My Big Break

Archive

go with momentum: interview with Kinlaw

good morning ~

(click the link / rave dome wall to listen)

My Big Breakgo with momentum
a psychedelic light show towers above the heads of the ravers at a party in Montreal
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#252
May 8, 2025
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👍 vibes of late may '25 👍

good morning ~

bringing you another fat stack of hot tracks today via my Vibes of Late playlist

before we get to that, though, just wanted to mention that I’ll be playing a bunch of shows in the Northeast and at least one in LA this month - - check the tour flyer:

a colorful flyer announcing all the various gigs that Ben Seretan is playing in May: saturday may 10 // jerry’s // philadelphia, pa thursday may 15 // captain cook’s seafood // oneonta, ny friday may 16 // stone circle theatre // ridgewood, queens sunday may 17 // autumn records // burlington, ny monday may 19 // avalon lounge // catskill, ny tuesday may 20 // lost bag // providence, ri wednesday may 21 // o’briens // boston, ma wednesday may 28 // solarc // los angeles, CA
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#251
May 1, 2025
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always the getting grimiest

good morning ~

(click the link / neighbor’s cat departing to listen)

My Big Breakalways the getting grimiest
two figures walk up a long driveway - one human, one feline
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#250
April 24, 2025
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nude in the fluorescent light

good morning ~

(click the link / Montreal church to listen)

My Big Breaknude in the fluorescent light
a figure atop an old church reaches to a beautiful blue sky with a halo of stars
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#249
April 17, 2025
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Youth Pastoral Deluxe

hey all -

just a quick note to let you know that the Deluxe edition of my record Youth Pastoral is out today on Tiny Engines

“God is a wild dog running in its sleep”

The deluxe edition brings us a new LP pressing, meaning copies are available for the first time since 2020! We’ve also got a new vinyl master, a bunch of outtakes and b-sides up on streaming, and dazzling, brand new layout and artwork by Alex Tatusian.

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#248
April 11, 2025
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I just wanted these beautiful beasts to run free

good morning ~

(click the link / monster trucks to listen)

My Big BreakI just wanted these beautiful beasts to run free
monster trucks gather...ominously? before a Monster Jam at MVP Arena
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#247
April 10, 2025
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a dusty songbook that you could pull out of a piano bench - interview with Alex Daud

good morning ~

(click the waterpark construction / link to listen)

My Big Breaka dusty songbook that you could pull out of a piano bench
a waterpark is being constructed in the distance across an expanse of empty southern California parking lot
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#246
April 3, 2025
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triple beam coelostat

good morning ~

(click the link / pendulum mural to listen)

My Big Breaktriple beam coelostat
across a domed ceiling in California an art deco era illustration of the zodiac and a pantheon of gods surround a hole from which a dangling pendulum swings
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#245
March 27, 2025
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at some point in my life I need to try something like this

good morning ~

(click the link / citrus towel to listen)

My Big Breakat some point in my life I need to try something like this
a preposterous amount of oranges and lemons lay drying on a beach towel, someone's orange socks are in the frame to the left
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#244
March 20, 2025
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loved it even more for its yoking

good morning ~

(click the Climax view / link to listen)

My Big Breakloved it even more for its yoking
on the first day that felt like spring in the Hudson Valley two road signs wobble in the breeze overlooking a beautiful if quite parched view of the valley
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#243
March 13, 2025
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become large and unruly

good morning ~

(click the link / porch cat to listen)

My Big Breakbecome large and unruly
a beautiful gray cat suns itself on a quaint little back patio
photo by Michael Cormier-O’Leary
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#242
March 6, 2025
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saplings (Youth Pastoral Deluxe)

good morning ~

a single line drawing of Ben Seretan's face on the day that Youth Pastoral came out in 2020
a drawing from 2020 by Caitlin Watkins

Tomorrow will mark FIVE YEARS since the release of Youth Pastoral, an album of songs I put out about breaking, breaking up, and breaking up with God. It was the second to last day of a leap year February and within a week the entire world was about to change. But we didn’t know that at the time, so we all crammed into an over-capacity Union Pool and sang and cried within many overlapping six foot circles, the last big gig many of us went to that year.

a group of people smiles and waves on a jewelbox stage above a big crowd gathered in the dark
a shot from the Union Pool release show
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#241
February 27, 2025
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vibes of late & shaking air feb '25

good morning ~

today I’m starting the first of what I hope are many experimentations with the regular format of this email project - - I truly love sending you new music and writing every week, but lately I’ve been feeling a really strong gravitational pull out of my own head and perspective. asking you my barrage of questions at the end of these emails isn’t enough - I want to spend more dedicated time focusing on other people’s work, I wanna zoom out.

with that in mind, I’m reviving my on-again off-again public playlist habit and dedicating this edition of MBB to broadening our efforts in collective listening

sharing two playlists with you here ~ ~

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#240
February 20, 2025
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will to go without

good morning ~

(click the link / river ice to listen)

My Big Breakwill to go without
ice cracks and lumps geometrically on a semi-frozen Hudson River
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#239
February 13, 2025
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"astral projecting into flavortown" out now

good morning ~

today we’re very happy to release “astral projecting into flavortown,” a new compilation of the best tracks from this newsletter’s 2024 run. it’s up now on all the streamers and also for sale on Bandcamp, thanks to Sound as Language.

the resulting album is typically reflective and serene with vast expanses of calm, little pillows of piano and digital choirs on which you can rest the ring of your mind. but there are also a surprising number of drums and one notable techno-adjacent ripper, each track a pinhole portal into its own little hopeful world.

here’s a link:

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#238
February 7, 2025
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steam rose from the graspers

good morning ~

(click the link / oranges to listen)

My Big Breaksteam rose from the graspers
an orange tree growing beautiful orbs of fruit in front of a church in Braga, Portugal - they are eerily lit by an uplight against a dark night sky
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#236
February 6, 2025
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mental toxicity and dance susceptibility

good morning ~

(click the link / walking guy to listen)

My Big Breakmental toxicity and dance susceptibility
the green walking man animation from the crosswalk signs in Portugal against a brilliant blue day and an apartment building
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#235
January 30, 2025
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second track from "...flavortown"

hello all ~

just a quick note to let you know that “a rare primordial elation” - the second track from the My Big Break compilation coming out next week - is available now as a single.

Easily among the slowest recordings I’ve ever made, this one unfurls very slowly, a haunting melody made from a sampled wind chime undulating over a lo-res digital choir.

You can hear it on streaming:

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#234
January 29, 2025
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love is a wonderful thing and comes with many benefits

good afternoon ~

(click the link / brat sled to listen)

My Big Breaklove is a wonderful thing and comes with many benefits
a man in very snowy pants stands next to a tiny neon green sled in the snow
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#233
January 23, 2025
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some fantastic proportion

hello ~

Friends Meeting - my band with m. geddes gengras - just put out some new music today in an effort to raise money for folks in Los Angeles

the track’s called “some fantastic proportion” taken from the infamous Major Briggs vision monologue from Twin Peaks. the music is easily the grooviest thing we’ve done together and sprawls out kraut-like over the course of 20 minutes:

Friends Meetingsome fantastic proportion
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#232
January 22, 2025
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a shred of aura

good morning ~

(click the link / sunrise to listen)

My Big Breaka shred of aura
a sun rises over Greene County, NY - fiery up top, wintry down bottom, with a refracting crystal hanging in the window upper corner right
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#231
January 16, 2025
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announcing "astral projecting into flavortown"

good morning ~

today we’re announcing the upcoming release of astral projecting into flavortown, a new compilation of the best tracks from this project from the last year.

the first single “they wanna hear another heater” - a particularly spare recording of piano and ebow - is streaming everywhere now. The whole album comes out February 7th and pre-orders are live on Bandcamp

readers of this email project may have heard all these tracks before, but compiled in this way they really become something else entirely and the whole album has a wild flow to it, quick changing modes and moods from track to track

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#230
January 8, 2025
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the lower crags

good morning ~

(click the link / three air dancers to listen)

My Big Breakthe lower crags
three "wacky wiggly arm guys" aka air dancers (colors: pink, yellow, blue) captured in mid mania, smiling almost threateningly, shot from a low angle like a 90s hip hop video
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#229
January 2, 2025
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burrow out a vestigial badger

good morning ~

(click the link / broken playground to listen)

My Big Breakburrow out a vestigial badger
a bright yellow slide attached to a wooden playground remains fenced in by collapsing orange fencing - on the side of the slide you see a warning sign, apparently the playground is dangerous. below green green grass and above a beautiful early winter Catskill sky
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#228
December 19, 2024
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it wouldn't be so bad if it were just like this forever

good morning ~

(click the link / muzak knob to listen)

My Big Breakit wouldn't so bad if it were just like this forever
a knob that reads "muzak" and goes from 0 to 10 on a burlap-textured wall in a out-of-date but very sweet hotel
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#227
December 12, 2024
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best experiences 2024 list - incomplete, out of order

good morning ~

(click the blurry chapel link to listen)

Drone Sleepover ArchivesDrone Sleepover Volume 6

today’s track comes from the StretchMetal Drone Sleepover, an overnight concert I played in Chicago earlier this year. they recorded the entire evening including my entire hour twenty sleepy set of vocal loops, whispers, and keyboard plinks. one of the best gigs I’ve maybe ever played! you should totally pre-order the whole thing, it comes out december 30 and there are a couple of other sets from that night available for streaming now, too

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#226
December 5, 2024
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I will lead you to the nectar

good morning ~

(click the link / skyline to listen)

My Big BreakI will lead you to the nectar
a photo of suburban Chicago seen from an airplane window
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#225
November 21, 2024
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an upwind conflagration

good morning ~

(click the link / NYC night tree to listen)

My Big Breakan upwind conflagration
a tree is backlit by night time security light in NYC and glows eerily
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#224
November 14, 2024
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change of scene, however slender

good morning ~

(click the link / cutout bat to listen)

My Big Breakchange of scene, however slender
a cardboard cutout image of a bat spreading its wings against the backdrop of a nature walk in suburban Illinois
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#223
November 7, 2024
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collision with ursus americanus

good morning ~

(click the link / highway sunset to listen)

My Big Breakcollision with ursus americanus
brake lights illuminate on a downhill slope overlooking the Catskills at sunset
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#222
October 31, 2024
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this one was particularly syrupy

good morning ~

(click the link / mean eyed disco ball shadow to listen)

My Big Breakthis one was particularly syrupy
a disco ball at a strange angle throws a shadow in the shape of mean cartoon eyes
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#221
October 24, 2024
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the screens of phones held to heaven

good morning ~

(click the link / aurora to listen)

My Big Breakthe screens of phones held to heaven
the northern lights captured very poorly from my driveway
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#220
October 17, 2024
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heaven's hazer, god's laser

good morning ~

(click the link / fogged out dance floor to listen)

My Big Breakheaven's hazer, god's laser
people vibing in the red / purple light of the laser lit dance floor
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#219
October 3, 2024
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a surreal hour of normalcy

good morning ~

(click the link / sun streaming through the trees to listen)

My Big Breaka surreal hour of normalcy
sun streaming through skinny pines in a wash of 7am fog machine
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#218
September 19, 2024
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gasps of backlit dust

good morning ~

(click the link / preposterous contraption to listen)

My Big Breakgasps of backlit dust
a tall fair ride is captured mid inverted swing in a blur of motion against a brilliant blue sky
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#217
September 4, 2024
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tubby's tonight

good morning ~

still off rhythm here at MBBHQ - I have no new writing and no new track to offer you, but I did want to let you know about a very sick show happening tonight in Kingston, NY - at Tubby’s, me, Nico, and John will be playing ALLORA again - now one month old! - opening for JRCG whose recent SubPop album is really good. Here’s a ticket link and here’s a flyer:

flyer for a concert at Tubby's August 29th featuring JRCG

I’ve got a couple of great shows next week, too, including Wednesday at the Avalon with one of my favorite ever bands Scree and Maine sweethearts Wildflower. And then - it isn’t technically announced yet - but it looks like we’ll be playing at Rippers in the Rockaways next weekend. More info on all that next week ;)

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#216
August 29, 2024
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Allora T-Shirts

ciao bella -

just a quick note to let you know that these preposterous ALLORA t-shirts are now available for purchase on Bandcamp:

an ALLORA t-shirt hanging out in a barrel of herbs
the back of an ALLORA t-shirt in an herb barrel
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#215
August 13, 2024
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a crushing, heavenly requirement

good morning ~

no new music for you today, but I did do some writing (and you can still check out the album)

heart hands around our friend Max Mellman

there’s a remaining handful of ALLORA release events happening this weekend, including this big show at Union Pool on Saturday:

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#214
August 1, 2024
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Allora

buongiorno ~

just a quick note to say that finally - five years to the day we left the studio in Montebelluna - ALLORA is out now:

album art for ALLORA featuring a clown and a goofy guy smoking plus some bananas and a bunch of floating lips
Ben SeretanAllora
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#213
July 26, 2024
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roba forte

good morning all ~

my first LP in FIVE YEARS comes out on Friday - it’s called ALLORA.

to both celebrate and prepare, we organized a lil online Bandcamp listening party for this evening at 7pm EST - we’ll gather in the chat, listen to the whole album through a couple of days early, and I’ll be taking any questions you might have about how these chaotic 34 minutes came to be - - lobby opens at 6:30pm I believe and then music at 7pm!

you can RSVP here:

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#212
July 24, 2024
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How tight can we wrap our hands around the neck of the song?

good morning ~

changing it up slightly today - still giving you something to listen to, but this time it’s other people’s music. finally updated my long dormant “vibes of late” playlist - - I also updated the now 6+ hour “shaking air” playlist - - check ‘em out below

in the background a beautiful flood plain river, in the foreground a fat fuckin' doink
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#211
July 18, 2024
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Climb the Ladder, At This Time

good morning ~

just writing to share a ~new song~ and a really great interview about the new record, everything, and all the everything that’s crammed into the new record - - enjoy “Climb the Ladder” - the third and final single from ALLORA and this chat between me and Ian Cohen (who reviewed Youth Pastoral for Pitchfork in 2020):


Ben Seretan Interview: 'Allora,' 'Youth Pastoral,' Italy, Leaving The Church, & More

Hear new single "Climb The Ladder" and read our interview about 'Allora,' the New York artist's "insane Italy record."

“Climb the Ladder” is available on Bandcamp (as are digital / vinyl pre-orders):

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#210
July 9, 2024
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veiled in the cheesecloth of exhaustion

good morning ~

(click the link / rave trees to listen)

My Big Breakveiled in the cheesecloth of exhaustion
lights from a music festival pointed upward at a tree make it look ominously green and red
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#209
June 27, 2024
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statues of goblins and gargoyles

good morning ~

(click the link / church sign to listen)

My Big Breakstatues of goblins and gargoyles
a very DIY printer paper sign points to the right and says CHURCH on a pink wall
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#208
June 20, 2024
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he's so much more vocal in his dreams

good morning ~

(click the link / texas wildflowers to listen)

My Big Breakhe's so much more vocal in his dreams
wildflowers grow in a sunny front lawn in austin texas
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#207
June 13, 2024
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on which my choo choo chugs

good morning ~

(click the link / vestigial outlet to listen)

My Big Breakon which my choo choo chugs
an electrical outlet sticks out snake-like from a mound of dir
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#206
June 6, 2024
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sugar on the breeze

good morning ~

(click the link / fogged out Rockaways to listen)

My Big Breaksugar on the breeze
a heavy cloud of haze descends on the Rockaways
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#205
May 30, 2024
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New single - "Bend"

good morning ~

today the second single from ALLORA - my forthcoming “insane Italian album” - is out for your fist-pumping listening enjoyment

“Bend” started like many songs do: hungover as hell wearily seated at an out-of-tune upright piano. In the hands of this mighty power trio, though, in those brief but crammed days we had in the studio, it turned from a headache prayer to a jubilant, threatening promise, a sunflower poem, a muscular disco catharsis

the track is premiering on Paste today and of course you can find it, stream it, and pre-order it in all the usual places.

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#204
May 28, 2024
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24-HOUR DRONE '24 is this weekend

Hi all - - -

I don’t have the time/energy/etc. this week to pull off a new track and some writing however I did want to blast out one final earnest invitation to the thing that is my work this week -

24-HOUR DRONE happens this Saturday in Hudson, New York at a place called Basilica Hudson. I work there and after being a longtime fan of this festival I am now amazingly one of the people working to organize it and pull it off - -

It’s a deep, challenging, special music event that is quite unlike anything else - hundreds of people sprawled out on concrete slumbering as the music unfurls.

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#203
May 16, 2024
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the yoke of the yearn

good morning ~

(click the link / thumbs up toad to listen)

My Big Breakthe yoke of the yearn
thumbs up for mr. frog
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#202
May 9, 2024
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