working at the (mal)content farm…
Peak Time and Its Malcontents
In the halcyon days of fall 2023 and winter 2024, Bridges of Königsberg (my electronic-music trio with David B. Collins and Peter J. Woods) embarked on a series of recording sessions. As with our previous album, The Shenanigans-to-Tomfoolery Continuum, we improvised music in single takes, recording remotely (since this band of former Milwaukeeans is now scattered across two continents). Unlike Shenanigans, this time we focused on short, high-intensity performances, emphasizing bright colors and sharp contrasts. It’s not pop music (far from it), but it’s our twisted idea of a “pop album.”
Eighteen months (and/or several eons) later, the long-simmering Peak Time and Its Malcontents has arrived. (The book Sigmund Freud would have written had his DJ career taken flight). Our gratitude to the mighty Blorpus Editions, who not only connected us with Ursula Buba for the album artwork but also realized our dream of making this music available on CD. (Tangible media? In this economy?)
There are animated music videos for a couple of tracks lurking in the wings, so… expect to hear and see more about Peak Time sooner rather than later. For now, please enjoy our selection of audio-mayhem tapas.
Performing with Kyle Bruckmann in Philly, July 23
While the show hasn’t been formally announced as of yet, Oakland resident, oboe+electronics wizard, and longtime comrade Kyle Bruckmann is headed eastward. We’ll be playing a duo set on July 23 in Philly, as featured guests of the Ambient Open Mic series run by The Low Pass. Their insta should have all the details soon, but I’ll make sure word about time (early evening) and place (probably Bella Vista-ish) goes out through this channel as well. (Did I mention the “sooner rather than later” part?) There might be some of Kyle’s virtuoso double-reed playing; there will definitely be a whole lotta grotty electronics from both of us. It’ll be a hoot.
(I should also pause here to say that one of the genuine joys of 2025 for me has been getting to know Matt and Ben of The Low Pass. They are lovely folks, fine musicians, and are thoughtfully building community around electronic music in Philadelphia. Yes please).
At the workbench
I wrote last time about a new instrument in development, and, thanks to friend and colleague William Fields, had the opportunity to field-test that software at a show in on June 27th. The good news is that it worked well; the bad news is that I came home from the evening with a bunch of new ideas incompatible with the software-in-progress. Inspiration: the worst.
So, while I’ve still got a bunch of work to do on the Existing Thing, there’s also a New Thing growing like a weed. (To be fair, I’ve been watering it regularly, which you are probably not supposed to do with either invasive species or intrusive ideas).
If the Existing Thing is about precise control of patterns and variations, the New Thing throws control to the wind, in favor of broad physical gestures (sound output depends upon continuous performer activity, with no looping or repetition), noisy textural complexity (no more Mr. Nice[ly behaved sound synthesis] Guy), and feedback (because everyone needs more chaos in their life? Or at least I do, in this moment). In some ways it seems like a throwback to things I was doing twenty years ago (anyone out there remember Kepler’s Monsters?), in some ways it seems like a new adventure.
Will I choose the Existing Thing or the New Thing for playing with Kyle on the 23rd? Will buggy coding or tight deadlines make the choice for me? Will either Thing get a proper name at some point? Be at the Ambient Open Mic to find out… (I mean, I’ll write about it here too, but still).
Nonce
Sometimes the cartoonist is distracted. (Can’t say as that I blame him).
Thanks as always for listening and reading (and tolerating this extra-cheeky edition of the newsletter) - yours,
Christopher
Christopher Burns
sfsound.org/~cburns