Although radio silence is usually the indicator that things are busy here at ITAV HQ, I thought I'd stick my head up long enough to say that there will be a brand new Stargrazer song, "The Atavists," appearing soon on the forthcoming GTG Records "It's Fine" compilation!
"The Atavists" is a song that began as a scrap of thought quickly scribbled on a piece of paper. The next day, I strummed out a descending series of 2-note chords on my bass centering loosely around a drone note. I recorded this at home and it became the basis of the song -- but only after I moved the fast intro to the end, and the buzzing drone that originally ended the song became the beginning. The rest of the song unfolded over the course of an afternoon, increasing in complexity and interlocking layers until a loose organic whole emerged. Thus a lo-fi eastern-tinged chant was born: "The free-flowing thought, the windows are not the eyes that they seem / the doorways are dreams, running swiftly down drains / Evaporating again / The words are carried by winds to fall in fallow fields, and we'll be drenched once more..."
I'll post the exact release date for the compilation as soon as I know it... word is it will be the last week of May! I'm really excited with how this song turned out, and I'm always looking forward to hearing what my label mates have cooked up.
Stargrazer (in case I haven't belabored this in the past) is my solo bass project, appearing live since 2001 as an acoustic act and recording feverishly at home with a wide variety of homespun and electronic sounds. Stargrazer is also currently in the studio (with Eric Merckling of CrookedSound) completing a debut full-length album to follow up the "Trieste E.P." which appeared in late 2010. Much more on that later.
GTG Records has been the home for Stargrazer since way back, along with brother and sister bands like The Plurals, The Hunky Newcomers, Middleman, The Break-Ups, CrookedSound, and Small Houses.The last Stargrazer single, "Filestarter," was released this past June on 3-Way Singles Club Vol. 14 along with two really suberb tracks by Curent and Calliope.
And finally, Stargrazer will appear LIVE with The Stick Arounds and The Aimcriers on Friday, May 31 at The Avenue in Lansing, MI: a benefit performance for the Michigan Association For Suicide Prevention.
Here's a link to the Facebook event for your convenience.
