instruments, the 3 bands played an extremely fun, danceable mix of folk, celtic, and world music. It was pretty much the best, most exciting start to the day one could possibly ask for.
Jim Bryson with the Weakerthans, The Rural Alberta Advantage, and Oka all played over at the Big Blue @ Night stage. Unfortunately, I was at the Main Stage for most of the evening, so was only able to catch a bit of Oka, an Australian band who took the festival by storm last year and were invited back again to bring the Folk Fest crowd their unique blend of folk dance music fearing a didgeridoo, bamboo flutes, and more. As with last year, when they played the Main Stage, they were once again phenomenal, and the huge crowd assembled at the Big Blue stage were definitely in a dancing mood.
THE OKA SOUND
The Oka sound is deeply rooted in the laid back coastal style of our home. I guess it makes people feel how they do when they visit herechillaxed.
Here is a collection of words that we put to together because we always get asked to describe our music:
"a fusion of eclectic world sounds, roots, dub, reggae, jazz and organic electronica". yep it's a lot of words.
My favourite description though comes from a new Oka fan in Canada:
"i have to say, your music is like nothing i've ever heard. love it! techno-folk-aboriginal-jungle-hippie-rock? damn."
