unravel

the new graffiti

2011-11-17T07:50:00.000-08:00

I think graffiti is wonderful. I think when people try to cover it up, they do an amazing job as well. They obviously aren't as talented as the original artists themselves, especially with colors, but in a way create a completely new form of art without even knowing it- unconscious genius. This is one of my current favorite walls.

If I were a graffiti artist, I would just paint in blocks of solid color. No name attached, just styyyle. It mimics the technique of those who cover up and also smears the line between the two conflicting parties- a seemingly never ending battle. Is it graffiti? Hmm.
I wouldn't cover up graffiti, just create some areas of color and texture on top of an unassuming blank wall.

I also love stairways to nowhere.
Especially when they have graffiti on them.

reading list and renewal

2011-11-11T18:29:00.001-08:00

After too much thinking about all the fun things on which to write, I thought I'd just keep it simple. Unfortunately, even just a simple post took almost a year to write, or always sounded unbelievably trite (maybe that's just me, eh?). Or that I was trying to sell/complain/brag/ hunt for the next-best-thing which so few sites actually succeed in avoiding. So, here's a new approach. We'll see if i can keep it up. I had a thought today while running in the pouring rain of just posting pictures from my life. I hope to post something every day, but setting goals aren't one of my specialties (where hope comes in). Since I am fascinated by so many things this seems to make things difficult and I run out of time. Simple enough? I had the day off today. I was doing some reading. I like to read. These are books that I compiled from various zones around the house.
If you look closely, maybe you can guess what I have been getting myself into.
From top to bottom:
A little book by George R.R. Martin. A book about getting hitched. Incredible short stories by JG Ballard (heard about "The Drowned World" in an interview with Kode9 a long time ago- seriously out of print and it came to me one day after looking for it for a couple years). The dual-biographies of Deleuze and Guattari (just finished today- inspiration to write, write, write, write). A masterpiece of Analog synthesizer designs (always on my mind). And a book for figuring out how my circulatory system works under the stress of training (and also to help with that setting goals thing). Don't buy or read any of these books. They're all terrible for your health.

hiding out.

2010-02-11T20:44:00.001-08:00

whether i have chosen to or not, i've been hiding out. moving far away does that, i guess. but, rather enjoying it. plotting. scheming. but, under the radar. keeping a good attitude. i've mostly been studying my books on sound physics and computers. read a whole bunch of other books for a little break a bit ago. really enjoyed "the diamond age..." (neal stephenson), "the sun also rises" (hemingway), and "blood meridian, or the evening redness in the west" (mccarthy).
now, reading my curtis roads, miller puckette, gareth o. loy, j.o. smith, and getting out of it what i can, whilst listening to zbigniew karkowski, lasse marhaug, john wiese, and daniel menche.
in fact, all four are playing a show at reed college tomorrow. this show will be the blood meridian of noise shows.
some music by which i've been really inspired the past year has been the clubroot album on lodubs, ben frost's 'by the throat,' black to comm's 'alphabet 1968.' visiting some classics by corrupted, especially 'se hace por los suenos asesinos.'
things are great.
training for a half marathon.

Cacheflowe vs. H.dot

2009-07-01T16:52:00.000-07:00

some friends working it for KGNU and Denver Open Media.

CacheFlowe vs. H.Dot at D.O.M. from Plastic Sound Supply on Vimeo.

hack fest.

2009-05-15T19:44:00.001-07:00

took it a little easier on the bike this week. all this riding has been murdering my lungs in a good way. so good that i have quit smoking again. i think it might stick this time, except for those too-sweet-to-pass-up-occasions. but maybe that's a bad sign saying that, i've kept the edge for a little while so far and the hacking has started. all that wonderful lung butter/hazardous waste is making its way up and out. so i've given myself a little recovery time off the bike.

got to go to a wonderful hazmat training session this entire week! now i know all the federal regulations i need to do my job safely, but also be there for cleanup when the time comes, still need some hands on training, but got to check out the amazing hazmat truck the portland fire department has. i was as excited as a kid getting to see a fire truck for the first time.

got out a little early and i took advantage of the gorgeous weather that came around today! went on a nice 60 mile down south again to tualatin and back through hillsboro and up the west hills via germantown road and back home. part of the same route in which i got horribly lost, but better because i know where i'm going now. it was awesome to put in the miles and have a steep grade to negotiate after 40 of them. after that, some practice descending. it looked like this.

and then up and over the st johns bridge. it's my favorite way to come home and it usually give me a boost because i know i'm within ten miles of home. coming up and over the bridge and on a day like today you can see mount st helens, mt hood and mt adams (?-still learning them all) carefully framed by the most beautiful bridge on earth.

i've been spending a lot of time lately in those hills right behind the bridge.

sorry it's just the wikipedia pic, but please check out some of the ridiculous photos people have taken via image search.

i haven't been posting photos much, because i am one of those camera-less. the forgotten ones from yesteryear.

maybe someday i'll purchase one, but for now it's stealing-borrowing brooke's. i just don't want to break it. maybe i'll steal it tomorrow for the next ride. i saw on the map that there's a meier rd, and i'm gonna go see if any of the relatives live out there.
oh, and got to try out my brand new CO2 pump. it's the best. it's weird how i just got it yesterday and got to give it a go today. thank you mr nail for being there.

getting taken for a ride.

2009-05-03T22:00:00.000-07:00

inspiration for me takes many many forms, and sometimes just a little change in the weather can open up a whole new can of worms. in the last post i wrote about getting back out on the bike and just letting the mountains (or hills depending on your frame of reference- coloradoans) just take over. well, they have shown me something quite new.
i've caught a cycling bug again. and this time it's for real.
i was getting super strong pushing the 'ol 52x16 up skyline road up to three times a week. but as tough as i felt riding up a mountain in the biggest gear possible was like riding with square wheels. it sure hasn't been as bad as that time i was riding the morgul-bismarck "wall" and started rolling back in between pedal strokes. i should be flying up the hills like a true grimpeur. the climbs are what makes cycling so interesting. it's where classic battles are fought and people crack. where the suffering begins. mountains are the teachers.
but i sure wasn't flying up the mountains. and i was suffering in the wrong way, to be perfectly honest.
i also wanted to go further past the hills, get lost, and find myself in my new surroundings here. i wanted to go... faster.
i decided to invest in some firepower. i chose a better weapon.
i bought a new bicycle.
i felt like i have betrayed faustina, but it is time to let go a little bit. thousands upon thousand of miles that bike has taken me.
fast (except on the uphill).
it's been less than two weeks now and i have put about 200 miles on the new bicycle. it has changed how i ride.
the difference is unbelievable. i had been riding on my toes because of the momentum of the drivetrain. i couldn't shake the saddle sores even after three seat changes. my lungs are opening up because of the wider handlebars. and even after all of that pain (the wrong kind), i still loved riding that old bicycle. i was ready for something new. i couldn't wait to take it out for a huge ride, further than i had gone before.
well, last weekend i got taken for a ride. i was out forty miles (which mapmyride told me later), before i even realized that i had gone that far and before i realized that i had no idea where i was. i was trying to get down to the tulip festival in woodburn, which on paper was only supposed to be 45 miles- 50 tops (mapmyride), then hitch a ride back with brooke, her brother and nephews. easy. i've done that distance on the fixed gear no problem. did it a week before!
but take a few wrong turns and voila! epic ride time.
i think i actually cracked a little more mentally than i did physically that day. but, it was more of realizing that i knew nothing out of the area that i have seen in the past few months of living here. and that's okay. i was really afraid of having to ask for help or something, or of getting blown over in the wind because of exhaustion (i admit, it's happened before and it's no fun). i had to stop and figure out where the hell my new bicycle had taken me. i had to turn around. i had to make the phone call to abort the mission. i didn't want to get picked up. bicycling and independence go hand in hand for me... i had to find my own way back home, or back to brooke's brother's house. something.
i had to buy some maps. stopping helped me to realize that i wasn't really lost that badly, because i wasn't ever in the middle of nowhere. i was in the suburbs of suburbs of suburbs of portland.
sometimes that is even more scary than being in the middle of nowhere.
i was in wilsonville.
it took two maps to get back to town. and morale improved greatly when i got to put away the map that was further away from home. i really had to suck it up and just pedal one circle at a time, not take any more chances, and make sure that i was on the right road. it got me to focus on my form very seriously. thirty or so miles later i was near the new rendezvous point in hillsboro. back in fairly familiar territory. a old B-17 bomber was flying low overhead and i knew that i was near the hillsboro airport (they have a pretty big airshow this time of year)... coming in for a landing. i started riding faster again, with a little fist pump that i had made it. i was finally suffering in the right way. i was humbled. i let my mind beat me before my legs even gave out. i was shown where my place was. and it didn't even take a mountain to show me that. perspective.
i am so ready for more. can't wait to try the ronde van portlandia and the otto miller/dutch canyon rides. and then, this summer, a ride to the coast.

GO!

2009-03-23T13:20:00.000-07:00

... for a bike ride. highly recommended!
at LEAST 25 miles or so.
everything seems to melt away, especially up a huge hill.
I like to seek them out.
they are not very nice and will let you know just how they feel about you.
so will traffic, but that's another story.

and then, there's nothing like power-washing a bike, breaking it down into piles of hardware, stripping, sanding and re-painting the frame, putting it back together and tuning it up! my ride would have been much easier/faster had i tuned it up before the ride this weekend.

also, did a lot of practicing this weekend on the turntables and am really excited about a new mix. it made the last recording feel as if i were forcing a lot of the mixes together. don't wanna say TOO much cause i'll probably start over-thinking it (i still have to record it). i have learned quite a lot from the last attempt at a *full length* mix on so many different levels.
kind of like climbing a mountain on a bicycle (without all that physical exercise).

equal and just.

2009-03-16T11:02:00.000-07:00

I've been really moving forward on learning music theory and production techniques, but sometimes that really just means finding the place to begin, and is the place at which one begins, the beginning?
I have found a very interesting place to begin this time, although i feel like i have been beginning for a long time. It's not starting over, it is attempting a method that allows one to begin. and for me, it starts with the mechanics, the pure tones and the mathematics. i have found it futile to experiment with the vain hope to find interesting new sounds without that foundation. I want to learn the processes, how effects work, synthesis from the ground up from microsounds/granules to sine waves, to the samples, processing, to the beat, sculpturing, and completed "song."
i've been experimenting with a programming environment called Pd, or pure data, learning the basics and using the program to also learn the basics of music theory. i have always wanted to hear the difference between different types of intonation of scales, specifically 12 Tone-Equal-Temperament (12TET) and Just Intonation. since most instruments today are not designed to play in Just, i thought it would be really interesting to hear what it sounds like, without searching for it somewhere on the internet. it would be good to compare it to other sources, of course, and check the results. in a way, i am tuning the computer-as-instrument and myself. the foundation for these experiments have come from the numbers themselves.
12TET is a logarithmic division of the octave into equal parts, so that each step is the same distance. Just is based off of the overtone series and are fractional steps from the base tone.
I have just finished debugging and listening to the 12TET scale that i programmed (and will post it up here soon), so now it's on to the Just scale.
Most of my influence in this has come from a few books i have been reading as of late: Harmonic Experience, by W.A. Mathieu, Musimathics, by Gareth Loy. Wikipedia has been awesome for a lot of the introductory information, too. and of course, Theory of Electronic Music, by Miller Puckette. with these three books is an interesting synthesis of computers, mathematics and western and eastern music theory, and ear training by singing sargam syllables over drone. hmm. good 'ol drones...

Now on to the next step... making the sound of fog.

well, someday.

played some records at a friends birthday party a couple of weeks ago. same 'ol thing of "can you play this?" "got any electro/techno?" i think that i worked too hard the week before practicing and arranging, to not give someone the staredown at those questions, but i might have a sketch for a new mix for the people who do care.

As for work that pays the bills, well the winter term here at PSU has come to an end, so things are quiet(er).

explode into fun.

2009-03-10T09:51:00.000-07:00

at long last, i finally got to see explode into colors play live this weekend. quite the refreshing twist of punk rock style, psychedelia, afrobeat, and the atmosphere and space of dub. love the reverb/echo in the vocals and that most of the lyrics aren't. mostly giddy chirps yowls and wails (with the occasional quotation of 'bomb's over baghdad' placed very nicely within "heat"-also called "two for jazz")... percussion/rhythm heavy but not overpowering, and it will make you dance! you have no choice! fun music. important music.
explode into colors-2 for jazz/heat
explode into colors-sharpen the knife
thanks wfmu

time for contemplation.

2009-02-03T11:55:00.004-08:00

it's winter, it's a new year, and time for some contemplation.
there's something with the fog and the clouds, the cold, the bridges, the dark. sometimes it rains... as you may have heard. it's been pretty mild as far as i am concerned, almost too mild. i keep waiting for the other shoe to drop and rain all day, every day.
so, i've been reading a whole lot, especially about the concepts of time and space: david deutsch's "fabric of reality," palle yourgrau's "a world without time," some sci-fi time travel books (joe haldeman), and now i felt like going back to the future to "the critique of pure reason" by immanuel kant. I am really excited about the book, but more excited about the criticism that follows to learn more about what the author was thinking. i suppose that is almost what interests me the most, is how people think and reason *about* concepts and time, space and being.
haven't been working all that much with the turntables lately. i have been getting a little bored with other peoples music, and the urge to make my own has taken over, but how?
regardless of thinking things out too much, as i usually do, have been trying to simplify things as much as possible without reinventing the wheel or becoming a technician.
I can hear the music, i just have to figure out how to make it happen.

a few local bands have really been inspiring this push: Thrones (Joe Preston, formerly of the Melvins), Grouper, and Strategy. i have been listening to a lot of doom metal, some grindcore: portland's very own, SUPERBAD.

i have been going to shows. saw matt and kim the other day, too. they have taken positivity to a new level- further than the logical positivists ever could (ahem). it was refreshing that they have so much fun doing what they want. i felt it was like having a party with a panda bear, but i realized that it would be too cute and the panda would be a little too coy. i must've been the panda bear, i think...
just needed a little change of pace.
(note: i actually watched the super bowl this year. it was one of the best games i've ever seen, of the *millions* of games, i've seen).

beyond busy.

2008-12-14T10:55:00.003-08:00

it's been a long time for a post of any such detail, but i have been so busy and exhausted lately. but that's a good thing, always.
I started my new job at portland state university as the chemistry stockroom supervisor and have been so busy learning how it "works." i am excited about making some order out of chaos. and i am excited about taking classes at portland state with our massive tuition discount. but what classes??? we'll see how to fit that into the busy schedule.
i've been riding my bike to work everyday.
but, now that it is snowing i don't know how long that will continue, or how long the snowy season is here.
I am really enjoying the weather, but ask me in a couple of months and i might say something different... my bike ride to work is also only 15 minutes on a bad day, and the best part is riding over one of many bridges.
i have also been running a little bit.
AND we are moving.
thankfully only 8 blocks away, but it is still a move, nonetheless.
ready to settle in a little more and not have creepy landlord spying on us!
this might be the time where the essence of portland shows itself. i heard a foghorn yesterday. and a train engineer honking back with a little squeak of a train horn. people here are all bundled up and heading to movie madness.

last manoeuvres.

2008-11-04T15:54:00.003-08:00

read about this installation in wire.
each head sends "data" to the computer monolith; the claim is that the terracotta heads are responding to the environment. the music wasn't as ominous as i had hoped, but the input is also from pop music. and the swirling cameras don't really do it for me, but this has the best sound of any of the videos and it's by the installation creators themselves.
I have been very interested in this kind of music, where the computer responds to the environment, especially: what kind of algorithm involves a response to the environment? what is this really doing that can be considered a response to the environment? hmmm.

between a rock and a hard place...

2008-11-04T14:38:00.003-08:00

... there's a silver lining?

as some of you may know, i was disqualified for unemployment, due to not having enough hours in the base employment calendar for oregon, and i left the job voluntarily for the job that i did have the base employment status.

unemployment insurance is not a national thing, it is a state thing, and is paid by the employer. nice to know this now.

after being shocked and terrified that i am extremely screwed at this point. i realized that i have help,

and that the jobs are starting to respond (i.e, the bureaucracy turnaround is around a month).

we'll see if i can get a job that can keep me for more than a month.

It may have helped having applied to 25 jobs last week.

maybe.

hopefully the luck has changed. i'm ready for it.

i feel like singing for this election day moment.

"oh beautiful, for spacious skies..."

the process.

2008-10-28T16:17:00.004-07:00

I am currently experimenting with working ableton into dj sets; hopefully, augmenting further the work that i've been doing.
I have realized that not a lot of people really know what i do when i say that i have made a "mixtape"-maybe someday i'll make a video of me on the controls, or something. i guess it also has do with the possibility of making someone else's work your own... or if that is even what a dj does, or if their purpose is only to rock a party.
can the dj be an author of a mix?
what i AM getting out of it is learning composition, that eventually is leading/progressing to my own organization/reorganization of sound elements. for the mixes, it's really only been 2 tracks at a time, so now it'll include the computer as my "third turntable."
i've been collecting and organizing sounds and keep finding that they get smaller and smaller as i am going.
In other words, i am working on a process that starts with finding sounds that i like, and organizing them visually.
tearing things apart and them putting them back together again.

BANG SOUNDBOY!

2008-10-10T11:36:00.010-07:00

i don't know why i really feel i need to write a disclaimer for a mixtape, but for all those of you, including myself, who've been waiting FOREVER for something to come out (that makes two or three of us, eh?)...

So I set a deadline for myself and today is the day.

IT IS FINALLY HERE!

I picked the best one out of countless mixes.
I have had many trials and tribulations with this mix, so it's become quite a personal document unto itself.
this is not the end-all, be-all mix. there will be others...
my biggest fear was that i wasn't EVER going put something out,
or have this mix be the build-up of "chinese democracy" status.
I think also because i have built it up myself a 'little' much.
I am ready to get moving forward onto other mixes and experiments

I forgot about the fun of mixing and how a mix has a life of its very own.
I had a lot of fun making it. I hope that you like it and i'd like to hear some feedback, too.
HERE it is, and i hope that you enjoy it.

unravel-bang soundboy!

FOR YOU, MIX:
it's time for you to go out in the world.
i tried to make you as extraordinary as i could.
there are mistakes, sure, i'll be the first to tell anyone that.
but nothing is perfect, and neither am I,
and they might even go by unnoticed to anyone but me.
you are perfect in your imperfect way,
and a drop of sand in the desert of mixtapes.
or "tears in the rain."
but that's a little too dramatic.

has all that hard work finally paid off?

2008-10-07T13:20:00.002-07:00

i was recently laid off after working at my new job for 5 weeks.
because of that i have applied for unemployment. hopefully that all goes through. if it does, then i will be getting paid the same amount as the job i was laid off from, to find a new job or figure out how to get back into school. i am a little skeptical, but we'll see. it's like getting paid NOT to plant crops. i will certainly be busy figuring out my next steps.
i have been interested in a computer science masters, and was directed to this interesting site. it's Stanford University's SEE (stanford engineering everywhere) program. It's a three course introduction to computer science, perfect for someone like me who has been trying to learn all that is possible gleaning wikipedia articles. and it's free! you of course will not get credit, but this is a good place to start.
i've been riding my bicycle a whole lot. i ventured up into the west hills of portland yesterday and i must say, the hills are very inspiring. went and caught a little bit of the Cross Crusade racing this weekend at Alpenrose dairy and velodrome. it fills me with giddy pleasure to see racers covered in mud and i plan on being one of those folks racing soon. it is rather easy to get covered in mud and soaked to the bone with water in this place. I have died and gone to Belgium.
again, back to working on mixes. the mixes are getting to where i want them to be!
i can count the rough spots on two fingers now.

the bug and warrior queen!

2008-09-30T07:18:00.006-07:00

are playing portland tonight!

and here's flowdan and killa p, with one of my favorites... skeng. check out the refix to the right. wish that they were going to be there, too.

i've been waiting for this for a while now. it's going to be loud.

Haile Gebrselassie!

2008-09-29T08:36:00.004-07:00

the marathon world record has fallen! the 2 hr 04 minute barrier toppled. Haile Gebrselassie has achieved quite an unbelievable thing. i cannot even fathom how one could possibly run 8-5ks at 14:57 per 5k, much less ONE 5k at that pace! here's to Haile!
the old world record.

well, i reckon...

2008-09-09T08:33:00.010-07:00

...it's been a while since i last said hello. i've been sick, traveling and seeing lots of music this past few weeks!
brooke surprised me with a trip out to los angeles for my birthday (oh yeah, i turned thirty on the seventh of september. how easily i forget, or want to forget. old age, maybe... maybe not). it was quite the surprise, finding out the night before and having to leave for the airport at five inthe morning.
i thought we were going to go to seattle.
got to see mike in his new town since he moved there in february. did some of the touristy stuff, like wade through the impersonators of the stars in front of grauman's (mann's) chinese theater. There were at least two of jack sparrow and batman, and just one charlie chaplin. I got to compare hand prints with the likes of george burns, peter sellers, michael caine while wondering why matt damon, will smith and others were given pavement space.
when we'd thought had enough of hollywood blvd., we went across the street for some coffee, and witnessed Chucky from 'Child's Play' getting a latte with elmo! the most surreal part was when the masks came off.
I really enjoyed my time there and hearing all the stories about LA and the crazy things that go on there, the gangs in mike's neighborhood (tvr-toonerville). i feel like i step back in time when i find the places in L.A. that i enjoy. those favorite places feel like the forties and fifties, as if it bleeds history in the architecture.

didn't get to see any shows this time in LA, but i haven't been exactly starving for music these days.
right after getting back, we jumped in as best we could to Music Fest NorthWest. it was overwhelming. I was sick as a dog, coughing through much of the first two nights of shows: Mogwai and M.Ward. i was disappointed that i couldn't enjoy these two bands to the fullest.
Also got to see TV on the Radio. JAguarlove was THE most terrible band i have EVER seen (except for the drummer, you are the only redeeming element of that band)! I only saw them while waiting for TVOTR.
Also caught dyme def from seattle, LES savvy fav (awesome), BATTLES (again awesome), dirty mittens (too cute), dykeritz (seemed to be having some technical difficulties, or something), and keytar playing copy (eh).

the surprise show for me was dan deacon.

wow.
never before have i seen a crowd in the palm of someone's hand, myself included. he set up on the dancefloor and directed the crowd like a camp counselor from the best summer camp ever, having a dance-off, "cure for the poison"-happening, and run of the gauntlet to his ultra-visceral lofi analog anthem masterpieces. if you've the chance, go see mr. dan deacon.

i like photos of dan deacon's set-up, or really, any picture like this of any electronic setup. but this one is extra special//

i saw some pictures from the last MFNW's infamous Girl Talk show, with people crowding around greg gillis in a frenzy, everyone completely in the moment.

dan deacon's show reminded me of those pictures, where:
"sometimes everything can be going together so it just feels more like a celebration and less like a concert.-gillis mfnw interview"

there was too much at the music fest that i wanted to see but couldn't, especially since upwards of fifteen bands were playing at any one time and spread out all over the city, but it's the choices we make... i'd prefer to be less crowded, too.

in the past few weeks, i have been fighting with computer, working with ableton-trying not to feel paralyzed by all that it can do and simultaneously all that i want to work on. I've been researching max/msp (what does it do anyway?). I have been making reliable recording tests, practicing and working on my mix, which has now split into two separate mixes. someday you'll be hearing it. i also got to chat for a bit with dj/rupture at a holocene show.

i skream, you skream. we all skream...

2008-08-11T10:13:00.005-07:00

for the dj SKREAM!

i got to see skream live! again. this time i had front row seats to a bar show, not a gigantic party in the masonic lodge in SF. I got to feel about one hundred tons of bass weight crash upon the dancefloor, and while those who were at the show tried to climb back through the wreckage and start moving again, there was another avalanche of bass back upon us! and we were all BEGGING for MORE! and after two hours of earthquake after earthquake, that still wasn't enough.

Skream was pulling out all the stops on his mixing and cradling the drops with the utmost care, even though the turntables seemed to skip every once in a while. that seems to happen with too much bass and not enough weight on the tonearm. but anyway, it was pretty awesome seeing someone so animated and lively and having so much fun on stage. he even took the time to play some of his favorite soul music.

Skream had a whole lot of tricks up his sleeve this time that i was fortunate to get to observe firsthand. they (meaning the promoters: various-pdx and noah d) had a really sweet mixer for him, too, that had some effects to bring out the best in the champion of the bass drop.
we were even treated to some of his new material, which has gotten even better. for some reason i couldn't stop thinking about dj scud's "drill and bass" sound, and how skream's new tracks sound like the equivalent of a sub and bass drill. they are different, but so tough, fresh and leaves you incapable of controlling yourself. very very impressed with what this kid has been up to.

hungry for more.

2008-08-06T12:41:00.005-07:00

here's some more of portland's finest.
i am usually one to go for the heavy bass and sometimes shrill and crushing sounds, but sometimes it's nice to be whispered to, or lightly sung to.
here's Tara Jane Oneil's without push.
there's more on the myspace. she's quite a fine artist, too.
what i really like about this song is it's chorus. how, for most of the song it's light strumming or picking and then a series of chord changes up and back down with a beautiful line that threads the needle.

And for those of you looking for the heavy bass and sometimes shrill crushing wobble warmth, here's DJ monkeytek! a part of the various, lo dubs, and anthem records.
monkeytek nee "craig" was quite a nice fellow, welcoming, and interested in the forthcoming mix i have coming. and yes, it is coming! i've re-re-recorded it about 12 times already, with a few minor changes here and there...
anyway, let's not talk about me and my attempts at perfection, let's talk about monkeytek! he has a bunch of shows coming up with some of my favorites: SKREAM! and dj/rupture this month. he also played with surya dub in SF with kid kameleon, ripley and lazer sword.
listening to a mix from Monkeytek's "subfm May 4th 2008."
go here for more.
at a show this saturday past, i had a rough time keeping attention between the top floor at rotture's show with dj fukemup, filastine, doormouse, and the h8rs, and what was going on with the various crew downstairs at branx (or was it the other way around with the venues?). a captivating crew of djs with great taste in music.
as filastine said to me, "you won't go hungry here."

artwork

2008-07-31T17:23:00.011-07:00

here are some photos of artwork that i have done over the past few years. it's incomplete, of course. some of my works have become gifts and are no longer with me.
y'all might recognize this one by now: legendary producer, electronics genius and pioneer of dub music-king tubby (osbourne ruddock). a man who has inspired my music experiments and artwork in more ways than just making a portrait of him. here we are at the CORE gallery's open art show (denver).

here he is all alone. my centerpiece of a tryptych dedicated to dub and dancehall music and the first stencil of this format- six color stencils that are 4'x4'!

the one below was the first print of 'NINJAMAN,' dancehall deejay (emcee). originally the left side of the tryptych.

'NINJAMAN #2' with gold jewelry!

and the right side... a tribute to analog recording devices!

ABSTRACT works.
this one's on cardboard with acrylic paint pens and felt tip outlining. this one's all about the detail, which didn't come out in the photo. the pen isolates all of the different shades, giving it a lot more form and dimension.
below is one of the first paintings i've done. it's probably ten years old now.
another experiment on cardboard.

BELOW: I call it 'serious' artwork.
here's mary from michaelangelo's pieta. acrylic. i learned a lot from his statues. it also helped with the conception of the stencil works.

This drawing's from the tenth grade and it's the cliffs of moher in ireland.
pen and ink.

below: still life with sheet, grapes and cup (chalice?). from art class a few years back. the painting below it of the river was done by my grandfather, who became a painter in the last twenty years of his life (but was always artistically inclined).

and a highway landscape of northern california, heading into san francisco.

update.

2008-07-31T12:04:00.004-07:00

i have an interview today! wish me luck. hopefully i won't need it. brooke started her job this week. going to see BORIS, torche and lair of the minotaur tonight. filastine's visiting portland soon. doormouse is playing on saturday. wolves in the throne room next friday. dj/rupture on the 22nd at holocene. and i am so close to a fully recorded composition on the turntables. you might call it a dj mix. i also picked up a massive encyclopedia of piano chords this week and brooke and i visited the rose garden on our bicycles.
whew!

beside myself.

2008-07-13T13:56:00.004-07:00

whoa.
yesterday, brooke and i ventured up into north portland for an all-day bastille block party celebration and while enjoying tasty frambroise treats and some fancy beers, we got to see and hear some of portland's "music." while sitting through some mediocre-at-least music acts, i was pretty impressed with the over all range of music that was on the bill. got to see the sandpeople (hip hop), dat'r (dance), and a couple of other acts. it was too hot to get there before five.
but when the sun went down, the mood changed, and talkdemonic took the stage.
we came to the block party with the intention of seeing this band. hearing about them in colorado, the album beat romantic was a favorite of mine and brooke's.
i can only say that they have gotten even better, more full, more primal, more epic without being godspeed/explosions/redsparowes epic, and was absolutely beside myself with their performance and new material. such a huge sound from just a viola, drums, some loop pedals and a computer. it makes it sound so easy, but i don't know what else to say.

my cat ain't fat... anymore!

2008-07-12T16:09:00.007-07:00

with the new place being on the ground floor, lev gets to go outside!!! here are some pictures of his new exercise routine.
Running!
sit-ups!
man, sit-ups are hard.
ugh!
time for chillin'
workout's over!

he's really been enjoying the outside, roughing up the neighborhood cats by sitting on them. he misses you all, and keeps asking about his old buddies from colorado.

every day i'm hustling!

2008-07-12T15:45:00.008-07:00

in case you didn't know, portland is where i reside now.
getting settled in pretty well. hopefully some company will notice my talent and capacity for hard work and hire me soon.
i am really enjoying the time off and finally getting some important music work done. a mix cd/tape/digital whatever should be out soon, just refining some of the techniques/transitions of the composition. striving for the perfect mix which has kept me from releasing something. sometimes you have to work hard for things like that, to get them to sound... just... right.
i have a really awesome studio setup now, too!

haven't had time to decorate the walls, but there's a nice window.

here's some tunes to help bring you into the studio and let you hear what i've been listening to lately. it's from otto von schirach's new album on cockrockdisco.

otto von schirach-dance like a hoe.

juke with me.

2008-07-02T16:45:00.006-07:00

...and patrick lee.

here is an awesome take on the mash up, which uses about 400 of your favorite songs, including some of the ones you might not have heard. a fantastic barrage of pop culture memes blended and juxtaposed with reckless abandon and style.
this patrick lee's got soul!
(my useless attempt at an obscure john cale song reference. eh...pthbth!)

enjoy. there's a tracklist provided, which must've taken a year to write out. and download both parts!
the juke: part 1
the juke: part 2

birdsongs.

2008-06-20T15:10:00.003-07:00

these videos are absolutely stunning.
there's not much else to say, other than, "this is olivier messiaen."

king tubby and i.

2008-05-16T15:18:00.002-07:00

a photo of good 'ol king tubby at his first ever art show. the core gallery gave me a wicked spot right next to the front door. he's a six color stencil that i made a few years back.

catching up.

2008-05-02T14:10:00.004-07:00

there just isn't enough time, sometimes. it's already been weeks since the show with maga bo. i haven't written a thing in while, but because i have been busier than ever. I have been purging all the books, papers, notes, bike parts, scraps, stickers, pens and other junk that i have been collecting over the years, and diligently moving from place to place, throughout the front range of colorado for the past ten years.
but now that i am leaving colorado, i need to lighten the load.
I have also figured out a recording scheme that will work for transferring vinyl and making mixes. FINALLY! it seems like this has been something that has been built up for way too long. will i ever create a document of my work that i will be proud of?

this past week was neat. I got to play some records at sarah and jessica's guest bartending debut. it was a lot of fun and a more traditional style of dj-ing for me. play a song, then play another song. i got to listen to some old favorites such as: charles mingus, john coltrane, iron maiden, the gogos, abba (for brooke and friends), cyndi lauper (also for brooke and friends), stiff little fingers, nina simone, david axelrod, mose allison, johnny cash, loretta lynn, acid king, the blow, t-rex, etc. and the crowd favorite of the night was art tatum and the ben webster quartet.
patrick lee came by, too and played a set of his own tracks, and then i came back on and played a mixed up set, that was similar to the maga bo set, but with a lot of new tracks and a few songs moved around. that's what mixes are, constantly evolving, mutating, and transitioning from place to place and time to time.
it was an interesting night. i think next time i do that kind of gig, i might invite a few friends to join in and play records with me. like the first set. i didn't want that night to have that feeling of a "show." it was hanging out, not very stressful, fun. some people didn't even notice me. which is fine.

on a side note, the show with maga bo was reviewed by juliana tafoya (dj aporia) in the may edition of colorado music buzz magazine. from the home page, click on the "genre" tab, then click on electronica and scroll all the way down, for a nice little article.
and brian carney took a whole lot of great photos, too.

MAGA BO visits Denver!

2008-03-30T16:21:00.004-07:00

Here are the flyers i made for the forthcoming Maga Bo show, featuring: Maga Bo, myself, DJ ivy-blackbridge, DJ Aporia-Systemaddikt and Ale Fillman-Dirty Circuit Records.

frequencee mind controlle

2008-03-19T22:30:00.004-07:00

i've got another show coming up!
this time with frequencee mind controlle. every first friday jason has been bringing some amazing artists to denver. last month it was pthalocyanine. this month edenflux. then baseck, terminal 11, and abelcain!!!
so, naturally, i'm pysched for this show.
i'll get to try some mixes i haven't done in a while, and get a little more mental and go out on a limb.

although i try and go out on a limb for every show, in terms of compositions and challenging myself, and battling stage fright, i still feel that this show is going to be different than the set i am working on for maga bo. and especially since i am way at the beginning of the lineup. that takes some pressure off.
both shows are going to be demanding and experimental and as difficult as i can make them, but they'll definitely be different.
does that make sense?
come and find out!

my next guest

2008-03-01T18:28:00.006-08:00

i just booked another show, this time with Maga Bo.

originally from seattle, but currently living in rio, yet traveling all over the world as a sound technician and producer.
i am very excited about this next show. he was recently interviewed in an article about globalist djs which include four of my favorites: wayne and wax marshall, dj/rupture, and diplo.
here's the interview. check out the other interviews, too. i think that these fellows do well at driving home the point of an ethics of sampling, collaboration and finding music from all over the world.
i think that it is a good introduction to bo, if you've never heard of him, and his travels and influences, methods, influences, sounds, ideas and philosophies.
and also go here, there, and everywhere for some more sounds.

oh yeah, the show will be april 12th, 2008 at the walnut room.
more details to come.

it is happening... again.

2008-02-28T10:16:00.003-08:00

back on the bike!
i'm out of shape.
the weather is pretty perfect... for february.

...
it could always be worse.

musical mystery.

2008-02-21T11:12:00.004-08:00

something interesting i found in an interview with LaMonte Young, fluxus member, saxophonist, composer, pianist, minimalist, singer and disciple of pandit pran nath. the whole interview is here.

"Sound… Musicians like to think that sound is the highest form of meditation, that it takes you the furthest.
Certainly, in my experience this is the case.

"I feel through sound I have come closest to God and closest to the understanding of universal structure. We can think of this abstract structure and you know the Sufi story when God created the body the soul did not want to go inside. It could see that this was a trap, this life of physical hell, and God used music to lure the soul into the body because the soul already loved music because it is the language of God. But there was a reason why the soul had to come to earth. By taking on a body, we can experience physical sound and we can study vibrations in a way that is manifest to us and is comprehensible.

"When you and I listen to music, we have an experience which, when we're at the beginnings of our lives is hard to quantify. It's really hard to understand the mystery of what music is. But if we conceive of it as the language of God and that it is given to us as a means for understanding universal structure, it takes on a whole new meaning. And it includes all music, but some is much more to the point and gets you to a higher place.

"But it all utilizes this principle of vibration and through vibration, we are understanding something about the nature of vibrational structure."

hmm. this interests me. a lot. especially being a musician and chemist/scientist. there is something here, in these words...

dissection/

2008-02-18T10:34:00.010-08:00

i opened up the new/old power amp to see what was under the hood.
it was a dusty mess, but pretty amazing once it was cleaned. they aren't made like this anymore.

a quick update.

2008-02-15T09:36:00.005-08:00

busy.
i submitted one of my old stencil paintings into an open art show here. i'll post pictures later. the opening reception is tonight and is my debut in an actual gallery. it's inspiring and i'd like to do another series of paintings.
also, i've been practicing my scales as much as i can. i've been studying the cycles in music, too, trying to figure out some semblance of order in music. i've learned a little bit about modal jazz, and have skipped from my classical music to jazz, especially the music of john coltrane and charles mingus.
i think the next series of paintings might actually be with these fellows. i'd like to see if i can figure out a way to pull of a convincing collection of paintings of a live performance.

paths of glory.

2008-01-25T09:52:00.001-08:00

i have been revisiting my old classical, romantic, modern and minimalist composers, searching for sounds, and mainly chord progressions by which i am inspired. it has caused me to start going to the library to find the scores and learn them on the keyboard. i have been tearing apart rachmaninoff's prelude in c sharp minor (i should say simplify for my inarticulate lead fingers).
i then hope to get some of the scores from bartok's violin concerto no.2, and mikrokosmos (to teach myself piano). i am also looking for henryk gorecki's symphony no. 3 and already it is dusk, beethoven and possibly some liszt. i don't need to break my back on things just yet, so a couple of scores should suffice.
i have been poring over the first five measures of prelude in c sharp minor for three days now.
i sounds kinda like a sunn o))) song without distortion.
i don't want to sample any of these songs at all, but use them as a framework for some of my own compositions. the rhythms can change, and maybe i can figure out some new melodies to accompany those chord progressions.
i mostly want to know... WHAT ARE THOSE CHORDS?! WHAT ARE THOSE SOUNDS?!
i am studying the masters, learning from the songs and composers i like, and especially the parts that i like. can one pick and choose like that?
i certainly don't see why not.

i was recently reading an article about the influence of gustav mahler in various composers own works. some of the composers admit to using mahler's ideas (whatever that means), so it made me think of sampling before the technology was available. i also read about richard strauss' influence on bartok being so strong that bela obtained everything that strauss had written to find out what he was doing.

to be continued...

2008-01-15T08:56:00.001-08:00

here's a mix from my friend ryan romana aka dj cyan from grime city out in sanfrancisco.
he was my next door neighbor at CU and was a big influence on djing for me in the early days. and it's been forever since i've seen him.
this was from one from the grime city mixtape, hosted by mc child.
just like in this picture!

kromestar, benga, loefah, mala, and skream are on this one.
the vocals on this mix aren't the best, but when i saw the crew open up for skream, mc child was a lot better.
DJ Cyan (soul stream): grime city mix.
the kromestar and skream tracks are my favorites.
i'll see if he has anymore goodies for y'all, too.

i was introduced to this next track by corey and johnny paycheck, and i found it at aquarius records in the mission after months of thinking about this album. it's SELDA bagcan.

turkish-political-psychedelic-folk-funk. she's backed by one of THE best rhythm sections ever, too.
and there are parts that remind me of black sabbath, os mutantes, and cream.
fuzzy bass and drums. hypnotic.
the first track off the album is the proper introduction to her music.
it's been re-released on vinyl and cd by finders keepers.
SELDA: meydan sizindir
*if, for any reason this amazing music should be taken off, please let me know.

and you don't stop.

2008-01-10T13:39:00.001-08:00

WOW!
it's been a busy past month. and a busy past year for that matter.
here's an update on some of the things.
I saw SKREAM! live in SF!!! bass wobble at it's finest! drop the lime was also there. and so was my friend DJ CYAN from the grime city dj squad. unfortunately his flight delayed him from playing that night.
but,
i've been listening to...
starkey (grime), SELDA (turkish psych-folk), old metalheadz tracks (dnb), avenue d(if you don't know, it's too late), the stooges, john bonham, 404 soldierz, dj C, Zulu, murderbot.
and i am making the transition away from the tables. it took me a long time to finally realize it, but i am ready to have more control over the tracks and move toward making my own sound. i will now be conducting the music research that i want and on my own terms.
more later.

astro travellin' (just some thoughts).

2007-12-08T14:55:00.001-08:00

the article below was interesting to me because of the fact that the bold type great DJ quote is something that i strive for in every mix or composition. i hope that one day the vision, skills and reality will coincide (or eclipse?).

i recently recorded a "song," or mix in which two songs needed each other. one without vocals-"thunder" by vex'd. and the other, kept really simple throughout the whole song and mostly vocals-"skeng" by the bug, flowdan and killa p. both songs are absolute genius in and of themselves, and is a good example of "interpenetration without interference." this also occurs heavily with mashups, but i would not consider this little song i made to be a mashup (anymore), since the two songs are both in the realm of hard dubstep.

LISTEN to: "skeng/thunder/anthem"

once these two songs are mixed, the space that each fills in the other song is enough to cause a brain overload (for me), as if the songs were meant to be together. there are moments when one of the songs drops out completely, for the other one to fill in the emptiness. but also in the mix there are plenty of spots where there is complete silence (relatively speaking). this is what i love about mixing; bringing out the best of two songs and making them better than before. i also don't want to overload the listener with too much at once. having the retreat from loud and abrasive to near silence and simplicity is like taking a huge breath of fresh air.

and i couldn't agree more with what /rupture has to say about sampling. this reminds me of the myriad of songs by madlib, another dj influence of mine. his songs often drop names to the brilliance of certain musicians, digging for records and finding samples that haven't been played before.

"some [people] be samplin' the same ass shit.
some [people] be loopin' up the played out hits.
but that's more for me plus the peeps i'm down with.
we stop. create. weigh out other shit.
that you ain't heard yet..."
quasimoto-return of the loop digga

but that also brings up an interesting argument: does digging for obscure samples mean that it is more difficult than regular sampling?
it's like a music-theoretical koan or rhetorical aporia. if you haven't heard the sample before could be the tree falling in the forest with no one around.
but the fact also remains: wouldn't you like john coltrane, mccoy tyner, jimmy garrison, herbie hancock, terry gibbs, gene russell, weather report, albert ayler, grant green, art blakey, charles mingus, rahsaan roland kirk, or sun ra playing in your band?

"there's plenty more that i could name, but you won't put 'em to use."

(jazz cats [part 1])

it is collaboration with the past and those who have left their lives on wax, but still one-way. this could suggest too that no one is out there that can play music like this anymore. and that the art form is now in quoting other music forms across time and space.
astro travellin'.

feedback loop diggas

2007-12-06T10:33:00.001-08:00

something interesting i found in the network...
read the whole article here.
"One of the things that make DJs so thrilling and so boring is the slim distinction between easy charlatanism and mind-melting talent. A bad DJ is little more than a jukebox. A good DJ is a jukebox with a nice musical selection. And a great DJ reinvents the familiar and/or the obscure, imprinting her or his own personality via realtime improvisation using only fragments of other people’s music. A successful DJ can be a desegregationist, coaxing hidden harmonies out of unlikely voices. When hip hop started in the Bronx, DJs such as Afrika Bambaataa would mix in any record so long as it contained a funky beat: James Brown to Kraftwerk to the Monkees.
"With DJing, you can achieve what Russian composer Ivan Tcherepnin called “interpenetration without interference”—the ability for different sounds to occupy the same space and yet maintain their individuality in full detail...
"I’m fascinated by the frame-breaking possibilities of turntablism and sampling; but at the same time, I’m starting to view sampling as a very lazy gesture—innocent at best, creepily segregationist at worst. For example, if you’re sampling a sitar CD, it generally means that you can’t find—or can’t be bothered to look for—someone who actually plays the instrument. Sampling maintains cultural distance; collaborations require closeness. The difference is huge. It’s the difference between one-way cultural flow and the kind of dialogue that could lead to real community."
jace clayton (dj/rupture)

learning to slow down.

2007-11-20T15:47:00.001-08:00

after putting on the shows, i am really excited to have a break now. not only a break on my pocketbook, but a break from being a promoter and other things all at the same time, including being in the show, too.

i have gained so much experience from putting on the shows, that of course i do not regret a thing. aaron and grey were wellsprings of information and inspiration for me on some of my goals for the future of my music. sure i'd like to get ableton live and a midi controller... and... and... the list is a behemoth. daunting. endless.
sometimes i need to breathe. look around. and realize that i am still doing some amazing musical things RIGHT NOW! the other things will come.
the shows seemed to have gotten me thinking in fantastic/dreamy/unrealistic ways...
now back to reality...

i have so much energy and fire right now from the shows, that a break from actually practicing dj-ing is impossible, but i don't need a break from that.
what i really need to work on is... a recording.
too many friends have been waiting for me...

i realized this past weekend that this supposed mixtape doesn't have to be and will not be the mixtape to end all mixtapes. there's not enough space on the 80 minute cdrs for that. and i also don't want to make a ten hour mixtape.

and after i say what supposedly i needed/wanted to say, where does that leave me... and the audience? the tendency for a beginner to say everything sometimes leaves her saying nothing. this will just be a record of the turntable/vinyl/beatmatching/composition experiments i've been practicing.

some of them are new, some are old, some rearranged. if you've been at the shows, you've heard some of them before.
so...
that's my focus now.
that and pay off some of this debt.
*other good news! an old p.a. is on its way, from adam, on the bro-payment plan.*

drumcorps at rhinoceropolis.

2007-11-17T14:54:00.002-08:00

some of the photos from the drumcorps show (taken by brooke).

aaron and meli.

gnome-step.

steve!or!something! up close and personal!

sarah and brooke!

too much fun!!! more pictures to follow!

a PhD in beat research.

2007-11-05T14:08:00.000-08:00

hmm.
this sounds too good to be true.
and this, too.
taken from the mashit website.
it is wonderful that subjects like these are being taught.
a lot of schools have trouble getting into the 19th century.
the cultural relevance is not only obvious, but becomes valid beyond a personal level.
but, sometimes it takes a while for people to have any sort of idea who is really making groundbreaking music until usually after the composer has passed.
and on another note... i don't study/like/appreciate these musics because they are culturally relevant. i study, chop, dissect, mix, infect, tie/untie musical knots, because they are interesting to me.
this also includes music from the time immemorial (usually recorded interpretations, to the present).

lions and tigers and wolves! oh my!

2007-11-05T11:34:00.001-08:00

FADING EMPIRE!
here's the flyer designed by my friend Brent, for the denver stop on drumcorps' fading empire tour.

here's the flyer from drumcorps.

the very special guest for this show is also known as aaron spectre.
this new music project as drumcorps has him fusing the genres of break- and grindcore.
(a lot of core-corps-corpses-core-corps, in there, eh?- don't let that frighten you)
his methods of midi production and live performance have garnered him an award of distinction from the esteemed ars electronica.
acceptance speech.
drumcorps live
and live.
...and if you are interested... here's how he does it.
some of the past winners of the 'golden nicas' have been aphex twin (richard d. james) as well as peter gabriel, carsten nicolai and yasunao tone. the infamous doom masters sunno))) were an honorary mention in 2006.

my next guest is local cdatakill, who has been making dark, atmospheric and storming breakcore forever (a la christoph de babalon) and is just off of a european tour. his newest album is called valentine.
here's some press.

and i am playing, too.
i am still stuck in an analog world, but it suits me just fine for now.
a lot of work on three turntables lately ...
a trip through dub, ragga jungle, breakcore, doom metal, dancehall, hiphop, drum and bass, grime, crunk, electro, dubstep, hyphy, snap, rock and any other alleys and dirt roads i can find...
i've got some new records that i might be able to work in...

and starting the riot again is steve or something.
--"who else? experimental sound wizard builds masterpieces of elegant noise and ambient terror with all of his electronic toys! or fails magnificently, either way an experience will be had and you won't know who he is or what you saw."

at rhinoceropolis
3553 brighton blvd
denver
9:00p.m. to late... or is it 'early' at that point?
5$

soundclash in denver?

2007-10-06T20:46:00.001-07:00

here are some photos from the show with filastine! (courtesy:manifolding.com)

steve.or.something. you can't test the elusive noise-master. here he is, "hiding."

this was one of my first full attempts at a mix on three turntables. the difficulty level has skyrocketed. i like challenging myself, and it turned out not too bad for the first attempt at the composition as well. i was pretty exhausted, too.

cacheflowe!
so solid!
and the breakbeat nomad himself.
now it's time to prepare for the next show with drumcorps (photo not from manifolding).
practice! practice!

we must begin again.

2007-09-23T21:53:00.002-07:00

this is my first attempt at putting on a show. i decided to ask filastine after meeting him briefly in san francisco last march (at a show he did with dj/rupture). i was very impressed with his live show as well as his message and sound.

"intervention at mutek 2004"...there's blue-green haired kate from communikey right behind him.
after he plays denver he's going here:

i wanted to start playing shows with people of this caliber (the top four people in the flyer above!!!) and especially bring people some of the music that never usually gets to denver... but is playing everywhere else. that sounds like fun to me.
my part other than planning the whole thing (and wearing a bunch of silly hats-planning, promoting, djing, enjoying myself at the party) is going to be on the turntables...
it'll be a full-fledged assault on three of them... so far it is going better than expected in my lackadaisical practice sessions. it'll be a "best-of" the last three shows that i have done. severely reworked plus some new tracks of course... (i always keep it movin' and fresh for the people).

i asked cacheflowe to play as well. i had only met briefly before at a going away party for our mutual friend dj idiom, in which we both played. i was very impressed with his programming/signal processing/experiment method of making music. he had one of the most interesting sounds at the going away party as well and in denver... period.

and i also asked mike mcneill to contribute a set of music he had been working on. using mostly casio keyboards and electronic toys, he comes up with some of the most interesting noise and ambient sounds. i asked him to come up with some awesome handbills as well. and he certainly delivered in that aspect. i expect that the music at the show will follow suit.

we did it!

2007-09-16T16:24:00.001-07:00

we made it to the velodrome at the US olympic training center in colorado springs 20 minutes before it closed down. must've been some crazy party going on the night before... thankfully, john cotton got four of us on bikes. and he let us stay an hour late to let us take laps! it couldn't have been a more beautiful day.

there were some folks practicing when we got there. i'm sure this guy's wondering who the hell these "cutters" are.

here's me anxiously awaiting to get out there on the track. my shirt is a custom leif valin design. my arms have gotten veiny.
which two of these are not like the others? leif with bmx helmet and justin showing off his street skillz. out of step...with the world.
can't keep up? or leif's got the inside track.
he's actually riding backwards. flatlanders.
now that all of the "posers" are off the track, the real racing can begin.
breathing is hard.
i couldn't stop riding at all. it was too fast and so much fun in the turns. it was amazing climbing the walls and then dropping back in.
steeper than talladega!
brooke cheering us all on!!!
johnny!!!
too awesome. none of us even threw up. i got really close, though.
not everybody got to ride, but that didn't stop jessie and sarah.

this picture seems to move.

2007-09-07T09:47:00.000-07:00

dmitri tymozcko has been working on some of the most interesting music theory (specifically chords) and mathematics that has probably ever been written. he was the first music theorist to have been published in the journal SCIENCE. this is quite an achievement. i know scientists who have trouble publishing scientific articles in that journal!
it was this article that really got me interested in possibly pursuing a degree in music theory and composition at one point in my life.

"WHAT? a musician had broken boundaries by taking a scientific/mathematical approach to music theory! as a working scientist, i could do that, too!"

no. there is unfortunately a lot of bureaucracy, of course, in making this happen. so, my interest in this has become one of being merely general... like playing an instrument and auditioning and having one's own compositions already... or something.
anyway. not bitter. just have to go about it another way! turntables don't count.
i have to take piano lessons at some point.

my interest is still there in learning what i can from his work.
i look forward to checking out the computer program. i wonder if it's possible to teach oneself music theory using his work, or at least to visualize it. i know very little of the actual music theory, but reading some of the articles and maybe some of the background materials might be quite interesting.

i am poring over all of the articles right now, trying to glean any information off of it that i can to hopefully develop some sort of understanding of what is going on.
it was neat to read over some of his comparisons of musical symmetry to quantum physics. there is a "quantum-ness" to rhythm as well. i learned that from the turntables and studying measures.
he's also written some more historical articles for the layperson.
i suggest these as well.
i really enjoyed the article about bebop.
p.s. he's writing a solo piano piece for ivan ilic, too!
wait, it's not the ivan illich of whom i was thinking.

space travel.

2007-08-27T09:05:00.000-07:00

the show at space this weekend was amazing!
the show was an opening and a closing at the same time. closing for adam azeris' studio and opening for his phenomenal artwork (all photos from sam at manifolding.com).

and the artist (and brother-with hat).

i played a really long set that moved through indie rock, ghetto tech, drum and bass, dubstep, grime, breakcore, doom metal, post punk, and a little bit of hiphop (plus). more specifically, i played: djscud, old time relijun, peaches, knifehandchop, duranduranduran, team shadetek, drumcorps, din-s.t./carlcrack, gogogoddess, sunn o))), spank rock, sabbath, bauhaus, adult., tv on the radio, kovert, sonic youth, parts and labor, konono no1, dead prez, skream, petergunn and small change, krumble, mochipet, bottleskup flenkenmike, the delfonics, prefuse 73, the buzzcocks and many many more... i played for a total of about two hours.
it was mostly done on two turntables. it should very soon be spread amongst three.

i got lots of great compliments and feedback. some were saying that they had never heard a dj be so adventurous and that they never knew that some songs crossing genres would ever mix together (paraphrasing, of course). my friend raimund arrived thinking that he had missed my set because he heard some kids playing metal. he soon thereafter realized that it was me...

my back hurt after a while.

i was really pleased with what i did. i have pretty high standards, but this was amongst the best sets. i have to recompose and structure the mix a little better for my next show. i played the booty, ghetto-tech and grime a little too early.

here's brooke cold chillin'.

i was in some great company with the other bands that played. one was a free-improv band that sounded pretty awesome for only having practiced once. the band was consisted of members of cuntpuncher and nightshark.

and the headliner of the night was fucking orange.

denver's doom masters took space through six feet of mud, sludge and terror.

it was an honor to share the space with them, and they were kind in letting me use their p.a. and bass the place. they informed me that their next show is friday the 31st of august with one of my favorite bands: the red sparowes.
and special thanks to matthew for telling adam about my work. and special thanks to adam for letting me play and be a part of an epic night displaying amazing artwork and music!

projects for this week.

2007-08-22T08:59:00.000-07:00

it is a busy week!
i have been putting together a centurion road bike. the tasks include:
drill a bigger hole for the front brake nut, change out the cassette, put in a new bottom bracket and pay too much for a headset to be pressed. i still need to figure out what's wrong with the hubs and find a 39 tooth chainring.

i got some sweet wellgo pedals from mike that are in serious need of a rebuild. they are much smaller width so hopefully i can lean into turns a little bit more without scraping and lifting the back wheel off of the ground at 20mph! this is my first time messing with pedals, something i have been avoiding.

i now have a full track drivetrain on my bianchi. 52 front chainring. 16 rear cog. all 1/8" x 1/2." it is effortless and so much more efficient. i am currently tweaking the setup. loctite on the chainring bolts, make sure that the cranks are on straight (there is a slight left-right sway).

i was also entertaining the idea of maybe participating in a bicycle race this weekend.
if i get the bianchi dialed, i very well might. it's been eight weeks of riding by myself. i'd like to see how fast i am.

oh, and i have a show this saturday, too! i am playing with some rad bands.

i am going to try a mix on three turntables. i will be recording it, too.

ladri di biciclette.

2007-08-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

this looks like a lot of fun.

45 degree banked turns! ahh velodromes.
i am going to try to ride one of these on my birthday this year.
rider: mathieu ladagnous from france at the UCI track cycling world championships (photo:bbc).

sometimes...

2007-08-08T16:08:00.000-07:00

... i take myself way too seriously. sometimes i am inspired by philosophy that gets my mind spinning with creativity and imagination...

"Around the 'Polytopes' of Xenakis: Revault d'Allonnes and the Constellations Method
to break the hegemony of certain forms and certain sounds in perception and audition, and to encounter with a form of syntactic exposition where everything is subordinated to a pivot, Adorno advocates always considering a work of art in a paratactic manner; in other words broken up into constellations around a central theme that does not drive the others.

the refusal of hierarchy is a rule here, because the parataxis is the other face of the trial. The latter does not constitute 'a continuum of operations, the thinking does not advance in an unequivocal manner, but on the contrary, moments are weaved together as in a carpet' (Adorno1992:56-60, trans. modified)."*

this is just one of the myriad things that made me think of the name UNRAVEL. i was thinking of the concept of a "musical surface." and then i was thinking of connections of yarn as in a afghan blanket, and then about biochemistry's double helixes and transporting these ideas to my records and the mixes i like to make.

i imagined the grooves of the records unravelling, spinning out into space. and with the use of the mixer, weave them or splice them back together again. connecting two and sometimes three specific moments in time and/of aural space.
this works especially well for musics that you'd never think would go together, or that have similar tempos, but different rhythms...

i might be overthinking this, but it's fun nevertheless to imagine that one might actually be transcending space and time, and knitting with sounds on vinyl; making and hearing rhizomes.
more on this... later.

*-jean-godefroy bidima: "music and the socio-historical real,"
from: deleuze and music, eds. ian buchanan, marcel swiboda
edinburgh university press, 2006

amendment to strength.

2007-08-08T09:23:00.000-07:00

after i got home yesterday, i realized that i was a little un-truthful about how my legs feel. they do feel like that WHILE i am riding and for about an hour afterwards. then i spend a few hours rolling out my iliotibial bands (hip to knee tendon) and STRETCHING-mostly the hips and legs. i can hear my hips go "pop" when i do!

left knee was a little sore. it was because of the chain being too tight for the past couple of rides (see lesson 1-below). I was also carrying two bottles of wine, two books and notebook, tools, pump, hoodie, and other knickknacks/junk.
felt better during this morning's ride. sleep helps a lot.
i took it a little easier on the ride this morning. i still made it to work in 50-55 minutes!
lesson 9: you don't have to sprint EVERYWHERE!
lesson 10: WATER!

strength.

2007-08-07T15:11:00.000-07:00

i am now into week six of riding my twenty miles a day. my legs feel like this:
although they certainly don't look like this. that'd be scary. i'd be a professional track racer from columbia if they did.
i learned some valuable lessons in this six weeks, too. here are eight of them.
one: when riding fixed, make sure the chain is not too tight. that makes riding impossible on the knees, less efficient and more stressful on the chain, too. a little slack is necessary (in most things). it'll actually make things a whole lot easier and faster.

two: bikes make you strong. i think that now i need to start adding mileage to the bicycling part of the trip to work, or start riding home the full fifty miles home every once in a while (i've done it before, twice now!).it would save me an entire bus fare if i did! that's economics!

three: i eat a lot... people make fun of me at work in the lunchroom.
"how's the tapeworm?"
categories: not enough calories, economics, and humility.

four: FENDERS! wet socks are one of my least favorite things.

five: RAIN GEAR! ditto. three days in a row last week there was no way i could have gotten any more wet if i were in the ocean.

six: i don't think that WIND will ever be my friend. i try really hard to coax it to be a tail wind, to cradle me quickly to my destination, but sometimes Nature doesn't work that way.

seven: i feel great. i am still alive after 500+ miles and am ready for more.

eight: i wear a helmet now. pretty much all the time, too. i see how you people drive.

black metal, white devils, muslim gazes.

2007-08-02T09:17:00.000-07:00

dj/rupture recently posted a fantastic article he wrote about muslimgauze aka bryn jones. it is here. i really recommend a read of it, even if you don't know much about jones at all.
after reading it, i couldn't help but thinking about another isolated musician that goes by many names. birth name: kristian vikernes, but also called Varg, or Count Grishnackh (a big tolkien fan), or the one man behind the norwegian black metal band Burzum.

he is currently serving time in prison for murdering former mayhem bandmate euronymous. but was also implicated in the burning of the thousand year-old fantoft stave church (possibly more?).

from roughly the age of 20 he has been in prison, isolated even further from the world, which can't be the best place to grow up (as varg has even said himself).
what connected me to the muslimgauze story was varg's isolation leading to irrationality, to the stoking of white power philosophy, glorifying of norse mythology, to eventually his founding of the heathen front.
but it also seems that varg has been the victim of image, of trying to be the nastiest person alive and becoming just that. one thing leads to another, and then you have to continually one up yourself... over and over again.
i am not a fan of vikernes the man, the fanatic, but the music that i have heard of burzum is way beyond anything that has come out of his press releases (granted there is the glorious media spin here, too). very very dark, atmospheric and moody. classic black metal.
"When night falls
she cloaks the world
in impenetrable darkness.
A chill rises
from the soil
and contaminates the air
suddenly...
life has new meaning."
(album filosofem, song dunkelheit/burzum)
but the questions are: can we like the music, and banish/apologize the author's/creator's/ composer's "worldview?" or are they one in the same thing?

bi-sickles

2007-07-20T11:05:00.000-07:00

I gave my 1988 subaru GL wagon to my old next-door neighbor at the beginning of july. it was too expensive to keep up and then there was the menace of ever-rising gas prices. it took me a while to bring myself up to giving it away. i had put SO much work in it already, and it had gotten me through one of the worst winters in colorado with flying colors. it was my land-based pirate ship sailing two feet of snow for almost two months straight. i have been commuting to and from denver for work almost seven months with that car. so i had gotten a little attached to it, yes. it was an addiction, even though the car was a p.o.s. i got it for free, too. i wasn't complaining too much at that. i was able to do a lot of things. it was so easy to just drive, even though at the same time i was becoming an angry person dealing with traffic. everyday.
highway 36 frightens me. i swear i saw the grim reaper a few times, hiding in the trees and in the shadows of the overpasses.
now i am commuting to work by bus and bike. i ride about 20 miles a day, now, and am almost finished with my third week. by the way, i really like riding bicycles. the commute time is now about the same as driving... 45-55 minutes door to door. getting stronger and a lot faster. at some point it will be the bus that is the limiting factor in the commute-time.
i'm a little more tired these days, which i hope i'll get used to, because i am a really busy fellow... there's a little more money in my pocket, too, which i get to spend on my other habits: bicycle parts, records... oh, and contributing gas money to brooke. and flowers. lots of flowers. for the essential reasons, of course, but the occasional jeep use is worthy of them, too.
i really don't know what i'll do when the winter hits.

here i come.

2007-07-18T15:40:00.000-07:00

bicycles. turntables. music. beatmatching. analog sound media. rooftops. thresholds. the fine line i walk between science and art. breaks. whirrs. buzzes. clicks. bike tires on pavement. revolution-everyday. reading-theory. putting myself in uncomfortable situations-praxis. sound-collage. lev. my relationship. friends. making people think. making people dance. movements. storytelling through sound. just a few to start.