Itchy-O is an experiential performance ensemble that has mesmerized audiences across the U.S. and beyond, since 2009. The beating heart of this fifty-plus-strong performance troupe is a batterie of percussionists accompanied by an orchestral arsenal of avant-instrumentation. Weaving a synergistic spell, itchy-O dismantles assumptions of traditional performance models to break down the barriers between audience and performer, administering a bombast of ceremonial chaos; baptizing the audience—body, mind, and collective spirit—in an elaborate, pan-sensorial ocean of music, mystery, and transcendental spectacle.
Itchy-O has shared the stage with legends such as David Byrne & St. Vincent, while luminaries like JG Thirwell and Dan Deacon have opened for the humbled brigade. Over the years, itchy-O has energized crowds as the opening act for a slew of iconic artists including DEVO, Beats Antique, and Wooden Wisdom (Elijah Wood). Their unforgettable private engagements include a legendary performance at Maynard Keenan’s Merkin Vineyards while delighting festival audiences at Riot Fest, Biennial of the Americas, the Underground Music Showcase, and Tasmania’s world-renowned Dark MOFO with enveloping processionals, pop-up performances, and staged spectacles.
Itchy-O is acclaimed for their array of unconventional performance innovations, including an extravagant live drive-in series, online and in-person Noise Bath meditation offerings, immersive 360° dome collaborations, and spontaneous free public performances upending the mundane and delivering mesmerizing musical encounters in non-traditional settings.
Itchy-O has released three groundbreaking studio albums including a double live album on Jello Biafra’s iconic Alternative Tentacles record label. Mettle Studios, the group’s own label, released the concept album Mystic Spy | Psykho Dojo in 2018.
In 2024, itchy-O debuted SÖM SÂPTÂLAHN, a sold-out collaboration with the Fiske Planetarium. Named for an epic set of custom-crafted gongs cast from six hundred pounds of reclaimed brass, at the School of Mines, and tuned to a bespoke seven-tone scale. This project birthed their latest double album, their second release on Mettle, under the title SÖM SÂPTÂLAHN. Accessible, mysterious, and meditative, this album is a bold addition to the itchy-O catalog, sure to appeal to connoisseurs of the experimental, the contemplative, and the avant-garde. SÖM SÂPTÂLAHN is available online on March 14, 2025 and in stores April 18.