-Autumn Records

-Autumn Records

-Autumn Records

"these pieces grew out of my research and interest in just intonation
and prime numbers. during my explorations, i came across some
interesting prime number sets and wondered what they would sound
like. i constructed these pieces using sine wave generators in max/msp.
i chose a base frequency (fundamental) for each piece and multiplied that number by each of the prime numbers in a given set to determine the harmonics / partials / overtones. most of the overtones were transposed down several octaves to fit within a comfortable 2-3 octave range. this became my “scale” or harmonic zone for each piece. i related the panning and metronome speed of each overtone to its frequency. rhythmically, each sine tone / frequency followed its own 3 beat cycle which created overlapping prime number rhythmic patterns.
beat 1 = base frequency for that given overtone
beat 2 = an octave higher
beat 3 = silence (rest)
the lower overtones had faster rhythmic cycles and the higher overtones had slower rhythmic cycles. this was a way for me to relate the rhythm to the prime number sets and integrate it with the harmony while still retaining a musical texture that was interesting to me. i used a simple stereo delay to blur the rhythmic texture to create more of a slowly shifting, patterned harmonic cloud.

these pieces are dedicated to james tenney (1934-2006).
they are an acknowledgment of his extraordinary work with
alternate tuning systems and just intonation.
his musical life should be an inspiration to us all."

-Autumn Records

"new hampshire native
new school vermonter
brattleboro residence
chris has been quietly singing his songs for years

giving away cdrs & cassettes to friends
planting his music here and there

jazz guitarist (studied)
teacher
made up his own book of guitar pattern(s)hapes
little room
small coffees & yogurt
sometimes soup or raw carrot
higher octave music
purple fleece jacket
maybe green pants
inverted guitar

he knows every oblique & obscure corner of the beatles
wrapped in blanket or poncho
did you know that paul used a capo on his bass?
white george harrison hat from the strawberry fields video

joyous open presence
curious infinitely creative mind
look into the third eye
its the ocean
daily mountain climber
late night talk

"all roads descend toward town" (snyder)

chris sheds personal taste filters (buddhism) to get into a very wide range of
songs, histories, moods, vibes, feels, memories, instincts, styles, love, peace
he takes chances (thank you john cage!)
pushes limits & boundaries & envelopes
this is pure, intuitive, heart music

lyrical imagery
strange and funny and spiritual
always honest

melodic twist & turns
harmonic curveballs
makes sense
always catchy

sweet tenor voice like that of colin blunstone
loves robyn hitchcock & syd barrett & steely dan & keith jarrett & jerry garcia
like the best tunes of the elephant 6

chris is a prolific songwriter
he's (more than) the daniel johnston of the new age

and now its the obama age
so its cool to write songs again
and its more than okay to like songs again not many can craft a weird smart pop song like chris does he is the bearer of a torch
running towards the ever expanding finish (beginning) line (light)
listening is easy so do yourself a favor... let these songs get stuck in your head for awhile

"tape walk" is a new collection of chris weisman songs taken from many of his self-released album."

-Autumn Records

"'northern songs' is the debut collaborative project between fellow vermonters, chris weisman & greg davis.

chris has been prolifically & quietly writing and recording songs for many years. greg has been involved in all types of music and has made many records for various labels. he is maybe best known for his drone music and his electro-acoustic computer music work.

for this album, chris sent greg some basic songs on 4-track tapes. usually just guitars, vocals, and maybe another instrument here or there. greg dumped the tracks into his computer and overdubbed all manner of instruments, vocals, and used his signature computer processing techniques to further embellish, explode & extend the arrangements of the songs. the result is a strange, fantastic, wonderful, joyous, weird world of songs with many twists and turns & harmonic / melodic / textural surprises. it is a journey from beginning to end. it takes some time to get acclimated to this sound world, but give it a chance to seep in. repeated listenings will reward the listener & reveal more and more detail, depth and beauty.

'northern songs' is the perfect marriage of chris' lyrical imagery & far out song-craft with greg's expansive computer production / arrangement & compositional ideas. we are really excited about this record & we hope that you will enjoy it."

-Autumn Records