In pursuit of his musician dreams, Cayden Mowbray made the snap decision to move from Melbourne, Australia to Canada in 2012 to join a band. Another round of quick decisions in Toronto eventually led him to his current works as a DJ and co-founder of a music label today.
Known as the moniker "Oreku" since 2017, he continues his craft his own sound with each compilation and EP (extended play), drawing on a number of inspirations including diverse music genres, various cultures and art mediums.
"I've [music] genre hopped my whole life," said Oreku. "Whatever it was, I got really intense into it for a few years, and was just sort of collected."
Musical phases like heavy metal, hip-hop, house and traditional sounds from other cultures were formative towards the musical journey, according to Oreku.
He moved to western Canada in 2012 to be part of the blue grass, folk-inspired band, Regular Earth Kids.
Stereo Ferment was co-founded by Oreku. The record label specializes in experimentation and sound mixing. Photo courtesy of Stereo Ferment.
In 2013, an extended stay in Toronto during the band's travels convinced Oreku to stay and go solo. In Toronto, he met his future wife and ventured into DJ-ing full-time.
He describes his current sound as a "tropical twist with heavy percussion" with acid disco and psychedelic inspirations.
With his business partner, a fellow DJ, Oreku co-founded Stereo Ferment, a music label that was created just months prior to the COVID-19 lockdowns in March 2020. Stereo Ferment is described as "focusing on the cross cultural fermentation of psych-tropical / disco- dub-boogie and intercontinental inspired grooves," according to its Instagram account.
As COVID-19 restrictions, Oreku hopes to return to live gigs, and that Toronto's vibrant music and nightlife can be rejuvenated after more than a year of silence.
"What I'm excited about is Toronto is entering a renaissance of fun, and really happening kind of nightlife, and shaking it up from it used to be like," he said. "People can push the envelope more, [and] be less complacent because once you know you got to lose, you cherish it a bit more."
Listen to Oreku's full interview here: