Phonogeist – Channel Transference EP Out Now!

New Phonogeist EP Channel Transference is out on The Bohemian Club label.

Also available on Juno Download.

Watch Phonogeist-Interiors Video

A video I put together for my latest Phonogeist track, Interiors.
Enjoy.

Phonec and the VHS Sound

I’ve recently released my latest VST synth, Phonec, which has a certain character that can be sometimes hard to explain. So here I’ll try to expand on the ideas that led to the creation of this strange little synthesizer. The idea is based on the sound of an obscure electronic instrument from the past which has been overdubbed a few times on a VHS tape and then played back a decade or two later after sitting in an attic, forgotten about for years. It’s a sound I remember hearing as a kid sometimes right at the beginning of a video tape. In some cases it would be the weird sounds that accompany the logo of the film company. Fortunately we can find several examples of these on youtube. Here are a few:

Outdated educational videos provide another source of this strange magic:

I like the eerie quality of these sounds. When a tape is recorded over a few times it can give the perception of being melted or smeared, especially at the beginning of a recording. And if too far gone, the sound can start to get lost.

I created Phonec to emulate this effect, and I believe it mimics this effect just enough to provide a window into this strange world. The real thing however, can never be recreated digitally, so of course I still have a great interest in using a VCR as a tape recorder for further experimentation. But it’s a lot more complicated than it sounds. In order to do this, you need a VCR that allows separate audio inputs that aren’t linked to the video input. A lot of standard VCRs require a video signal in order to record audio, but there are some out there, probably older Sonys, that have the ability to function as a tape recorder. I haven’t come across one yet, but given the unconventional nature of this interest of mine, and the fact that most people probably see absolutely no value in these relics, I’m hoping to discover one at a thrift store eventually.

1970s DESIGN INSPIRATION

I discovered this beautiful collection on Flickr recently and have since become really enthusiastic about product design from the 1970s. There’s just something about those simple color schemes, the clean fonts, a sense of futuristic minimalism from a time forgotten. But whatever the case, looking at these things has been somewhat of an inspiration for the GUI direction of my new VST synth project for Psychic Modulation, which I will be posting more about soon. The interface design I’m working on is an attempt to strike a perfect balance between form and function. The design aspect seems to reflect what I hope to achieve in the instrument itself. A tool designed with functionality in mind, very fun and inspiring to work with, that can get quick results without the stress. That’s kind of how I imagine the products in these images. They must have been, at least in their time, a real pleasure to use. And even though they might be rendered obsolete, a real inspiration to look at.

PHONOGEIST MUSIC – FREE DOWNLOADS

I’ve decided to release all of my music up to this point as free downloads, including my latest album Distance Collapsing. I originally planned to put this latest release on vinyl or even cassette in some kind of artsy packaging, but with all the projects that are currently occupying my time, releasing a physical product may have to wait until the next Phonogeist album, which I hope to get started on soon. So, in hopes of introducing more people to my music, here is Distance Collapsing, feel free to download and share:

You can download my previous releases as well at my my site on Bandcamp:
http://phonogeist.bandcamp.com/

STOPPING OFF PLACE – OBSCURE CHILDREN’S BOOKS

I’ve always had a fascination with children’s books, especially the obscure ones from the 70s and 80s. It’s an unsettling nostalgia that I’m drawn to, childhood wonder mixed with slight apprehension, a curiosity for the unknown. That’s why I was very pleased to discover the blog Stopping Off Place, where there is no shortage of the bizarre imagery that invokes these strange feelings. There’s not a whole lot of information given about these images, which seems to retain the mystery that goes along with these kind of discoveries.

MICHAEL CHASE – PHOTOGRAPHY – MUSIC

I’ve discovered several outstanding artists through Tumblr. The most recent to get my attention has been Michael Chase, who runs the blog ‘Area of Interest’. Michael’s photography often appears as abstract art, until further examination reveals the photograph of a random, sometimes mundane area that most wouldnt take the time to notice, but he captures something quite interesting and at times beautiful in places few would care to look.
Check out his blog here: http://areaofinterest.tumblr.com/

But aside from the brilliant photography, another thing I’ve discovered about this artist, and have really come to enjoy, is his music. Much like his visual art, the music is minimal and abstract, with a sound that really draws you in. It sort of reminds me of early Autechre, finding just the right balance of industrial rhythm and moving melody. Most of the tracks on the album ‘Play EP’ are 2 minutes and under, but this only serves to keep the listener coming back to the sounds that get held in the memory like an area of interest we pass on the streets from day to day.