Jesse Miller (Lotus), Eli Winderman (Dopapod), Charlie Patierno

Octave Cat

Octave Cat is a trio of Eli Winderman (Dopapod - keyboards), Jesse Miller (Lotus – bass/modular synth) and Charlie Patierno (drums). The music ranges from stripped down jazz-grooves to analog synth dance music. Influences such as Herbie Hancock jazz-funk and Four Tet electronica can be heard. Octave Cat pushes the jazz and jam boundaries by incorporating elements of electronica and in doing so they have carved out their own unique musical space.

Jesse Miller (bassist for Lotus) and Eli Winderman (keyboardist for Dopapod) met up to play some of Jesse’s modular and vintage synthesizers. They recorded parts of the session which evolved into the tracks “Limber Up” and “Spar.” They brought in Charlie Patierno to play drums on these two tracks, and Octave Cat was born. Between their already busy tour schedules, the new trio — named for the first synth that initial session started with, the rare late ’70s The Cat by Octave — continued to write and record.

The band played its first show at SummerDance in Garrettsville, Ohio on September 3, 2016, and released its self-titled debut in March 2017. The live record Live from the Simulation followed in 2018; Refract, recorded to tape at Miner Street Recordings in Philadelphia, in 2019; and Sprezzatura in July 2023. Live from the Simulation, Vol. 2 — drawn from the band’s November and December 2025 shows, with Dopapod’s Rob Compa sitting in on “Wooden Beads” — arrived in January 2026.

In 2026 the trio has toured the Southeast, the Midwest, upstate New York and Colorado, played festivals including Gambler’s Run, Beanstalk and SummerDance, and closes the year with a December run from Pembroke, Massachusetts to Asbury Park, New Jersey.