Includes high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more. Paying supporters also get unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app.
Purchasable with gift card
name your price
about
"When The Veil Is Thin" carries some important memories for me. During my teens, I played with a synthesist named Alan Sherlock. He was a classic Eno-style musician. No formal training, but loads of fascinating ideas.
He was always hanging around us musos, but never displayed an interest in picking up an instrument. Then one day, he simply showed up with a brand new Minimoog, and proceeded to learn the shit out of it. Within a few months, he had developed a far better understanding of that Moog than any of us "trained musicians" could grasp, and I developed a solid respect for his sound design capabilities, creativity, and enthusiasm.
We jammed together often, and always had a great time, and played some very strange improvised music. None was recorded, as far as I knew.
Unfortunately, Al also had an enthusiasm for motorcycles, and eventually lost his life in a single vehicle crash in the late 1990's.
Jumping ahead a few decades, I started to take an interest in vintage stereo gear, and bought myself a nice old Pioneer 1/4" reel to reel tape machine. Of course I wanted to test it, and I knew that I had some old reels stashed in a box somewhere.
I located the unlabelled tapes that I had stored for 30+ years, and began the exploration. I fully expected that the old adhesive binder would be compromised to the point of allowing the tape to lose a significant amount of oxide after a single play, so I digitally recorded the first pass of each reel, just in case there was anything worth saving.
To my surprise, one of the reels contained 45 minutes of Alan, alone, playing sound effects on his Minimoog. Lots of great filtered wind effects, little bell sounds, and classic analog beeps and boops.
I was working on "When The Veil Is Thin", and thought that it would be nice to have an ambient section in the middle, where Al's sound effects might be incorporated.
So, the song begins with Al, alone, just some pings and echoes. Then at 1:35, his Minimoog sound effects create a nice foundation for the development of melodic motifs played on Arp 2600, Mellotron M400, guitar, and Roland JD800.
I hope you enjoy it.
credits
released September 28, 2022
James Blair - CP70, Arp 2600, Minimoog, Mellotron M400, Yamaha CS, Roland JP-08, Roland JD-08, TR8S, Taurus pedals, Prophet 5, Prophet 600, Strat, Univox Ric Lawsuit bass.
Sharp interplay, kaleidoscopic influences, and verdant textures push the Chicago band's instrumental boogie to transcendent new heights. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 17, 2024
