Quinell Oucharek channels folk greats in new short music documentary

Quinell Oucharek was born in the 1980s, decades after the height of the American folk musical revival.

But, “listening to him is like listening to old folk ballads of the 60s and 70s,” said local producer Jason Vorpagel.

His voice, his songs — they have a simple, stripped-down quality.

And his throwback style is showcased effortlessly in a new short music documentary from director Justin Frick.

Inspired by the Coen brothers’ folk epic Inside Llewyn Davis, it features Oucharek, of Pasco, performing three songs from the film — three achingly beautiful ballads that seem to match up perfectly with the serene, snow-dotted Priest Lake cabin where Oucharek and Frick made the documentary.

Called From the Woods: Inside Llewyn Davis, the 14-minute piece debuted this week on HitFix.

Frick, a Richland native who now lives in Spokane, had the idea for the piece after watching the Coen brothers’ film.

He felt Oucharek — who goes simply by Quinell in his music — would be an ideal collaborator.

“When you see him (perform), he’s showing you all the emotion. He’s being real. He’s very simple, in a very good way. You don’t have to try to see through to what he’s really like,” Frick said. “When he’s creating the song and playing the song, he sets all his emotions out.”

Oucharek, 29, took a somewhat circuitous path to the singer-songwriter life.

He was born in Alberta, and — like many Canadians — grew up playing ice hockey.

But in his family, “if we wanted to play sports, we had to do something with music too,” he said.

So he played the trumpet and sang in the choir. He eventually picked up guitar.

Oucharek moved with his family to the Tri-Cities when he was about 12, attending Tri-City Junior Academy in Pasco and later Columbia Basin College through the Running Start program.

He studied business and education at Walla Walla University.

After college, he spent a year teaching at his Pasco alma mater. During that time, he recorded his album, ‘Till We’re Free.

Vorpagel, lead producer and engineer at Sound Forge Studios in Richland, was the producer.

“A lot of modern pop music, especially, lacks lyrical depth. Because of that, in my opinion, they try to overcompensate with nonstop hooks and drums, etc. But if you strip it away and read the songs like a poem, they make Dr. Seuss look refined,” he said.

But that’s not the case with Oucharek, Vorpagel said. With him, “there’s a lot being said, but he doesn’t have to (actually) say too much because you can feel it,” the producer said.

Oucharek has a collection of standout tracks to his name, from Hooked on a Feeling, off his album — a song that’s loosely inspired by the classic B.J. Thomas tune — to the newer You Are Mine. On the latter track, he tells his great-grandparents’ love story.

“I headed west, I was looking for new land and for love. For love,” he sings on the melodic track. “You headed west, you were looking for a man and for love. For love. When the seasons changed, one thing remained, you were mine.”

After a year teaching, Oucharek decided to give his all to pursuing music. He now heads to Alaska for commercial fishing in the summer and performs the rest of the year. He hopes to tour and release some new music in the fall.

In From the Woods, Oucharek takes on a trio of folk classics, including Hang Me, Oh Hang Me, Five Hundred Miles and Fare Thee Well.

He and Frick recorded the songs and made the mini-documentary all in one day. The songs will be available online.

Oucharek is pleased with the finished product. To him, folk music is something special.

He was named after Bob Dylan’s song The Mighty Quinn, and he’s long been drawn to performers like Dylan, Cat Stevens, James Taylor and the like.

The often highly-produced music of today — he likes it and finds quality in it.

“But I think there’s nothing really that beats the vulnerability of a solo musician on an acoustic guitar, with simple lyrics that fit a melody,” he said. “I think that’s why folk music hangs around. There’s a line in the movie (Inside Llewyn Davis), “if it was never new and it never gets old, then it’s a folk song.’”

To check out the short documentary or learn more about Quinell, go to www.facebook.com/quinellmusic or find his YouTube channel under QuinellMusic. He’s also on Instagram at www.instagram.com/quinellmusic.

This story was originally published May 26, 2016 at 12:30 PM with the headline "Quinell Oucharek channels folk greats in new short music documentary."