May 31, 2013

Friday night live at Transistor: ersatz modem and Terrible Spaceship. Sound by Jon Monteverde.

ersatz modem is the electronic music project of visual artist Spencer Hutchinson. Started in late 2004, the primary aim of the ersatz modem project is to apply to electronic music production the same Modernist attitude applied to 20th century abstract painting; an attitude that is dedicated to articulating unique psychological and emotional states of being through sound using the aesthetics of so-called Intelligent Dance Music. Hutchinson is a 2009 BFA graduate of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and has showcased and performed his work in new media festivals both nationally and internationally.

Visit ersatz modem on Bandcamp, Soundcloud and Vimeo.

Terrible Spaceship rediscovers media from the past and resuscitates it into a modern music and video multimedia experience. Utilizing samples and live instrumentation for its original scores, the band has been described by the Chicago Tribune as "equally influenced by Danny Elfman, Portishead and Orson and H.G. Welles." Terrible Spaceship's first record, "Invaders: 1938," which tells the tale of the "War of the Worlds" as presented by Orson Welles and the Mercury Theater company, is now available on Bandcamp, iTunes and Amazon. The second record, completed but not yet recorded, is "Zontar, The Thing from Venus." It's a forgotten ridiculous '70s sci-fi/horror film spun into a massive pseudo-electronic high-energy dance party. On this evening the band performed "Zontar."

It's been called apocalyptic swing. Ambient synthetic horror pop. A terrifying story you can dance to. It's Terrible Spaceship.

Also available: a previous Terrible Spaceship Transistor performance from November 16, 2012.