Sound Methods Podcast

Today’s studio diary is a look at how my brother Mike and I performed a set as Gray Acres on the Star’s End radio program for WXPN in Philadelphia, which took place from 2-3 AM on August 25. We recorded the performance and made it available for free/name your price on Bandcamp: https://grayacres.bandcamp.com/album/live-on-stars-end-radio

This is also the first time I’m attempting an audio/podcast version of a studio diary. I did a “mini interview” with Mike to get his thoughts on some elements of the performance and insight into how he achieved his guitar sounds, and paired that with my own walkthrough of my patches to demonstrate some of these sounds and techniques.

0:00 - 20:00 - intro and interview with Mike

20:00 - 52:42 - description of my setup with demos

52:42 - end - closing remarks

Be sure to visit Substack to read the full writeup and subscribe to Sound Methods: https://andrewtasselmyer.substack.com

Today's guest is Scott Campbell. I knew as soon as I started the podcast that he would be a guest at some point, since we've run in the same circles for quite some time and we're label mates on two different record labels: Seil Records over in Germany, and then Mystery Circles here in the US.Please be sure to support Scott by purchasing his music over on Bandcamp: https://scott-campbell.bandcamp.com

You can also view his graphic design and photography on his website. There, you can also find links to all of his social media channels, as well: https://www.scttcmpbll.com/about

Finally, check out his instruments by visiting the Onde Magnétique website: https://www.ondemagnetique.comPlease be sure to subscribe to Sound Methods if you want to support the work I do: https://andrewtasselmyer.substack.com

I'm thrilled to welcome Chris Carlson to the show. Chris is the developer of an iPad app called Borderlands, which has become the de facto standard in granular synthesis over the last 12 years since it was first introduced in 2012. Chances are, if you use an iPad to make music, then you've been recommended or shown this app at some point along the way, and in all likelihood, it probably lives on your iPad now. I knew that as soon as I started this podcast series, I wanted to talk to Chris and pick his brain on how it came to be and where it's headed. We had a great conversation and I hope you'll enjoy it.

Be sure as always to check out the substack page for links to a full transcript of our conversation with lots of additional context and photos, including sketches and sounds from the early days of Borderlands development.

--Chris Carlson is a software developer and musician based in Richmond, VA. He is the creator of Borderlands Granular, a visual music app designed for exploring sound with granular synthesis. Over the course of its nearly twelve years in the App Store, Borderlands has found its way into studio recordings, film scores, live performances, educational workshops, and field recording expeditions. It has developed a worldwide community of users including artists such as Fennesz, Laurel Halo, King Britt, Arovane, and Pan American. The app was honored with an Award of Distinction in Digital Music and Sound Art in the 2013 Prix Ars Electronica and has been recognized and presented by the ZKM Center for Art and Media and Sónar Festival. Borderlands has been called "a reason to own an iPad" by Peter Kirn of Create Digital Music. 

Chris is also the Director of Creative Technology for Art Processors, an experiential design and technology company based in the US and Australia. He works closely with a multidisciplinary team of designers, content strategists, engineers, and producers to create museum exhibits that foster learning, connection, creative expression, and delight. 

I’m really excited about this episode with Taylor Deupree and Joseph Branciforte. We spent over an hour together discussing an incredible project they’ve completed: a reimagined, reinterpreted, and re-recorded version of Taylor’s seminal 2002 album, Stil.

Recorded entirely with acoustic instrumentation performed by humans, this new edition, called Sti.ll, is a complete and total reinvention of the original. Hearing Joe and Taylor discuss the albums - both the original and the remake - was an awesome experience. You can tell that this experience left a mark on both of them, and I’m glad to have had the opportunity to hear about it in this interview.

Sti.ll is a collaborative release between labels Nettwerk, Greyfade, and Deupree’s own 12k, due out on May 17th. Along with a vinyl release, Greyfade has announced a special edition hardcover book, the second installment in their FOLIO series that is available for pre-order on Bandcamp.

Note for those in the US: there will be an album release show at Public Records in New York City on May 22, 2024, featuring Taylor & Joe alongside some of the album’s personnel. Opening sets will be provided by Jack Quartet and Joe Branciforte & Theo Bleckmann. For tickets, visit the information page here.

Sound Methods is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber: https://andrewtasselmyer.substack.com

Welcome back to Sound Methods. I'm pleased to share an interview with my friend Patricia Wolf, who I first met while on tour with Hotel Neon in 2018. We've kept in touch ever since, and I was glad to have her on the show.

Check out the full transcription and additional material from this interview on the Sound Methods Substack page: https://andrewtasselmyer.substack.comSupport Patricia's music by purchasing on Bandcamp: https://patriciawolf.bandcamp.com --

Patricia Wolf is a musician, sound designer, field recordist, and DJ residing in Portland, Oregon. Her work sonically unites the natural and modern worlds, integrating ecological sources and field recordings into minimalist compositions. She uses melody and repetition to create. hypnotic inner spaces, conjuring vivid textures and atmospheres filled with emotion.

Her debut album, I'll Look For You In Others, was released in February 2022 on Past Inside the Present, and was quickly followed up by a second LP called See-Through, which was released on the Catalan label, Balmat.

If you've spent any amount of time around ambient, post-rock, and adjacent genres in the last 20 years, it's very likely that you've heard the music of Hammock, a Nashville based duo consisting of Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson. To describe their music is pretty difficult. The two of them have added varying degrees of instrumentation on top of their guitar playing over the years, ranging from the most minimal - just the two of them, playing hushed drones alongside cello and voice - all the way to the most maximal of arrangements, with full choirs, drums, and orchestra generating massive walls of sound.

The result is always spectacular, and it's hard to overstate the emotional impact of their songs. It's a stunning blend of beauty, sadness, and ache. The two seem to have an uncanny ability to find exactly the right way of tugging at your heart strings, probing the full range of human emotion through sound. I can personally attest to how powerfully their music can meet someone in both the peaks and valleys of life: their music has provided me comfort and inspiration for as long as I can remember, and they're a big reason why I'm making the music that I do.

I had the chance to sit down with Marc and ask him how he feels about the emotional impact that his music has on people who hear it. He reflected on this, and also opened up on a wide range of additional topics, both band-related and personal. I really hope you enjoy the conversation here, and take as much from his perspective as it offered to me.

Visit hammockmusic.com for more info on Hammock and their music.A full transcript of this interview can be found on the Sound Methods Substack page at https://andrewtasselmyer.substack.com

Maybe you can relate to the feeling I had when I first used Samplr almost a decade ago: instant inspiration; a racing mind trying to consider all of the new possibilities that have just been unlocked. Only a few instruments have ever had this kind of effect on me, but Samplr - without question - is my favorite and most frequently used of the bunch.

It felt like a no-brainer to reach out to Marcos Alonso, the app's developer, and have a discussion about Samplr. I’ve always been curious to know where the idea came from, what he thinks about the incredible success it’s had, and where he sees it going in the years ahead. We talked about all of this and more in the latest interview for Sound Methods, a truly enjoyable conversation about an incredible instrument.

Read a full transcript of the interview on the Sound Methods substack page. Visit Samplr.net to read more about the app, and be sure to download it on the App Store through the link there.

Andy Othling is a guitarist from Albuquerque, NM. He records ambient music under the name Lowercase Noises: https://lowercasenoises.bandcamp.com/musicRead the full transcript of this interview, with additional detail, images, and links, on the Sound Methods substack page: https://andrewtasselmyer.substack.com/

It was a joy to have Tom on the 2nd edition of this podcast to dig deeper into his musical past, his photography, exciting upcoming plans, and much more. I spoke with him over videoconference from his home in Brooklyn, NY, on the morning of Friday, February 2nd.

Be sure to subscribe to Tom on Bandcamp - you’ll support his work directly and receive exclusive tracks on a regular basis. Highly recommended: https://pioulard.bandcamp.com/

Transcript available here on my Substack page, Sound Methods.

I’m pleased to introduce a “Sound Methods” podcast, aimed at interviewing artists about their processes and inspirations. It was an easy choice to ask Marcus Fischer to kick it off.

Read the full interview and post on Sound Methods: https://andrewtasselmyer.substack.com/

I interviewed Marcus over videoconference at his home in Portland, OR, on the night of Thursday, February 1. We covered a lot of ground here, including his thoughts on how he defines the music that he makes, how he approaches a studio recording vs. a live performance, his punk roots and background in music, and the ideas behind his profoundly moving exhibition on display as of this writing, called “Mass.”

For more information about Marcus’s work, including photography and video of the installation pieces that we discussed in this interview, please visit his website at mapmap.ch. Marcus also maintains a substack page called Dust Breeding.

Artist Bio: Marcus is an interdisciplinary artist and musician based in Portland, Oregon. He is a first generation American artist who creates, collects, and transforms sound into immersive, layered compositions that accompany performances and exhibitions. His site specific assemblies of exposed speakers, tape loops, and objects are characteristic of his installations, paired with melodies of restraint and tension.

He has released numerous recordings, both solo and collaborative, on 12k, and has also contributed two soundworks and two performances to the 2019 Whitney Biennial as the sole artist from the Pacific Northwest included in the edition. Marcus has been awarded residencies at the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation and at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art. Marcus has performed and recorded as a solo artist, as a member of Wild Card, and in collaborations with artists such as Taylor Deupree, Aki Onda, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Laura Ortman, Stephen Vitiello, Calexico, Raven Chacon, and Simon Scott.