Projects included below: Metal Noam, House of Badger, soundtrack/foley “The Sculptress Has No Hands,” live lead guitar
Music, Foley/Sound Effects for the Sculptress Has No Hands Animated Audiobook
The Sculptress Has No Hands by Nathan Carson from Dark Whisper Films on Vimeo.
Metal Noam by Avram
February 2014: Mountastic Records
PR / Press: Catharsis PR: catharsispr@gmail.com
AVRAM IS:
Amanda Machina: lead and rhythm guitars, synthesizer, theremin, backing vocals, arrangement
Nathan Carson (Nanotear Booking, Witch Mountain): drums, composition, arrangement
A. Darryl Moton, bass, composition, arrangment
with help from
Billy Anderson (mixing) | Sam Ford (artwork) | Kell Dockham (typography)
“At just over 13 minutes long, the EP is cutting and thought-provoking and, above all, fun as shit. Songwriting, performances, recording… All of it rounds out a perfect, succinct statement.” – Dan Lake
“Themed heavy metal bands are nothing new…. But, in terms of sheer academic nerdiness, none of these bands come close to Metal Noam – the new musical project based on the writings of famed linguist and leftist political thinker Noam Chomsky.” Shayne Mathis
“Vhol-y trad n’ trems with Noam Chomsky samples? Yeah, exactly that. A Witch Mountain member incites anarchy on the skins.”
DECIBEL MAGAZINE (ADRIEN BEGRAND):
“Part whimsical, part serious … strangely, it actually works, as the Portland trio creates an effective, complementary backdrop for the soundbites rather than drowning out the spoken word with arbitrary metal racket. I’d like to hear more of this project.”
–Adrien Begrand
“A thought provoking EP that accomplishes exactly what it sets out to do. … effectively eerie pieces that will make you wonder what exactly led up to such bold statements to the point where you not only find yourself talking about them, but also going out of your way to research the context in which these words were used, not to mention just make some solid music out of it all.”
EVAN MUGFORD ON UNDERGROUNDVIDEOTELEVISION and HEAVYMETAL.ABOUT.COM:
“Bonus points for the individuality felt and found within Avram … this three-track recording is an intriguing spread of various metal influences, ranging from blackened thrash to an opaque doom metal crawl.
Chomsky’s assured timbre serves as the vocal bedrock of Avram, while a litany of effects and often dramatic riffing counterbalances the humorously affectionate tone of the band’s name. The music and the messages it ramparts have been exceptionally well-mortared, and for such a brief record, it works as an able, emotional extension of Chomsky’s ideas.”
-Evan Mugford
“Avram is not the kind of politically-infused grindcore one might expect to accompany such politically-charged content. What listeners get is more like a cross-style sampler, a multi-genre extreme metal soundtrack for a few key concepts, a series of sonic juxtapositions as disparate as Chomsky’s dry delivery and harsh message. Metal Noam is an intriguing and ambitious project. … Avram is intriguing rather than satisfying, which in this case might be considered a success. The dramatic and unsettling spin through black metal, not-quite-pure heavy metal, doom and everything in between feels like a confrontation with a puzzle whose solution is just out of reach.”
– Laura Wiebe
“Thing is, simply because it sounds like a good idea doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to come through in the execution. But Metal Noam succeeds over the course of 13 minutes, mixing styles that create just the right tone, and leave the proper space for Chomsky’s musings without hamfistedly pummeling listeners. I think they might really care about what Chomsky has to say.”
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House of Badger :: Death Birds
PR / Press: In Music We Trust
August 2008: Risen Phoenix Records
House of Badger is:
Amanda Machina lead and rhythm guitars, vocals, turkish saz, synthesizers, mandolin, composition
Liam McNamara drums, percussion [ guiro/doumbek/pans ], tuvan throat singing, composition, arrangement
Charlie Gallipeau bass, theremin, moog, composition, arrangement
with help from:
Rob Stroup engineering, production
“A Portland, OR based band, the uniquely named House of Badger brought together disparate styles in a manner that resulted in positive press coverage and some highly acclaimed live shows.” [mtv] … [billboard]
“Death Birds is a highly accomplished, seductively compelling and superbly performed album deserving of a higher accolade than this modest columnist can give it.” [blogcritics]
‘This is a weird band that writes weird songs and performs using weird instruments. They’re the Talking Heads by way of Portland, Oregon.” [esd music]
“I can only imagine what their live shows are like with projectors and live video images as a backdrop because their debut album Death Birds is, in itself, a great listen.” [ink 19]
” Employing everything from strange Middle Eastern instruments to theremins down to your good old Les Paul, you’re sure to be reminded of something from your past musical adventures … or adventures from your past life.” [Portland Mercury]
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king black acid
Role: live lead guitarist, backing vocalist, 2009 – 2010
KBA is the brainchild of the brilliant and enigmatic bandleader Daniel Riddle (of the seminal group Hitting Birth ( more here ). KBA features an array of various accomplished musicians in the PDX area.
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jon garcia
Role: live lead guitarist, 2008
Jon Garcia is an award-winning Pacific NW filmmaker (“The Falls”) and songwriter.
“Armed with a whole crew of talented musicians, Jon Garcia creates songs that combine folk, a tiny bit of country, and a whole lot of rock.” –Portland Mercury
“Jon Garcia reaches for the highest note on every track and is not afraid to let his sensitive side show.” –Sound Seattle
“Garcia’s impeccable song writing and performances have drawn fans from all over the world.” –Two Louie’s Press
“…it’s clear this guy has a really pretty voice.” –Willamette Week
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rock friends
Vocals, synthesizer, sequencing ( live performances: Gay Pride, parties, festivals 2010 – cur. )
synthesizer, lead vocals, guitar hero synth guitar, Kaoss pad
