Of Sound and Fury: The Music Behind the Madness
COMING TO YOUR INBOX ON THURSDAYS
I'm thrilled to introduce this new weekly feature—a reflection of my 32 years of making music and the influences that have shaped my creativity.
Every Thursday, I’ll take you behind the scenes of my music, sharing insights into the creative process and the art that keeps me inspired.
EACH FEATURE WILL HAVE THREE SECTIONS:
FROM THE ARCHIVE: This weeks Featured Track
A dive into a song from my catalog.
IN THE STUDIO: Odds and Sods
Studio insights, workflow tips, inspiration, and maybe a little humor from my creative space.
SOMETHING OLD / SOMETHING NEW:
A look at the art that has shaped my life—music, photography, film, painting, and more. "Something Old" (1961–1989) highlights works from my early years, while "Something New" (1990–present) showcases more recent creations that continue to inspire me.
This is a celebration of creativity, the joy of making things, and the art that makes life worth living. I can’t wait to share it with you!
now, on with the action…
FROM THE ARCHIVE: Culture of Complaint
This is where it all started—1993.
I was living on Army Street in SF (now called Cesar Chavez Street), recording demos for what would become The Grassy Knoll. Fresh out of art school, with Public Enemy, Beastie Boys, and electric Miles on heavy rotation, I was stirring the pot, searching for something new. Something that would challenge me. Move me.
Then this track just happened. Came out of nowhere. Recorded on a four-track, using a Mac Classic as a MIDI sequencer, sampling with a Roland SP-808, saving everything on floppy disks. That process, that moment—it lit a fire in me.
That same week, I recorded two more demos. The following week I mailed out 33 cassettes to labels I thought would like it, labels that had an edge. Three months later, I was in the studio, recording my first album for Nettwerk Records. It was a whirlwind and in hindsight I should have waited, held out for a different, more supportive label. But that’s another story for the archive. Stay tuned.
IN THE STUDIO: Odds and Sods
If you’re familiar with The Grassy Knoll recordings, you already know that I build my sonic foundation on random noise. My favorite way to create sounds is by sampling live albums—specifically those recorded between 1969 and 1974, the golden years of live recordings. Genre doesn’t matter to me. What I’m after are the moments between the songs—the whistles, the instrument clanks, the banter, the claps, the raw, unscripted sounds of human presence.
The actual songs? I couldn’t care less. It’s those fleeting, unguarded seconds between tracks that hold the magic. Guitar tunings, audience murmurs, a cough in the distance—those little fragments become my raw material. I take these moments, drop them into the sampler, and manipulate them—shifting pitch, reversing them, reshaping them into something entirely new.
It’s an intuitive process, and it’s the core of what I do.
SOMETHING NEW
SQUID / GSK / Live From The Basement / September 21, 2022
SOMETHING OLD
Miles Davis / Call It Anything / Live at The Isle of Wight / August 29, 1970
RELATED STORIES I THINK YOU WILL ENJOY:
Thank you so much for reading this newsletter. I look forward to sharing more with you next Thursday. Let me know what you think. This is a free newsletter so comments, likes, and recommendations are golden.
Your catalog has aged very well. Quality work.
Wow, several important stories here! So cool! Congrats on beating cancer, and you earning a new outlook.
That was one of SFs many magical periods.