Holocene Dream by Brendan Byrnes

This album continues to explore the unique colors of the 27 and 22 Equal Divisions of the Octave tuning systems and was created with two distinct approaches.

About half of the tracks originated during a “Song A Day'' challenge that I participated in over the summer. The challenge was to write, record, and mix one song each day for seven days straight — but I also imposed additional rules on myself: no grid, no click track, and no virtual instruments. These limitations pushed me to experiment, not overthink, and just have fun. Some of the tracks didn’t change much from their first draft. “Rhinosaur Beach,” for example, wasn’t changed or added to at all. Others, like “Out of the Sun,” evolved quite a bit as I added additional layers, including the trumpets, beautifully performed and recorded by Louis Lopez. This workflow was very liberating for me, and I intend to create more music with this approach moving forward.

The other half of the album was composed at a slower pace and in the manner that I usually tend to work. These songs feature the brilliant drumming of Matt Walker. I’ve been fortunate to collaborate with Matt on several projects over the years. He’s well known for his work with the Smashing Pumpkins and Morrisey, and on these powerful and intricate performances, you can hear why he’s such an in-demand drummer.

Similar to my last album, “2227,” I let the microtonal guitars lead the way. I’m still fascinated by both 22 and 27 EDO tuning systems, and I’m always surprised to find more and more cool things that can be done with them. I hope you enjoy the album. As always, thank you very much for listening and for your support.

mostly microtonal musician

music in various EDOs (equal divisions of the octave) and just intonation. some 12 EDO music as well.

also a member of ILEVENS and Birch

brendanbyrnes.com
ILEVENS
Birch