Ouri blends the boundaries of relationships and genre on "Twin"

DJ, producer and multi-instrumentalist Ouri is no stranger to warping and blending the boundaries of genre. Her influences range from orchestral composition to Montreal’s underground rave scene, often resulting in a layered hybrid of electronic and classical sounds and always expertly mixed and produced. Refusing to be defined by any one project, Ouri has previously toured with the likes of Yves Tumor and Tirzah, collaborated with folk artist Helena Deland, and delivered one of the most innovative Boiler Room sets of recent memory.

Ouri’s sleek electronic production has often taken centre stage in her discography, but on her new single "Twin" there is a focus on lyricism and a dreamy dissonance to her instrumentals. A far cry from her recent remix collaboration with Jacques Green, the track provides a rare venture into acoustic guitar and shrugs off a traditional structure to reflect its sensitive subject – charting both the intrigue and difficulty that accompanies discussing the past with a partner. She invites her partner and audience to free their minds of traditional expectations of relationships and of genre.

Previously Ouri’s lyrics have faded seamlessly into ambient instrumentals, merging with dance beats, but now she allows them to take up more space. Her raw and honest vocals push to the forefront as she curates a collage of electro-acoustic sounds around them, weaving in new elements throughout to form a thick blanket of sound by the end of the track’s short runtime.

Naturally, her experimentation with genre persists underneath her layered vocals, merging increasingly glitchy acoustic guitar with delicate synths and samples: “I was driving everyday screaming/singing in the car my new song to my love, while listening to Vegyn and Danny L Harle’s ‘Britnaey’s new baby’. To the point where I couldn’t imagine the song without the sample.”

There’s an endearing uncertainty to the track’s dissonance, the constant stopping and starting of the guitar and the repetitive soft, shy questioning of “And what do you think about me?” – an uncertainty that lingers beyond the track’s final notes. It leaves us still unable to define Ouri – classical cellist, electronic producer, experimental songwriter? All of the above.