You have to work for this free MP3. The Warp Records “micro-site” for the new Harmonic 313 (aka the long-running, moniker-happy, and prolific Mark Pritchard) EP is a set of color-coded word problems, after the fifth level of which you are rewarded with a free MP3, “Problem 7.” Check it out at harmonic313.com/wordproblems. If you imagine a bunch of pixel-graphic characters having their own little after-hours party inside the shell of an old arcade game, then this is what it would sound like. The track opens at the end of a video game, with some sudden bursts followed by an 8-bit death march, and then the tune itself kicks in. The track is great, a slow-stepping bit of beat-driven nostalgia, equal parts Timbaland and Super Mario. (Thanks for the tip, Shawn.)
Current Activities
• February 6, 2019: First day of the new semester of the 15-week "Sounds of Brands" course I teach once a year at the Academy of Art in San Francisco.
• March 22, 2019: I'm giving a talk at the Algorithmic Art Assembly, two days of events in San Francisco: aaassembly.org.
• December 13, 2019: This day marks the 23rd anniversary of Disquiet.com.
• January 7, 2020: This day marks the 8th anniversary of the Disquiet Junto.
• Ongoing: The Disquiet Junto series of weekly communal music projects explore constraints as a springboard for creativity and productivity. There is a new project each Thursday afternoon (California time), and it is due the following Monday at 11:59pm: disquiet.com/junto.
• My book on Aphex Twin's landmark 1994 album, Selected Ambient Works Vol. II, published as part of the 33 1/3 series, an imprint of Bloomsbury, is now in its second printing. It has been translated into Spanish, and is due out soon in Japanese, as well. It can be purchased at amazon.com, among other places.