Chicago songwriter Andrew Marczak, who records as Orillia, makes country music the old-fashioned way: no computers, no fixes, no do-overs. His self-titled debut (Nov. 2024) was cut live and straight to tape at Jamdek Recording Studios. Everybody in the room and hit record. Andrew’s got a bracing tenor and road-worn lyrics built for a room full of people leaning in. Think Sam Shepard's plainspoken grit crossed with the scrappy heart of '90s alt-country. Songs that sound lived-in because they were recorded like it, tape rolling, band moving together, no screen in sight. His sophomore LP, FIRE-WEED (Far West Records, Oct. 2025), continues in the analog tradition, widening the frame into a nine-piece built around his touring band and featuring his partner/collaborator Peach on vocals, charting #11 for Top Adds on the NACC College Radio Charts and debuting at #130 on the NACC Top 200 in its release week.
PRESS
“Orillia makes the sort of thoughtful, raw, and authentic music that's needed in today's complicated world…”
— BRITT JULIOUS, THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE
“[‘Pontoon Boat’] brims with easygoing charm and keening melodies, encircling Marczak's vocals in a rush of twangy, urgent guitar strums and wistful mandolin chimes.”
— CALEB CAMPBELL, UNDER THE RADAR MAGAZINE
“The record feels like a small group of people eager to get a collection of songs they're excited about down to tape.”
— ROSY OVERDRIVE