My story is the story of an artist who was a little boy with a pocket calculator but now is on a quest to uncover the hidden laws behind music and tell the story of his country at war.
War, Music, and Mathematics
Experimental
The Comfort Of Recording At Home
by Sqwerv
We are Sqwerv, a Denver-based four-piece band that loves improvising and jamming. Our latest project is a departure from our previous works – the new EP “Hors D’oeuvres Part 1” is the first of a three-part project. For a while, we referred to it as the “psych album,” but we went with “Hors D’oeuvres” as it’s just a taste of what we have coming out this year.
We are very much committed to artistic exploration and boundary-pushing; our close friends who have heard snippets of the songs are surprised it’s the same band. We love that.
Continue readingOne Year On – Enigmatic Journey Through Sonic Realms
by MAN1K
In the mystical depths of my sonic odyssey, amidst the swirling mists of creativity and experimentation, I, Yaroslav Boruk, known by the enigmatic aliases MAN1K and M∆N⸸K, emerged as a harbinger of ethereal soundscapes in the realms of Underground Witch-House and Darkwave. Born in the enigmatic city of Khmelnytskyi, Ukraine, my journey through the winding corridors of music began with a profound sense of curiosity and a yearning to transcend the mundane confines of everyday existence.
From the earliest days of my consciousness, I found myself inexplicably drawn to the enigmatic allure of music, its haunting melodies and mysterious harmonies resonating deep within my soul. It was amidst the vibrant tapestry of Poland that I first encountered the tantalizing whispers of inspiration, the rhythmic pulse of the streets echoing in harmony with the beat of my heart. Amidst the lively energy of the city, I found solace in the evocative power of sound, laying the foundation for my future endeavors.
Continue readingCollecting And Enjoying Sonic Elements And Influences
by Camilo Palma a.k.a. Ap Ducal
Over the past year, I’ve been developing my new album, “U,” by my moniker Ap Ducal, which continues in the sonic sequence of previous records, but this time from a more personal perspective. The sound, the process, and the timing of this album are imbued with the idea of collecting and enjoying the sonic elements and influences that have had the most impact on me.
Perhaps it is a form of nostalgia or simply a tribute to music styles like post-punk, new wave, and even some compositional elements of jazz in a long-play format. I tried to incorporate these elements into the four tracks of the album. An example is the theme “UUUU,” based on The Cure’s song “A Forest.”
These four themes were recorded entirely in my home studio, using only four elements per song in a band-like format, essentially the format I’ve been most familiar with in my career. The challenge was doing this as a solo artist with unconventional instruments in my context.
Continue reading30 Years’ Worth Of Music Making… And Beyond
Hi, my name’s Jamie Hutchings; I’m a singer, songwriter, guitarist, percussionist, and sometime improviser and producer. I’m based in Sydney, Australia.
Music was a given in my family household as my dad was a woodwind session cat. He’s 83 now, but he still gigs here and there, but as kids, it was his bread and butter. So all of us inherited his musicality in some form, but still (particularly with my brother and I), we found ourselves gravitating more and more towards rawness and originality over professionalism and technique. I was looking through my mum and dad’s record collection the other night, and it’s almost exclusively Frank Sinatra records. Sinatra is amazing, but the overexposure to music in a show-biz format perhaps contributed to us going in a different direction!
Continue readingD.I.Y. or Die
by Iliya Apocalypse a.k.a. One Hour of Full Life
Hello, my name is Iliya Apocalypse. I have been making music for over 17 years. I play various musical instruments, and I am interested in DIY recording in various styles, from punk rock to chiptune, post-rock to ska, and alternative to bitpop. It just so happens that I’m bored of making my music in one style, which is probably why I have a tiny audience of listeners, or maybe because my recordings sound too raw and unprofessional in contrast to my colleagues, but I like it that way.
Release It Creatively
by Simon Grundy a.k.a. Subtle Amnesia
Subtle Amnesia is a one-person band prioritizing new sounds. With these sounds, I introduce philosophical ideas and the more grim aspects of reality to my music. I am a spiritual person who has had my fair share of mental health issues, and that ingrains itself into my music quite heavily.
Bugs Are Really Cool
by Lilac Boy
Bugs are really cool. I own a bunch of bugs encased in glass and you can look at them and go “Wow, that’s cool.” My favorite is a flower mantis that sits atop one of my shelves. I like how it looks. I wanted to make songs about bugs, so I did. In my opinion, you wouldn’t call a crab, a spider, or a shrimp an insect, but I’m perfectly comfortable calling them bugs. I even think I am a bug sometimes too. We’re all bugs if you really think about it.
Penelope & Owlsley: Burning In The Sound
Penelope Arvanitakis and I go way back to 2005. I would spot her at open mics in mysterious and leafy Belgrave, the creative centre of the Melbourne hills, and simply marvel at her talent. The cadence of her voice was like no other, her piano playing was so highly advanced for one so young, and her songs were quirky, honest and deep. She was a cut above the rest.
In 2007 we recorded three songs together at her parents’ house, one of mine and two of hers, and then … we promptly fell out of touch for 16 years!
Continue readingPrince, Black History Month and The Spoken Word
I have been a Prince fan since I was 8 and first heard Let’s Go Crazy, with its ear grabbing pyrotechnic guitar ending. Since then, I’ve learned from him, copied him and even just ended up doing the same things as him by osmosis or naturally. His work ethic, energy and diversity are three touchstones of my own ‘career’ and I have many strange ethereal intangible links to prince and ‘signs’ attached to many of my fondest moments in music so far that it’s almost as if he’s been a musical guardian angel since his passing in 2016 – an event that hit me so bad that I bought a streaming package, set up a little shrine on screen and DJ’d for 3 days straight, so fans had a place to hang, and I had some way of expressing my own sense of loss and gratitude for him voluminous output and inspiring presence in my own life. My phone went off non-stop that first day, I was associated with him so much by my circle of friends, they were checking that I was ok!