1.Can you give us an update on what is going on with the musical project these days?
1. I’m basically trying to keep it together right now, like everyone else. Keeping busy. Making lots of music.
2.Over the years you have released a great amount of material, how would you describe your progress as a musician over the years?
2. I think the workflow for me is mostly accidental. I might find a sound or some visual cue that feels right or inspiring and I let it go from there. My studio is sort of like Max’s apartment in Pi; just a bunch of gear stacked all over, blinking at me.
3.You have also done a trilogy of albums based upon the 'Nueromancer' novel, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this novel and are there any other authors that have had an influence on your music?
3. I think Gibson’s stuff just resonates for me. There’s a pretty boilerplate synthwave aesthetic and I’ve tried hard to avoid that. Gibson’s work isn’t rooted in nostalgia, it’s more rooted in reality. The technical angle being bent into characters and emotional development has always meant more to me than any nostalgia.
4.You have also mentioned certain movies also have an influence on your work, which films are you the most inspired by?
4. It varies from project to project. Lately I’ve been pouring through Criterion Channel. Just seeing where it goes.
5.What are some of the other themes you have brought into your music over the years?
5. I just try to be honest with it. The music is a reverberation of whatever is going on around me or in life. I process a lot with music. It could be a loss, or anxiety. The music always has to be rooted in something for me. I can’t just sit down and make things aimlessly. It became especially harder the more I got into composing for film or tv- just having something to bounce off of visually or emotionally. I always want to explore some idea that guides the central theme of the music, album etc.
6.You also have done soundtracks for films and video games, what are some of the films and games you have done soundtracks for?
6. The past few years have been more about scoring. I scored a feature for Abner Pastoll, a film called ‘A Good Woman is Hard to Find,’ shot in Ireland. I worked on ‘Godzilla vs Kong,’ for Adam Wingard. I’m currently working on season three of the television series ’The Girlfriend Experience,’ for Starz. On the games side of things, I got into game scoring on an indie called ‘Brigador,’ which has a sequel in the works which I also scored. I composed music for a game called ’Trackless,’ by Aubrey Serr. Last year I scored a game called ‘Overpass,’ which was created by Michael Molinari.
7.Can you tell us a little bit more about the mask you wear in your pictures?
7. It’s a wool ski mask. Keeps me warm in the dark winter.
8.What are some of the best shows that you have played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
8. I’ve been lucky to tour quite a bit. I’ve also played a bunch of festivals, which are fun. I played a show in Melbourne, Australia that was really fun- part of a festival there called Square Sounds. I spent time in Melbourne and then went to New Zealand and came back through Sydney. Beautiful countries. Great food and coffee.
9.You also have a huge discography on bandcamp, do you spend a great amount of your time writing and creating music?
9. I make music every day. I basically wake up, make coffee and switch on the synthesizers and make stuff all day long. I spent a lot of time over the past fifteen or so years figuring out a workflow that just makes that process really simple and open. The music can happen naturally.
10.You also have worked with plenty of many different record labels over the years, can you tell us a little bit more about the labels you have worked with over the years?
10. I started off with Telefuture, which was really one of the main early tentpoles of synthwave. Post Telefuture, I’ve had releases with YK Records in Nashville, Data Airlines in France, Electric Dream Records in Chicago, and now Nailbat Tapes, based in Portland and Sound Machine, based in Nashville. I always look for people on the administrative side of record labels to collaborate with- trying to put something interesting out.
11.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of dark ambient and synth music?
11. I usually don’t try to qualify my audience too much because it always surprises me in different ways. I wasn’t sure what sort of reaction I would get from Liturgy, but it was really overwhelmingly positive. I didn’t really have any expectations. I think a lot of people who dive into my music are also doers and makers. They’ll listen to stuff while they're coding or writing or animating, etc. I like hearing that because it means that work goes out into the world and gets interpolated into the work of others, whatever it may be. The work doesn’t really belong to me in the same ways anymore.
12.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician in the future?
12. I’ve got a lot more score work coming in, so I think that will factor into it in 2021. Other than that, I don’t really know. I tend to just go wherever the wave is pushing me. What happens happens.
13.What are your currently listening to nowadays?
13. I keep going back to a lot of older, spacey stuff. Lots of Rudy Adrian lately. Steve Roach. Depends on my mood. I really loved the last Harms Way album. The new Health record. I usually oscillate between long form synth stuff and metal.
14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
14. Be good to each other. Wear a mask. Go easy.
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