Ola has released six albums to date on his label, Rugged Ram Records. with the most recent, THE DEVOURED MAN, taking him on tour dates to many parts of the world The decision to break with the traditional major label route is one Ola has never regretted. Ola first studied law before moving on to study Art always pursuing his love of music:
"As an artist, what motivates me most is honesty, I've striven against odds to protect the kernel of my ideas so as to ensure they reach the listener as I intend them to be heard, rather than filtered through the legions of self appointed taste makers and corporate focus groups that can often be the norm. To this end, I've always remained 'self employed' as this seems the most straightforward way for the moment at least."
Modest Recording
"Modest recording budgets are the toughest consequence of my independent status and there can be a world of compromise awaiting me at the start of each new venture. However, I've always passionately resolved that hearing is the most advanced of all the senses. The fact that within reason, just by listening carefully to a sound or recording I've always been able to make out tangibles like the characteristics of space and dimensions. like room height, depth and width as well as strong suppositions on what materials said space might be covered in, filled with or even made up of. Further proof of the mysterious alchemy of sound is the vast possibility to go beyond what is bound by the laws of maths and science to make powerful deductions about the emotional content of a sound, it's tone, it's intent, it's vibe."
"Nowadays my working life is spent manipulating these various elements of sound, melding and mixing them together, experimenting with range, timbre and resonance like an aural chef, painstakingly balancing the ingredients of my 'earfood'. Hoping my audience and I can savour moments of glorious gratification, served up as fresh as the day they were created, with nowt taken out.
So, here's to the fidelity and texture of sound. May they never be rendered trifling concerns. That will indeed be tantamount to a dulling of the senses in a profound way."
Some Obstacle
Alongside his own concerts, Ola also makes special appearances as a guest vocalist. This Autumn, Ola will headline with the South African Jazz/Opera singer Sibongile Khumalo to include three dates at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. Ola will also be the featured vocalist with the Grammy winning German WDR Big Band for a series of concerts at the Cologne Philharmonic Concert Hall in February 2010. Ola featured with the WDR Big Band in September 2008 alongside Randy Brecker, Frank Gravis and Dean Brown with Michael Abene conducting.