Mocky (real name Dominic Giancarlo Salole) is a Canadian–born musician with a reputation for eclectic songs, humour and blending musical depth with a pop sensibility. Although he is mostly known for his pop and electronic albums and wildy entertaining live shows he is also a multi-instrumentalist, drummer, producer and songwriter. He is widely renowned for his collaborations with Gonzales, Jamie Lidell, Feist, Peaches, Taylor Savvy, Kevin Blechdom and Puppetmastaz.

EARLY YEARS

Mocky began playing music at age 7, when he would watch music videos of the eighties and then go and imitate what he saw on his older brother’s drumset during the commercial breaks. He later attended Boston's Berklee Music College on a scholarship, before moving on to University of Toronto, where he distinguished himself as an acoustic bass player (studying with Oscar Peterson’s bassist) and took unofficial studies in electro-acoustic composition as well as pursuing his own interests in psychology and primate musical abilities.

During university Mocky hosted a weekly live hip-hop jam that brought together musicians and rappers. It was also during this fertile time (1994-1998) that he, together with Peaches, Gonzales and Sticky, founded “The Shit”, a Dadaist punk band that would influence all of these musicians in their solo careers. During this time Mocky released a short series of self-produced cassettes and 45s that to this day continue to inspire his musical collaborators, showcasing his unusual harmonic and rhythmic sense as well as a gift for evocative songwriting.

Feeling the need for change, and inspired by a dream where he was a revolutionary leader in the form of a stuffed animal called “Mocky”, he adopted the moniker and left Canada to move to London with plans to release his first album. There he briefly played bass with tabla player and Mercury Prize winner Talvin Singh, and worked at groundbreaking internet radio station “Gaialive”. Otherwise London was a hard learning experience (the inspiration for his future song “Sweet Music (Whatcha Doin’ For Me?)”). After a disastrous year, which included doing an exhibition at an East End gallery as an excuse to live there and for a short time sleeping in his keyboard case, he relocated to Amsterdam.

ZOO CONCERTS

It was in Amsterdam that Mocky was finally able to release his first album. Looking for a way to promote himself, he did matinee concerts everywhere he played in zoos. He did duets with apes and serenaded pygmy hippos across Europe, intriguing journalists to the extent that he secured much-needed press attention without the help of a label. It also allowed him to realize his long desire to play music with other members of the ape species ...

FIRST ALBUM

His first album "In Mesopotamia" (a reference to a book by his grandfather) was hailed as a success by critics, and heralded for its unique lo-fi funk and strangely touching rap lyrics, which often deal with complex issues such as identity, and continued his obsession with apes and human behaviour. The album was licensed to trendsetting German label Gomma and critical acclaim followed. The surprise success of his song "Sweet Music" proved that the attention of mainstream radio could be held while working with a sampler in your bedroom. It was used in catwalk fashion shows and licensed to numerous compilations worldwide.

BERLIN YEARS

In 2002 Mocky relocated to Berlin. It was then that he met Jamie Lidell and the two began working together as production partners on each others music, as well as playing live together whenever possible. He signed with the German Label Four Music and with V2 in France, and was finally able to have a budget for videos and radio promo. The release of his next two albums, “Are + Be“ and “Navy Brown Blues“, established Mocky on the European pop music scene. With Radio hits like “ How Will I Know You” and humorous videos for “”Catch a Moment in Time” and “Mickey Mouse Muthaf**kas”, along with the hauntingly melancholy “ Fighting Away the Tears” featuring Feist, Mocky was finally firmly on the European musical map.

LIVE SHOWS

Mocky's live show mixes humour, deep musical mastery and extreme audience interaction – often incorporating elaborate stage visuals, costumes and puppetry. He counts his early experiences playing at the zoo as the training ground for his shows for humans, He has led ensembles ranging from a four drum-set orchestra to an 8-piece band and "wowed" audiences and critics alike in some legendary club performances, as well as at some of Europe's best festivals including Sonar and Glastonbury. Having been a constant fixture on the touring scene in Europe since 2003, Mocky is currently rehearsing with his mock-tet in a converted horse stable in Berlin, in preparation to play music from his upcoming album “Saskamodie” in a live setting.

PRODUCER / SONGWRITER

As a songwriter, instrumentalist and co-producer Mocky has proven himself to be a true musical triple threat. Mocky was Jamie Lidell's co-producer and co-writer on the albums " Multiply" (2005) and "Jim" (2008). Another notable achievement was the co-write of "So Sorry" on "The Reminder", Feist's four-time Grammy-nominated 2007 album, on which he also co-produced four tracks and played several instruments. Mocky also brought his instinctive approach to the rhythm section on recent albums by Jane Birkin, Soffy O, and Teki Latex. He is also the co-producer of the upcoming Kevin Blechdom album “Gentlemania”, and co-writer of “Without Love” on the most recent Nikka Costa album “Pebble to a Pearl” (Stax).

RECENT

Having won a lawsuit against a Austrian supermarket that used his song without permission (they set it to a talking pig selling bio products) Mocky took a risk and spent the winnings on block-booking Ferber Studios (a classic Parisian recording space previously used by Nina Simone and Serge Gainsbourg among others) for two weeks, in order to record a totally acoustic album. Unlike anything he has ever released before, the resulting album “Saskamodie” – his first since signing to Crammed Discs – sees Mocky moving away from the electronic music scene and returning to his jazz and acoustic roots.