Description
On-Ly is the solo and collaborative moniker of pianist and producer Joshua Smeltink. On-Ly has been playing local traps since 2017, varying across numerous bands, recently settling into the second line-up for his own On-Ly band: Carl Lindeberg, bass (Surprise Chef), Henry Hicks, guitar (Horatio Luna) and Bryce Zelno, drums (Astral Flex).
Spanning genres, On-Ly’s house and hip-hop history is ever-present, recently imbued with the hard-hitting post-bop jazz-rock of the 60’s and the 70’s, harking back to bands such as Weather Report and Miles Davis Group (70s); now, keeping the finger pressed to the pulse, his music finds a visceral edge set to the 2010’s and the century that precipitated it. Jazz-beats find synergy with neo-classical sampling, concepts of modern history, obscuring harmonies, machine-based improvisation and the exploration of transferring tangible messages to musical constructs.