Shoemaker, Matt

Shoemaker, Matt

Soundtrack For Dislocation

Elevator Bath

Matt Shoemaker's first full-length album for Elevator Bath is "Soundtrack for Dislocation," an entirely self-contained account of a fantastically abstract and intensely personal vision.  As with much of Shoemaker's work, this is an album permeated with a very potent sense of unease. And despite the fact that the use of field recordings is very minimal here, there is a no less organically tangible quality which only contributes to the feeling of disquietude.  For those unfamiliar with Matt Shoemaker's work, "Soundtrack for Dislocation" is absolutely the ideal place to start as it is arguably the most fully-realized project in his catalog. All the necessary elements are present: The enigmatic cover and interior images, the cryptic track titles, and of course the recordings themselves - densely packed and elaborately evolved aberrancies. Shoemaker seems to have provided more than enough clues to the puzzles he offers in his works but, like the most effective tales, these subtle indications cannot quite account for all that happens. The rest is up to the astute listener who accepts this very inscrutability as the reward.  Matt Shoemaker's music has been released by such labels as Trente Oiseaux, The Helen Scarsdale Agency, Mystery Sea, and Ferns Recordings. He resides in the northwest of the United States.  "Soundtrack for Dislocation" was originally released as a compact disc by Elevator Bath in 2010.

Shoemaker, Matt

Isolated Agent / Stranding Behavior

Elevator Bath

Much of Shoemaker's recorded output prominently features the use of field recordings (see his "Tropical Amnesia One" CD), but in this case he has eschewed such grounded measures and has instead sculpted a two-part puzzle which seemingly exists on some other plane(t). Layer upon evolving layer of sonic phenomena is still the methodological trademark, but the content is almost entirely electronic, lending a great deal of vivid color to a description of blackest space. The two works presented here are powerfully mysterious, unsettling examples of Matt Shoemaker's prowess as a composer of details, of moods and tenses.  The improbably relevant artwork for this release consists of two collages utilizing Shoemaker's own hand-dyed paper. The images, as well as their meanings, are essentially abstract and yet remarkably familiar. The "Isolated Agent" scuttles in a circular motion, forever locked in an endless search for the unknown element. The constant retreat, the "Stranding Behavior" inevitably resulting in/from confusion.  "You realize what you are implying? That we owe our human condition here to the intervention of insects."  Matt Shoemaker's music has been released by such labels as Trente Oiseaux, The Helen Scarsdale Agency, and Ferns Recordings. He resides in Seattle.  These tracks were originally released by Elevator Bath as a limited edition picture disc LP.