Omori (2000 – 2020)

Photo by Zlat Noisiaz

Stoyan Yovchev (born in 2000 and based in Sofia, Bulgaria) started writing music under the name Omori in 2016. His work, originally rooted in drum and bass and lo-fi hip-hop, quickly reached the more experimental territories of ambient, drone, noise and glitch. Only 18 years old, Omori caught the attention of Sofia’s main experimental music publisher and booking crew Amek Collective. He started performing live at various underground locations around his city and in the summer of 2018, Amek released his first EP ‘Isomorphism / Transparency.’ A year later, Omori appeared on the stage of Radar Festival in Varna, one of the few remaining safe havens for experimental electronic music in the country. Amek started the current year with ‘Embryogenesis,’ a brand new album by Omori, which sadly happened to be his last.

In April 13, 2020, Stoyan Yovchev decided to leave the world, untimely ending what was expected to be the beginning of a promising musical journey. He was in the first year of his university studies in London where he had also recently joined the local collective of like-minded artists Index Tapes. Among his beautiful family, loving friends, collaborators and listeners, Stoyan Yovchev will always be remembered as a bright, positive and prolific creative soul. May his soul rest in power! – Angel Simitchiev


I’ve been following the experimental music scene in Bulgaria for a while now, from the pioneering work of Simo Lazarov in the 70s all the way up to more recent crop of young performers including Ivan Shopov, Mytrip, Evitceles, and krallar all confidently straddling different genres from metal to drone with no hung ups about fitting into any specific category sometimes multiplying their monikers to reflect shifting musical identities.

Omori was one of a recent wave of artists unafraid of mixing things up mashing up beats with ambient. His debut at 18 on Amek, Isomorphism / Transparency, is the work of an inquisitive mind happy to throw a few ideas in the air in order to pluck the lighter ones. It’s a delicate and understated affair, tentative at times, full of whispered tones, and ruptured sentences, jagged endings and echoing murmurs.

Released in February, Embryogenesis, is a more assured and focused work that benefits from increased spatial awareness and narrative pull. The track titles point to a darker bent, but the sonic palette remains surprisingly light and airy albeit on a canvas of underlying disquiet. It’s as if with Omori had learned to control his breathing technique, taking deeper breaths to expand his creative lungs resulting in elongated musical forms that grow organically into a more coherent and reflective work. At times, Embryogenesis seems to be navigating treacherous waters, occasionally slipping into abrasive rapids, but Omori steers the helm firmly towards the light with field recordings grounding the album and giving it a warmer feel.

A few days before passing away, Omori changed his moniker on his soundcloud account to It doesn’t matter anymore. As a loving tribute, his peers have complied a rich playlist of tracks inspired by his varied musical output.


www.soundcloud.com/stoyan-yovchev-omori
www.amekcollective.bandcamp.com
www.soundcloud.com/indextapes

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