KÁRYYN - ODAR (Official Performance Video)

Taken from the upcoming Calm KAOSS! EP. Listen: ‘ODAR’ — meaning other in Armenian — is KÁRYYN’s interpretation of the folk song ‘Odaroutioun’, a song passed down through generations, often sung at gatherings in her grandparents’ house in Aleppo, Syria. Written by Avetik Isahakyan, a prominent Armenian lyric poet, writer and political activist, the words to the song were originally from a letter written to his family, whilst in political exile, and later turned into a song adopted post-genocide to represent the Armenian’s plight. Known as a patriotic song, most commonly sung by men, KÁRYYN’s interpretation poses a critical examination of what it means to live in otherness. “Our Armenian language is an ancient written alphabet, found in the illuminated manuscripts, a language on the endangered language list today,” KÁRYYN explains. “The language is threatened further due to the refugee crisis caused by the genocide, and by the crisis w