Music
I distinctly recall a moment sixth grade, when my mother forced me to continue playing alto saxophone in the school band, despite my protest. I kept playing... well at least until high school.
Since my days on the alto, I have picked up a few new skills that have greatly helped my current two bands achieve their current level of success. Playing synthesizer requires one to really take on the role of producer. It's a task that requires much more than playing an instrument at times. Synth unifies our sound with a unique tone, and distinguishes our ability as musicians to develop creative and unique music. Aside from playing synth live, I also program synthesizer patches, sequence drum machines, and record rough mixes of our our songs.
Skills
- Audio Production (DAW)
- Apple Logic Studio
- Apple GarageBand
- Microphone techniques
- MIDI
- Akai MPC Production
- Sampling
- Sequencing
Audio Ammunition
Audio is a synth-rock band with a bit of a retro vibe, which derives from our mixture of classic punk and 80s pop. We formed in 2005 after I wooed songwriter Jonathan Martin with a few tricks I had learned on my new synthesizer. We met up and exchanged a few musical ideas and began writing songs that we still play today, such as "Don't Look Back". Our favorite moment to date happened last Fall when we were invited to open for national act Shiny Toy Guns.
The Makeshift Gentlemen
Labed as "half-goth electro" by The Riverfront Times, The Makeshift Gentlemen features synth-heavy dance tunes with a dark and melodic twist. I joined up with songwriter Joe Swigunski in 2006 and began recording rough demo cuts of a few of the songs we're currently playing live. After a few shows we got through the kinks of performing with a drum machine, and we're now proud to be playing with acts like up-and-coming electro sensation Femme Fatality and indie rockers The Von Bondies.