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a sound/simulacra album now available

One of the last concerts I played before the COVID-19 pandemic and the horrific murder of George Floyd was a sound/simulacra with an amazing group of artists including: Cody McKinney (electric bass, voice, electronics), myself (Rhodes, synth, electronics), Aby Wolf (voice, electronics), Kaleena Miller (amplified tap dancing), and Nathan Hanson (saxophones). The venue made a multitrack recording of our show, so since have been unable to continue with our monthly series, Cody Mckinney and I decided to release a live album of music from the evening. Cody wrote an elegant essay (below) about the night, and I mixed and mastered the recordings which are now available on Bandcamp (above). All sales will be directed to advance the Black Lives Matter movement. Please read on to learn more about the album and the artists who made it possible.
sound/simulacra started as a monthly experiment, conceived by myself (Cody McKinney) and my dear friend and collaborator, John C.S. Keston. The name comes from the writings of Jean Baudrillard, the great French, post structuralist philosopher. The basic idea was to bring sound artists / musicians together from varying disciplines, and see if we could find some universal truths within the framework of improvisation. Many differing sound disciplines seem to have their own language and systems of improvisation. Many of these take a lifetime of study to master, but that is usually based on that discipline’s improvisatory syntax as opposed to the purer language of sound. There was no attempt to try to learn or master other artists’ vocabulary, but rather to seek the commonalities between performers and their systems. Many times, these improvisations revealed certain formal structures; for example, western music theory influence, with our scales and triads and harmonic rules. While other times, they revealed behaviors from the natural world such as bird songs, or moaning, or machinery. [In recent times, we’ve begun to align our lives with many machines, and with that alignment comes a whole host of familiar sounds, structures, forms etc.] Continue reading “a sound/simulacra album now available”
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Aby Wolf Recordings

Wednesday, February 27th, 2019, Sound / Simulacra featured vocalist Aby Wolf. These recordings from the event are delicate, ambient, and spacious. During Aby’s solo set her ethereal vocal work and signal processing yield evocative melodies and harmonic layers. In the second set her voice weaves around Keston’s keys and McKinney’s bass leading the listener through a mystical pilgrimage.

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Adam Svec

Longtime collaborator of John and Cody’s, songwriter Adam Svec, attempts to leverage melodies and simple song structures to tell stories. As an improviser, Svec brings the listener familiar scaffolding filled out by sonic architecture that is oddly unique, typically driven by his northern vision of the country.

Adam Svec was the guest of Sound / Simulacra on January 24, 2018. Adam started the night off with a solo performance playing four improvised pieces on guitar, Roland JX-3P, and voice. John C.S. Keston (piano, Rhodes, Moog Sub 37), and Cody McKinney (bass, electronics) joined Adam performing four more pieces.

Set 1: Adam Svec Solo (guitar, voice, electronics)

Set 2: Adam Svec plus John C.S. Keston (keyboard, synth, electronics) and Cody McKinney (bass, voice, electronics)

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Aby Wolf

Wednesday, February 27th, 2019 at 8:30pm at Jazz Central Studios, Sound / Simulacra presents Aby Wolf.

Aby Wolf is a passionate collaborator with an elastic skillset. Whether writing vocal arrangements for Dessa’s sold-out appearances with the Minnesota Orchestra, fulfilling commissions from American Composers Forum, Prairie Fire Lady Choir, and Cedar Cultural Center, or performing with everyone from The New Standards and Doomtree to Chastity Brown and JT Bates’ Grain Trio, Aby brings a palpable element of joy to whatever endeavor she pursues. Thanks to a 2019 Arts on Tour grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, Wolf will tour greater Minnesota with her newest musical collaboration Champagne Confetti, an 11-piece electro-acoustic chamber ensemble featuring strings, percussion, and vocal harmonies. Champagne Confetti premieres in Minneapolis this spring 2019.

Set 1: Aby Wolf solo performance
Set 2: Aby Wolf with John C.S. Keston and Cody McKinney

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Mankwe Ndosi

On Wednesday April 25th, 2018, 8:30pm at Jazz Central Studios Sound / Simulacra will commence featuring Mankwe Ndosi. I have had the pleasure of playing music with Mankwe on several occasions, but I am particularly excited to hear what happens in the context of improvised experimental music. During the second set Cody McKinney and myself will join Mankwe as a trio.

Mankwe Ndosi is a Twin Cities-based performer and composer who uses an expanded vocabulary of singing to express emotion, story and spirit. She works with artists in all media, and living beings of all kinds. She performs nationally and internationally, and has appeared with Nicole Mitchell, The Give Get Sistet, Mike Ladd, Sharon Bridgforth, Laurie Carlos, George Lewis, Medium Zach, I-Self Devine, Ananya Dance Theatre, Atmosphere, and Douglas Ewart – stalwart of Chicago’s Association for the Advancement of Creative Music. Ndosi is a Wild Plant Woman and a Culture Worker who uses creative practice to nurture human connections to others, our ancestors, and the earth. –Ananya Dance Theatre