charlie otto

"charlie otto + his gear" is his first solo project, running on the cutting edge of both music and video performance. Almost no one else is spontaneously using their guitar solo to generate what you see on the screen, or turning a knob to both modulate a synth and distort the images in the video. The technology to connect the sound and visuals to this degree is only recently being developed, and with the help of video guru DRMBT, Charlie experiments and pushes this tech forward every show. You're welcome, future.

The songs are not experiments though, they're fully developed SONGS. The lyrics and chords are gushing with feeling, the drums are throbbing, the synths are huge, it's very electronic while still achieving rock and roll status - probably because most of it is controlled by Charlie's amazing multi-guitar. Although the entire show is danceable, don't be surprised if there are times you're glued to where you stand and your jaw stays open. Either way, it's something that you'll have to talk about later.

Since joining forces in 2021, Charlie and his Gear have been ravaging huge swaths of the country, including a successful tour between California and Chicago, two years of Summer Camp Music Festival performances, and several Chicago street fests. In 2023 he released an album called "collaborations volume 1" that featured 20 talented fellow musicians and artists, and had most of them perform his record release show, a smashing success.