Freak Scene #37: ATW Hits Bullseye with 'Concentric'
Plus, rehearsal-space trouble in Easthampton, and LuxDeluxe's catchy new tune.
A Guide to Music in Western Mass. (and sometimes Connecticut)
This week in Freak Scene, ATW treats us to his take on experimental electronic pop, musicians who rehearse at BrickYard in Easthampton are considering alternatives and LuxDeluxe has a great new song with an entertaining video.
Every so often, Aaron Taylor-Waldman goes live on Instagram while he creates music with modular synthesizers. It’s mesmerizing even without the sound on: the camera on his mobile is usually focused on the synths, small metal boxes sporting switches and knobs, with patch cords connecting input jacks while red or green indicator lights blink and glow. With the volume up, watching the process is like spending time in a secret world where rhythm and elements of melody emerge and combine into soundscapes seemingly of their own accord.
There are no visuals accompanying the tracks on Concentric, Taylor-Waldman’s first album, but the overall effect is the same. The Northampton producer, composer and graphic designer, who performs as ATW, describes Concentric as “an experimental electronic pop album” that draws on influences including jungle, UK garage and bass, dub, early 2000s glitchy laptop music, hyperpop and ’90s Warp. The 11 tracks here are immersive, full of jittery beats, ambient sonic textures and moments of crackling noise.
Though the songs are distinct, they flow from one to the next, changing shape and structure in a way that feels of a piece. It’s possible to get lost in the clattering beat and klaxon bursts of “Rift,” say, and resurface a few tracks later to the bell-like tones and dry percussive feel of “Ice Cubes” — which consists entirely of ice cubes melting in a glass — or the bright, shuddering waves of sound and chittering backbeat of “Balaphonix.” Nine of the tracks are instrumental, while two have vocals.
“The overall production involved a lot of wildly different processes and sound sources — keyboards, drum samplers, instruments laying around the house, generative patches with hardware/software, field recordings, even a folder of spam voicemails,” ATW says by email, noting that a couple of the synth modules he used were made in Northampton by Olivia Artz Modular and Easthampton by Tall Dog.
Though ATW has been making music for years in various band and solo configurations, and he studied computer music with the highly regarded composer Pauline Oliveros at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, he focused his career on graphic design. Not only did he do the artwork for Concentric, his portfolio includes designs for other musicians, Share coffee and American Vinegar Works, among many others. Eventually, ATW came back around to music.
“It took me about 25 years to put out an album,” he says. Given ATW’s inventive use of sonic textures on Concentric and the balance that he strikes between complexity and accessibility, there’s no real question that it was worth the wait.
Save Our Spaces Rallies Around Musician Tenants in Easthampton
Musicians who rehearse at 142 Pleasant St. in Easthampton feared the worst when they received notice early in October of new quiet hours in the BrickYard complex, which is also home to the Sonelab recording studio, Abandoned Building Brewery and other businesses. The building’s management notified tenants that “loud band practice sessions are prohibited” between 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, prompting some renters to ask the mayor’s office and Easthampton Cultural Council for help mediating what seemed like a problem that would impact the city’s creative community.
“These new hours are a non-starter for working musicians,” read a letter drafted last week by some musicians with rehearsal space there. “We can't be expected to start rehearsal at 9 p.m. The effect of this new policy is that bands are moving out and looking for other rehearsal spaces.”
Turns out the dismay over the new rules may have been the result of a miscommunication. The BrickYard’s owner, James Witmer, quickly sent an email clarifying that the new quiet hours don’t mean that musicians can’t rehearse then, only that the BrickYard is asking for reduced volume during that time span. According to the email, “the vast majority” of rehearsal tenants have rarely, if ever, incurred complaints, which Witmer wrote were mostly emanating from a single group.
Who that group is seems unclear. On a “Save Our Spaces” Facebook page, one musician identified himself as part of a band that received frequent text messages from management complaining about noise — usually when the band wasn’t even on the premises. “Someone is mistaking us for another room,” wrote the musician, which means that the problem is likely to continue whether or not the band in question returns to its BrickYard rehearsal space.
Glen Fant, who set up Save Our Spaces, says he still plans to meet with the mayor’s office to discuss finding a new building that can be dedicated to the arts and music rehearsal spaces. “Ideally, it would be some sort of co-op like the Parlor Room Collective,” says Fant, who plays in the band Recent History and also books gigs as Fantastic Shows.
LuxDeluxe Close in on ‘So Far Away from It All’
With the release of their first LP since 2017 rapidly approaching, LuxDeluxe are letting slip some new tunes. The group this month posted a video for “So Far Away from It All,” which features the Northampton band playing together on a small stage while a single camera pans across the set and moves in and out of close-ups.
The song is one of those super-catchy LuxDeluxe specials, with a rock-solid beat, punchy guitars with a bluesy tinge and expressive vocals from singer Ned King. His sinuous dance moves here remind me a little of Mick Jagger’s, which is fitting, because “Far Away from It All” reminds me a little bit of the Rolling Stones’ tune “Hang Fire.” I’m guessing I’m not the only one: the video for “Far Away from It All” feels like it’s absolutely a homage to the Stones’ clip for “Hang Fire.” The band configuration is the same, with two guitarists flanking the singer, while the bassist and drummer simply get the job done in the background (bassist Jacob Rosazza plays on drummer Jake Edwards’ left, just where Bill Wyman was in relation to Charlie Watts).
LuxDeluxe don’t have the Tattoo You artwork scattered around the set like the Stones did, but they presumably don’t have a swimming pool full of money, either — yet. Tickets are going fast for LuxDeluxe’s album-release show Nov. 29 at the Iron Horse; they’re available here.
Upcoming Concerts
This is exciting: Ted Leo & the Pharmacists play March 23 at the Iron Horse on tour marking the 20th anniversary of their outstanding album Shake the Sheets; tickets are here. The Nields are there Feb. 1 (tickets). Yasmin Williams stops in Feb. 11 (tickets). Atlanta soul-rocker Eddie 9V performs Feb. 18 (tickets). Jenny Owen Youngs is there Feb. 20 (tickets).
Suzanne Vega performs March 7 at the Shea Theater in Turners Falls (tickets).
Jazz guitarist Bill Frisell comes to Bombyx in Florence on a tour billed In My Dreams, featuring Eyvind Kang, Hank Roberts, Jenny Scheinman, Thomas Morgan and Rudy Royston (tickets).
Remi Wolf plays College Street Music Hall in New Haven April 25 (tickets). Jim Henson’s Labyrinth: In Concert, which features a screening of the movie with a live band, is there May 3 (tickets).
Fairfield Theatre Company hosts the LeeVees Dec. 12 in the Warehouse (tickets) and the Thing Dec. 20 (tickets). Stingray plays there Nov. 15 at StageOne (tickets).
Next week: Matt Hebert & the Lonesome Brothers.
Freak Scene is always seeking submissions. You can send music for coverage consideration to erdanton at gmail or reply to this email. Check out these guidelines first.
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