GREX / Lesley Mok / Embroidered Bird
This triple-bill concert at Rhizome DC brings together three distinct experimental acts—Oakland duo Grex, New York percussionist Lesley Mok, and the local synth-folk project Embroidered Bird—for an evening of genre-defying music. Grex, described as an "otherworldly experience," blends surreal songcraft with free jazz, industrial hip-hop, and art rock, drawing comparisons to John Coltrane, Death Grips, and Mitski. Percussionist Lesley Mok presents improvisational works from their critically acclaimed debut album *The Living Collection*, which earned International Debut Album of the Year at the 2024 Deutscher Jazz Preis. Embroidered Bird rounds out the night with a mix of acoustic songs and analog synth experiments using tape loops and thrift-store instruments.
When: Friday, July 31, 2026, from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM.
Showtimes: Doors open at 7:00 PM, music begins at 7:30 PM.
Tickets: $15–$25, available online via the venue's ticketing link.
Lineup: Grex (Karl Evangelista on guitar, voice, drums, samples, misc.; Rei Scampavia on synth, voice, drums, misc.) — an Oakland-based experimental duo known for collaborating with Fred Frith, Andrew Cyrille, Bobby Bradford, Tony Levin, and others, and performing at venues like The Great American Music Hall, Ars Nova Workshop, and the Sonic Circuits Festival. Lesley Mok — percussionist, sound artist, and composer based in New York City, whose work explores time, emotional dissonance, and the connection between the mundane and divine; they have performed with Tomeka Reid, William Parker, Ingrid Laubrock, Mary Halvorson, and Craig Taborn. Embroidered Bird — a local act combining simple acoustic songs with analog synthesizers, cassette tape loops, and thrift-store instrument finds.
Run time: Approximately 2.5 hours, from 7:30 PM to 10:00 PM.
Ages: Not specified; likely all ages unless otherwise noted by the venue.
Venue: Rhizome DC, Washington, D.C.
Note: Grex has directed proceeds from their work to causes including the Milford Graves Memorial Fund, Black Organizing Project, Shuumi Land Tax, Alameda County Food Bank, and relief efforts in the Philippines, Ukraine, and Palestine.