I'm moving to Chicago

Yes, as the title suggests I am soon packing up everything and relocating to the fair shores of Lake Michigan. I ought to be fairly well settled in by Halloween, if everything goes according to plan. These are my few last weeks here in Minneapolis.

So, what's the big deal? Why am I doing this?

Well, after over 40 years in Minnesota and a number of life-changing experiences both good and bad over the course of my time here, I feel the time is more than ripe to start again fresh amid new surroundings. Although this decision may come as a slight surprise to those who have known me, rest assured that this is neither a sign of incipient madness nor a lark concocted on the spur of the moment. This move has been a long time coming. I have carefully considered my situation in exhaustive detail and now can come to no other conclusion that my needs would be better accomodated approximately 400 miles to the southeast. There is a lot to like about Minnesota, but there can even be too much of a good thing, especially when what ought to be good doesn't seem to be actually all that good, perhaps, on a more personal level. Perhaps some of you can relate to such an experience.   

But before clueing in the reader with a few more juicy details, allow me to take the opportunity first to briefly apologize for not updating this blog very recently and for my lack of obvious productivity in general this year so far. As it turns out there is quite a bit happening behind the scenes, so by no means is this the last you'll hear from me or from my music projects, thankfully. I have been spending a lot of time trying to consolidate and organize various unfinished writing projects (including for this format), along with doing a fair amount of in-depth research on some of the scientific and philosophical topics I've touched on in these posts. I would like to comment on some of the more recently popular "realist" views of time that have since risen to prominance in certain quarters in the 25-odd years since Barbour introduced his notion of time capsules, and I also intend to say something about philosophical skepticism (Interestingly, Barbour barely mentions J. M. E. McTaggart, referring to him only briefly in a post-textual note and largely disavowing his ideas, describing them as purely logical in nature and therefore outside the proper realm of scientific inquiry!). 

Beyond this I have returned to an earlier skill and avocation, electronics, both to further restore my vintage Prophet for many more years of use-worthiness, and to design and build a stereo spring reverb system as a DIY analog outboard effect. All of this while getting some new web-camera and video projects started, rehearsing some new music based around performance and improvisation... and planning for an interstate move at the same time! You can easily see how I have become a victim of my own ingenuity. Thanks for being patient as I slowly disentangle the throbbing pile of accumulated mentality that seems like would easily take two or three lifetimes to do complete justice to. I'll get around to it all eventually, right?

Yes. But first, I'm moving to Chicago. That much is certain.

The rest?

I'll keep you posted!  

Special characters

All language is performance, and all performance is art.

On the menu

Tutti Frutti Convolutti  ............................................................................................  3

Bellicose Benevolence  .......................................................................................... 1

Yolk of Oppression  ................................................................................................ 4

Marbled Slab of Discontent  ................................................................................... 1

Superannuated Salad  ............................................................................................ 5

Reticulated Risotto  ................................................................................................ 9

Confabulated Kebabs  .............................................................................................2

Lecherous Lychee  ................................................................................................. 6

Puerile Purée  ......................................................................................................... 5

Ague à la carte ........................................................................................................ 3

Smoked Trollop ....................................................................................................... 5

Fortean Fescue  ...................................................................................................... 8

Steamed Spheroid  .................................................................................................. 9

Tossed Tenebrionid  ................................................................................................. 7

Leopard Grass  ........................................................................................................ 9

Leg of Bituminous Ruminant  ................................................................................... 3

Wilted Braggadocio  ................................................................................................. 2

Fulminant Flambé  .................................................................................................... 3

Cosmic contours

I am a wandering star

in eccentric orbit

across the warp of light

years of a lifetime

charting the contours

of the eternal abyss

Random studio pic of the day: The studio sleeps...

Of course, electronic devices don't actually sleep (Or, in a certain sense one might say they never wake up...?)! At any rate here's how my studio looks at night with the overhead lights turned off. This is in fact the lighting configuration I maintain nearly all the time, as I prefer the diffuse effect of different-colored LEDs coming from various places, plus a couple of spot sources, rather than relying on one or two conventional light sources. The overall atmosphere is funky, "futuristic" and fun, further reinforced by the lava lamp visible on the right-hand side of the photo. ;)

Apologies for the slightly blurry quality of the image -- it's extremely difficult to get a sharp exposure using a hand-held phone camera under such low light conditions -- but hopefully it serves to illustrate the interior aesthetic that I find most conducive to late-night synth programming and keyboard practice sessions.  

 

Eh, yes, that IS a cat in the lower left of this photo. Her name's Phaedra, and I'll have more to say about her presently...

All my Bandcamp releases are now up on YouTube

This past January I FINALLY got around to uploading all my Bandcamp releases so far to YouTube for your streaming convenience and (I sincerely hope) listening pleasure! Here ya go people, crank 'em up and have a blast!!!

RIP Dana S. Barnett (1982 - 2023)

It is with great sadness, and additionally more than a little annoyance, that I must announce the death of myself, Dana S. Barnett, who was without a doubt one of the most extraordinary individuals of his time and a true unsung hero of his generation. 

Being a true underground legend is no easy task, but Dana took to it with grace and aplomb. His intelligence, sensitivity, honesty and creativity - nay, genius! - were practically unmatched by anyone, and yet it was his humility and sly sense of humor that consistently charmed those lucky enough to find themselves in his orbit, for however brief an interval. He kept his feet firmly planted on the ground at a time when everyone else was busy losing their heads, and he never lost sight of the important things in life while others tilted at windmills and wasted their time engaging in petty disputes. 

With his music, his art, poetry and philosophical explorations he demonstrated not only great wisdom, understanding, skill and diligence, but above all the kind of originality characteristic of the very finest artists and thinkers of any age. Always generous with his time and energy, he strove to leave the world a better place than with an almost maniacal degree of enthusiasm, frequently putting the needs and wishes of others well before his own. At the end of the day, is difficult to imagine a more authentic and genuinely gifted human being as Dana was, and it will no doubt be a very long time indeed before we see the likes of him again. He will be badly missed by all those whose lives he touched.

Dana S. Barnett died today on April 1, 2023 after a long and arduous struggle with a cocaine-addled polar bear. Funeral arrangements are pending.