LINK : of interest

After following a link via Matrixsynth I was happily surprised to find PatchPierre.net. This blog, created by one of my blog followers Pierre Serne, investigates all manner of connected chaos, Doepfer modular systems specifically, and the eurorack format generally. Useful information abounds!...and I was surprized to see that he had linked back to my blog entry on the Tiptop Station 252. Thanks Pierre and continue to provide great, insight-filled information.

Tiptop Station 252

...and with the new case, euro-madness continues unabated!

Present Memory : An Untitled Painting

Aided by the fog of memory that overtakes our selective mental pictures and finally shapes them, this untitled painting, mixed with collage elements, to the best of my recollection represents the transition from many of my still-life paintings that contain fabric samples to my recent black & white paintings. The intrusion of "reality," represented by the collage elements, act as textural jabs that remind the eye of the inherent artifice of painting and the messy serendipity that chance meetings of any kind suggest.

I've always been fond of this piece. Seemingly devoid of meaning, it simply IS...and that seems to be enough,

E340 Cloud Generator by Synthesis Technology

As I continue my exploratory journey through the Eurorack universe I am constantly surprised by the many eccentric modules available, even with my prior Buchla/Serge experience. The Cloud Generator is just such a module. Though visually it looks like nothing special at first glance, the 8 oscillators contained within, along with CHAOS, FM, SYNCH, SPREAD and CHAOS BW controls offer a sonic underworld filled with everything from warm bass to stormy ambience, from clanky metal tones to what Synthesis Technology calls a "swarm of bees" effect.

I was immediately surprised by the Cloud Generator as I put it through its paces, making it a worthy addition to my evolving system. Sounds to come...

etherTALK

The idea of playing notes never interested me.

-Allen Ravenstine

SAMPLE & HOLD : allen ravenstine

SAMPLE & HOLD : marshall mcluhan

"All media exists to invest our lives with artificial perceptions and arbitrary values."

-M.M.

Originally released by Columbia Records in 1967, The Medium is the Massage, an audio translation of his insightful tome, seems oddly prophetic and absolutely timely today. Recently resurrected via the cd medium, this "cut-up" collage of McLuhan reading bits of his text with commentary supplied by a barrage of audio interventions is not unlike the Beatles "Revolution 9," a piece it predates.

An analysis of the media's role in creating our sense of "reality," it is difficult to not sense its profoundly prophetic point of view. Indeed, the media, a not so hidden persuader, massages us and prods us toward a mono-culture in which acquisition of EVERYTHING is the goal, the key to happiness.

This utterly artificial road-trip signposted by McLuhan's straight reading of his text in all its prescient glory is an aural provocation to critical thought and subsequent choices informed by human intelligence, a trait sorely missing from our present cultural discourse.

262v NOISE

"Chance favors the prepared mind"

-L. Pasteur

I approach the "composition" of electronic music, not from a technician's point of view but rather with the playful eyes and ears of a child ever open to a fortuitous moments. A new module(NEVER supplied with instructions or suggested patches) presents trepidation tempered with the potential for new sonic possibilities, especially given the endless choices modular systems offer. As a visual artist, I make (thanks Duchamp) frequency paintings!

Here is yet another 262v "composition."