Dan Deacon: "Snookered"

Minutes into my interview with Dan Deacon, he interrupts himself mid-sentence, sighing, “Oh, man. I sound like a real nerd. I’m usually not such an in-my-head dork.” I laugh and call him Poindexter, suggesting that he push the glasses back up on the bridge of his nose. After giving me his best stab at a Professor Frink laugh from The Simpsons, we giggle for a few moments. After speaking with Deacon for only a few short minutes, I already feel a weird kinship with him.

Through his sense of humor, independent spirit, and brainy inventiveness, Deacon has quietly kick-started an under-the-radar movement of underground dance, with his revisionist rebel spirit recalling the nights of early ’90s warehouse raves. Playing on the floor, surrounded by his flock, Deacon produces an evangelical mania during his live shows. For the past decade, Baltimore’s pied piper of electro-spazz has been infiltrating music festivals, warehouses, back alleys, and basements all over the world. Traveling modestly, even by coach bus at times, armed with a laptop and Casio keyboard, Deacon proudly lets his flag fly, inviting anyone with a pulse to shed inhibitions and just dance.

Building on the good will and praise won with his 2007 release, Spiderman of the Rings, Deacon is back with Bromst, a frenetic magnum opus offering his warped twist on world, ambient, and electronic noise pop. Though it may seem like a departure from previous work, much of the laptop schizophrenia has been toned down in favor of live instrumentation.

Bromst showcases Deacon’s graduate studies as a composer, giving the party crowd an excellent soundtrack while providing the intellectuals with dense, layered mania.

“I wanted to write a record where you would listen to the whole thing, start over, and it would sound different with each spin,” says Deacon from his Baltimore home.

“It has a very different feel, but it’s a sound that I’ve been trying to get at for a long time. The record is about cycles and change, and I hope that it’s a reflection of myself getting older, more mature, and wiser. I’ve been working on it for so long, and it’s been through so many different phases. I started writing it around the same time as Spiderman of the Rings, but I knew from the start that I wanted it to be a little less dance-based and built more around intensity. I wanted it to still have that same level of density, where instead of just being a wash of sound, it’s like you’re staring at an intricately woven afghan, where there are so many aspects to it, but it’s one fixed thing. That’s what I was going for. Where the last record was really focused on individual timbres and sounds, Bromst is based more around the instrumentation as a whole, and the melodies are insanely interwoven.”

"I always wanted to be a composer. I think that the only thing preventing me from that was my love affair with standing in front of a crowd and composing these dance-music pieces…Providing a good time has always been the main intention of what I do."

Before his adventure began, Deacon attended a small state art school in New York, studying composition and production. After relocating to Baltimore, where he helped to found the Wham City art collective, the Long Island native soon found himself working on electro-acoustic compositions, slowly gaining the confidence to step in front of a crowd. “When I started playing out, I never thought that I would be a solo electronic musician,” Deacon says.

“That was never the goal or a thought that I had. When I went to school, I was studying composition, and I always wanted to be a composer. I think that the only thing preventing me from that was my love affair with standing in front of a crowd and composing these dance-music pieces. I have always liked having fun and dancing at shows, so providing a good time has always been the main intention of what I do.

“It seems crazy, but I guess six years ago, a lot of people didn’t really dance at shows, and it was sort of a really radical idea for me to get up and be dancing as hard as I could, even if no one else was. Seeing me dancing encouraged people to cut loose; they would see me and think, ‘Oh, this is what this music is supposed to do.’ In the early days, no one knew how to book me. So I took whatever gigs I could, and I would be playing on the same bill with harsh noise bands, drone acts, or even opening up for a play, so it was definitely a very different context than the normal dance thing. I remember playing for a packed basement and thinking, ‘Wow, people are coming to the show to dance. This is actually working!’ I had to start redeveloping the set for people who were coming to the show to dance, and now it’s at a point where people are coming to do more than dance. It’s always nice to change things up and to flip people’s expectations.”

It takes courage to do Deacon’s thing, and the bearded, paunchy, and bespectacled artist has been winning over hostile crowds since high school. “I’ve always been a dick-head,” Deacon laughs.

“I’ve always had a loud mouth and always liked attention. I’ve never been afraid to speak my mind, and I learned a lot by being in the high-school and college student governments and realizing how politics is an everyday affair. I was able to work my way into cliques and groups and make myself heard. I enjoy working and talking in large groups. That’s how I feel most comfortable, and I think that reflects within the show. I was definitely one of the nerds, though. I wasn’t one of the cool kids. But in every group or school, there’s always a couple of nerds who can pull it off, and I feel that right around the time that I was in ninth or tenth grade, I could do that. Before that, I was a nonhuman to most of the other students.”

Building on his dynamic live show, Deacon toured this spring behind Bromst as a group collective, assembling a cast of musicians to bring the complexities of Bromst to the public. “The live show will be a full ensemble, and there won’t be any backing tracks,” Deacon says.

“It’ll be multiple drummers and four people playing the electronics and synths. I think that it’ll be a lot of fun. Hopefully, it’ll affect the audience interaction in a positive way. It’ll definitely change the way that the show works. I won’t be playing on the floor anymore, because it just won’t work in this new context. It used to be that the audience would look at itself and create its own feedback, and I’d still like that to occur. It’ll be an interesting transitional period. I think that 2009 will be a real year of discovery for me as an artist, when hopefully I’ll come closer to figuring out where I want to go as a person and a musician.”

At the moment, the 27-year-old Deacon is in a very good place, with buzz building and the venues getting bigger.

“I’d like to keep writing music and have the ability to share it with people, and also to be able to relax and spend time with my family and friends,” he says. “I know that sounds like dopey bullshit, but I’ve never been very obsessed with money. At the moment, I’m very happy with the way that things are. I never thought that this many people would be into my music, and I never thought that I’d be doing interviews and leaving the country to go on tour, especially to somewhere like South America. That just blows my mind, and it feels really good. But if it all went away, I would still go back to playing to 10 people in a basement and be happy. I can say that now, but I might end up being a bitter fuck.”

Thank You

Thank You: "1-2-3 Bad"

Thank You's third album, Golden Worry, proves that the Baltimore trio is a band worth rooting for, and one that's a step closer to making clear what it wants.

Like a few other recent albums to come out of Baltimore — namely, Pontytail's Ice Cream Spiritual and Dan Deacon's Bromst — Golden Worry stages a good-faith meeting between experimental impulses and an enthusiasm for amiable hooks. This hasn't always been the case with Thank You. On the band's last album, Terrible Two, its obsession with rhythm threatened to dry up the guitars, keys, and vocals into a tuneless murk.

Thank You has a compact feel that sometimes works for it and sometimes against it. The drums clamber actively on top of the song, often taking the lead but not always filling up the low end, and the guitars work up a noise-rhythm complement that, while often aggressive, doesn't pursue a lot of fun back-and-forth with the percussion. As for vocals, only sometimes there and only sometimes coherent, they're another constant variable in an open-ended format. It might help to know that Thrill Jockey's bio for Thank You credits each member simply with "everything."

Unlike those Ponytail and Dan Deacon records, Golden Worry runs the risk of sounding a bit stringy. To continue an admittedly arbitrary comparison, Ponytail's Ice Cream Spiritual draws out its moments of climax for as long as possible, pounding and whipping those moments into ever-higher states of beaming tension. Thank You seems more interested in what goes on under, behind, before, and around the climax.

"1-2-3 Bad" starts the album off at a gallop, yet soon the dual guitars are picking apart the beat and melody, continually driving the song to calmer places instead of crazier ones.  New drummer Emmanuel Nicolaidis' playing on "1-2-3 Bad" has all the assertive hyperactivity of previous Thank You drum workouts, but it does a much better job of actively playing to the melody that the guitars are setting down. In their turn, the guitars keep giving him something solid with which to play.

In fact, even during the most scraggly bouts of fast picking on "Birth Reunion," the guitar parts keep it together, grounding the whole album in both accessibility and discipline. The chords on "Pathetic Magic" are a little more dissonant, and they still hammer into the drums with a punchy sense of purpose. Half of the time, it's exactly what a noisy post-punk song should be, and for the rest it's building on mid-tempo, refreshingly open-sounding tumbles through syncopation. The flow between the song's intro and its middle is a credit to the control and collaborative instincts that Thank You brings to its beat-tweaking ambitions.

The record is at its best, though, when challenging its own palette of sounds. The lead synth melody of "Strange All" squelches and wobbles on and off the beat, putting just the right amount of drag on the song and making its overall progression more rewarding. Halfway in, the track slows down and reconfigures, giving the drummer more room to display some wit — playing twitchy patterns against a calmer mood, or flinging his fills against a second, chromatically crawly synth hook.  At times, "Strange All" recalls Parts & Labor's brilliance at channeling hooks through half-decayed sonics.

It's not that Thank You is always going right for excitement — again, the album explores plenty of other moods — but one thing that dulls the excitement of its progress on Golden Worry is the vocals. Just like everything else here, the singing has a new-found focus, adding extra layers of both rhythm and harmony, especially the crisscrossing and overlapping vocal parts on "1-2-3 Bad." The problem is the actual sound of the voices, which seem hesitant to take on much tonal character. They're also hesitant to annoy or to hog the attention, thankfully, so it's not as if this points to some deep flaw in the band.

Golden Worry is yet another well-rounded bout of sweaty art rock that, if anything, should take more chances with its vocals. This is hardly a damning factor in this genre, just something that really could use some work. The vocals on Clipd Beaks' 2010 album To Realize can come off as thin and groggy, but they don't pull down the album as a whole. It'd be nice to hear the vocals match the ambition and character of all the other elements in the mix.

Of course, the usual expectations of character and beefy dynamics can lead you astray on Golden Worry. Thank You not only takes a clearer approach to songwriting here, but makes it hold up across all six tracks. Some of us more traditional-minded rock listeners will have to adjust our internal EQs for a bit for this record — and really not that much. More often than not, we'll be glad we did.

Brooklyn-based photographer Eric Ryan Anderson attended the show and captured images of all of the bottle banging and knob twiddling that goes into some of the most progressive sounds around.

On to the contest! Four winners will take home a massive 10-CD package, a few of which made our list of 100 Unheralded Albums from 2010. Check out a full list of the CDs below and enter to win.

William Brittelle: Television Landscape
William Brittelle: Mohair Time Warp
Darcy James Argue's Secret Society: Infernal Machines
Victoire: Cathedral City
Sarah Kirkland Snider: Penelope
Nadia Sirota: First Things First
Newspeak: Sweet Light Crude
itsnotyouitsme: Fallen Monuments
NOW Ensemble: NOW
Corey Dargel: Other People's Love Songs

Update: Contest has ended.

And they’re nice — like deep-South nice.  Maybe that’s why Robert Moog decided to spend the last 25 years of his life there.

Moog, an innovator in electronic music, created his legendary Moog synthesizer after experimenting for years with the Theremin.  His patented Moog equipment gained popularity at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, and now, because of the newly reimagined MoogFest, Bob Moog has again been introduced to a new generation of music lovers.  In the midst of the irony of this throwback to analog, when people are arguing its merits against digital, Moogfest brings it all together, hosting a diverse lineup of artists that blend electronic elements with spellbinding showmanship (Jónsi), face-melting pop rock (Sleigh Bells), and folksy acoustics (Mountain Man).

After five years of being a low-key, one-night show in New York, this year AC Entertainment took the reigns, moved Moogfest to Asheville, and turned it into a three-day celebration, complete with performances, workshops, and lectures.  This year also marks the first year that big-name national acts like Big Boi, Massive Attack, MGMT, Thievery Corporation, and Hot Chip all converged over the course of a full weekend, joining a jam-packed list of talent that also included El-P, RJD2, Bonobo, Matmos, Jon Hopkins, Emeralds, Omar Souleyman, Four Tet, Dan Deacon, The Octopus Project, DJ Spooky, and many more.

The move is indicative of AC Entertainment’s desire to create more “lifestyle” festivals, like its already-established Bonnaroo.  Asheville is the right kind of town for such events, with its bohemian demographic and geographic accessibility.  Set in the hills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Asheville is home to great natural and architectural wonders, like the Biltmore Estate and the Grove Park Inn.  Citizens have easy access to outdoor activities like camping, hiking, and rafting, yet Ashevillians also enjoy the pleasures of urban life with a downtown that’s walkable and filled with unique local businesses.

Music and art have become an important part of the community landscape, and Moogfest gives credit to what locals already know:  Asheville is a hub for culture.  There’s a thriving “busking” (street-performing) scene and a weekly drum circle.  Residencies by the Smashing Pumpkins and Beastie Boys at local venue The Orange Peel first brought attention to the Asheville music scene.  Band of Horses and the Avett Brothers (both have native NC band members) have recorded at Asheville’s Echo Mountain Studios. And The New York Times recently ran an article titled “36 Hours in Asheville,” whose 2007 article of the same name dubbed the mountain town the “Appalachian Shangri-La.”

As proud citizens, Ashevillians speak incessantly about maintaining the tradition of the town. They are adamantly focused on sourcing locally, from food to culture.  There were protests when the new Urban Outfitters went in downtown.  Ask almost anyone to share a CSA (community-supported agriculture) membership, and they’ll be down for it.  They take their community seriously.  They also take leisure time seriously.  In a town where people want substance with their good times, a festival with a focus on educating its attendees fits right in.

The design of the festival also fits Asheville’s vibe and Moog’s focus on connectivity, via electronics or people.  Taking place across multiple venues, MoogFest 2010 (October 29-31) allowed local businesses to show guests what Asheville is about (Asheville Brewing Company, for example, made batches of “Moog-filtered ale,” commemorating the festival and its namesake’s legacy).  The boutique approach to the festival allowed each show and venue to foster a unique music adventure, and the proximity of venues to local bars, coffee shops, restaurants, and galleries made it possible for festival-goers to truly experience the town.

Moog would’ve been proud.  This year, nearly 8,000 people attended each day of the festival, bringing awareness, commerce, and an eclectic mix of costumes through a small town in North Carolina.  “He planted the seed,” said Michelle Moog-Koussa, Moog’s daughter and the executive director of The Bob Moog Foundation.

He did.  And it’s blooming in Asheville.

Pinky Blaster: Child Bite album packaging

Shawn Knight, a.k.a. designer and illustrator Pinky Blaster, has created art and music since an early age. Followers of the Detroit music scene may recognize his name – previously of the band New Grenada, Knight now performs in the high-energy punk band Child Bite. The band is notorious for its wide range of instruments, humorous live performances, and its members’ impressive facial hair.

While in high school, Knight began playing in punk and metal bands.  These two genres influenced him heavily while he was growing up; he notes both Black Flag and The Dead Kennedys as significant influences. Knight got his start designing local band fliers and posters, and he continues to use live music as an opportunity to expose his artistic skills — though now at a national level.

Pinky Blaster: Faith No More

His impressive list of music clients includes bands such as Faith No More, Ween, The Dead Weather, Jimmy Eat World, Dan Deacon, The Jesus Lizard, Russian Circles, Lightning Bolt, and Of Montreal. Beyond his uniquely designed rock posters, Knight also creates indie movie posters, album artwork, packaging, typography, and various other web-design and illustration work. His artwork for Make History by Thunderbirds Are Now! made it onto Rolling Stone’s top-50 album-artwork list in 2006. Knight also recently designed the vibrantly colored T-shirts for Faith No More’s 2010 reunion tour dates in Australia and New Zealand.

Pinky Blaster: Of Montreal

Knight creates a decent amount of work by hand – generally, in the form of drawing out type with Sharpies, or cutting up old magazine images for collages. These basic sketches then find their way to a scanner and are tweaked in Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator. Knight graduated from Detroit’s College for Creative Studies in 2000, and he says simply of his design process, “Working rough ideas out really fast was what I was taught in school — and it works.”

The successfully rendered collage work in Knight’s art is by far one of its most compelling and eye-catching attributes. However, Knight recognizes the importance of using found imagery in an appropriate manner.  “I try to mess with the found stuff enough to make it my own…which was a moral dilemma of mine for a long time," he says.  "As long as it’s old, unrecognizable, and manipulated beyond the original intent for the image, I’m good with incorporating it.”

Pinky Blaster: Women

Knight’s work incorporates hand-rendered typography with humorous and often ironic imagery. His posters tend to include thick, black, Xerox-quality outlines in contrast with large blocks of neon hues. The dark outlines surround playful, thought-provoking collages, and the text is often reminiscent of vintage newspaper headings or advertisements.

As far as poster art versus album art, Knight prefers poster art – partially due to the lack of involvement that the musicians usually have.  “I think a lot of the process happens inside of the artist’s head without [him or her] really being that aware of it," he says.  "When it’s time to work with someone else, it can be jarring.”

Pinky Blaster: Girl Talk

Currently, Knight works as a freelance designer in Ferndale, Michigan (a suburb of Detroit).  He delved into the process of screen-printing roughly a year ago and is by no means bored with the technique yet.  He recently finished working on a rock poster for The Thermals, but soon, those outside of indie-rock circles will better know his work; Knight landed a gig doing movie posters for the new Tron film.

Named after music pioneer Dr. Robert Moog, Moogfest gathers some of the biggest and most exciting names in electronic music and beyond. Normally held in NYC, the festival moved this year to Moog's hometown to honor the career of the inventor of the Moog synth. In addition to the copious amounts of music being offered, there will also be an art show, showcasing handmade, limited-edition prints inspired by Bob Moog’s legacy.

Some ALARM favorites include Alex B, Cee Lo Green, Dan Deacon, DJ Spooky, El-P, Four Tet, Jon Hopkins, Jónsi, Massive Attack, Matmos, Omar Souleyman, and RJD2. A full lineup and schedule can be found here.

To enter to win, fill out the form below. By entering your information, you’ll also be signed up to receive ALARM’s biweekly E-mail newsletter, The ALARMIST.

Update: Contest has ended.

Taking place over Halloween weekend, from October 29-31, Moogfest 2010 will host performances in venues all over the historical city. Our favorites include El-P, Matmos, Jon Hopkins, Dan Deacon, DJ Spooky, Massive Attack, Four Tet, Jónsi, and RJD2.

In addition, attendees can watch big names like MGMT, Big Boi, Hot Chip, and Girl Talk.  No matter who you see, however, the three-day festival should be a pretty monstrous Halloween bash.

Tickets will be available to purchase starting on August 13, at 12 p.m. EST. Individual day passes and weekend passes will be on sale. Fans can get an extra level of interaction from the festival's workshops, installations, film screenings, panel discussions, and art exhibitions.

To buy tickets or to view the complete festival lineup and venue information, visit moogfest.com.