...a digital box set of live recordings from 2022...

6+ hours of music

the live set is where most of my creative energy goes. i've loved live psychedelic music since i was a teenager collecting bootlegs, and that's carried through as i've found my own creative voice. after 20+ years making music, i still prefer playing live to recording polished tracks.

i find most motivation when i need to write a set, and then more often than not i'll move onto the next set before sitting and 'properly' recording. the vast majority of the music i've released has been recorded 'live' in the studio in 1 take to stereo, no multi-tracking or overdubbing and with minimal editing. it just works for me. i like the roughness and imperfections. sometimes there are elements i don't like, and i like that too (usually). when it comes together in ways i didn't expect, that's when some of the best things happen.

i've been thinking about all of this a lot, and how i sometimes feel like it doesn't really fit in with how many other folks approach electronic music. seems like the venn diagram of live recordings and the world of electronic music releases is 2 circles with little overlap. like i wouldn't really expect many labels to want to release my music in this format, though it may be the truest version of what i do.

i'm considering starting a label dedicated to the live 'bootleg'. not just my music but all kinds of stuff that i appreciate. so i decided to start by putting this idea out there, and putting out a bunch of the sets i played last year ('22).

i'm deeply grateful to everyone who's given me these opportunities to do my live pa thing, for the soundsystems and people running them, to the dancers, head-knodders, k-holers, and the freaks doing the worm in the dirt. thank you to everyone who's given me encouragement. i've had a ton of fun doing it.

these sets cover a nice range of what i've been doing. i spent a year or so developing and evolving a body of work that i was constantly evolving. i was re-writing, scrapping elements, writing new bits, trying different synths, playing with the 'wrong' patterns or out of order to force different transitions and thus new combinations, and sometimes just forgetting where or who i was. 3 of these sets (The Great Beyond, Communion, Infrasound) came out of that, and you'll hear some familiar elements throughout as they evolved. the other 3 sets were one-offs, the last of which (Conexion) is a bonus track of sorts; it's only available if you buy the full box set ;)

i'll write a bit about each show and the machines that sang with me on each track page.

thanks + love
josh