My duet project Ostracon will be performing this Thursday, February 19, 2015 for the first time since August. This time around I have prepared eight new compositions using the Elektron Analog Four and the Moog Sub 37. This track is an excerpt from a recording that I made during preparations for the show which will be held at the historic Lee’s Liquor Lounge music venue in Downtown Minneapolis. For more details please visit the Facebook event page.
About six weeks ago I had a couple of sessions at Bellows Studio in St. Paul, Minnesota recording synthesizers for an upcoming record by Camp Dark. The project is headed up by producer Graham O’Brien and singer-songwriter Adam Svec. Graham and I have worked together on a variety of projects since 2007. One of those projects is Coloring Time, of which Adam is also a member.
It was a pleasure working on the record. Graham and Adam’s ideas are modern, distinct, and organic without ever being forced or unnatural. Their approach gave me the opportunity to use some of my favorites instruments, like the Moog Sub 37, alongside a few gems that rarely leave my studio. These included the Roland MKS-80, Yamaha FS1r, and (as featured on Charlie) the Roland Juno-106. Here’s a few words from the video’s description:
Charlie was written as an epilogue to a ‘Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis’ by Tom Waits. It’s a continuation of a story about the wanderlust of youth leading to dangerous things, and the associated regrets, coupled with an overwhelming homesickness for what’s been left behind … Video edited by local filmmaker / editor John Burgess. Footage used c/o Prelinger Archives: “Radiotherapy: High Dosage Treatment” & “Is This Love?” Written by Adam Svec & Graham O’Brien. Lyrics by Adam Svec. Produced by Graham O’Brien. Samplers & Drums by Graham O’Brien, Synths by John Keston, Bass Guitar by Casey O’Brien, Guitar by Matt Leavitt, Omnichord and Guitar Solo by Chris Salter.
Charlie is the first single from the Camp Dark album, Nightmare In A Day, which will be released on May 12, 2015 and is available for pre-order immediately at campdark.bandcamp.com. I’ll be joining Adam, Graham, and a few other musicians to perform renditions of tracks from the album at the Icehouse, in Minneapolis on May 15, 2015. For more credits, information, and details about the release show, please visit campdark.bandcamp.com.
I’m am very excited to announce an upcoming concert at Zeitgeist Arts this Friday, January 23, 2014 in Duluth, Minnesota. I’ll be performing a set of brand new material using the DSI Tempest, Elektron Analog Four, and Moog Sub 37. Live coding artist, Mike Hodnick (Kindohm), and Ableton guru, Lucas Melchior (MKR) are also on the bill. All three of us are recipients of the Minnesota Emerging Composers Award (MECA) for electronic music.
In addition to the music Chris LeBlanc will be performing live visuals at the event. I’ve had the privilege of working with Chris on several occasions and I’m really looking forward to experiencing his latest concoction of analog video, circuit bent NES, and vintage video mixers. At this event he’s bringing four gorgeous CRT monitors from a vintage 9 x 9 video wall. You can see a still of them in action above.
I used Ableton Live to produce in real-time and my wavetable glitch machine Max patch to make most of the noises, which I routed into Live using Soundflower.
This five year old set is one of the very first things I ever posted on SoundCloud and it’s 86 minutes from a live solo performance with Minneapolis Art on Wheels. Checkout the original posts here:
Video documentation:
audiocookbook.org/people-on-shelves/
The original article:
audiocookbook.org/music-for-people-on-shelves/
I pre-ordered the Moog Sub 37 days after it was announced and have been sitting on the edge of my seat ever since anticipating its arrival. Finally it arrived during one of my busiest times in several years. As a result I have had very little time with the instrument. However, I can already tell that it will be a relationship as enduring as the decades long relationship I have had with the SCI Pro-One.
First and foremost the Sub 37 is feels like an instrument because it is an instrument. It has been designed to be musical and and expressive in the hands of a musician. The semi-weighted keyboard feels solid and just stiff enough to play dynamically. Velocity and pressure sensitivity react nicely with little adjustment necessary. With all the knobs available, programming is fast, but there are loads additional features under the hood. This does require menu diving, but it’s reasonable considering the modulation routing possibilities.
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