Aarktica
Encyclopedia
Aarktica is a musical collective
based in New York City which was initially a pseudonym
for Jon DeRosa
, the collective's principal member.
s and a reliance on painkillers. The outfit's debut album, No Solace in Sleep, was recorded on a dying 4-track cassette recorder in various New York University
dorm rooms and released on Silber Records in 2000.
After releasing the now out-of-print Morning One EP on Ochre Records in the UK, Aarktica signed to Darla Records
and released Or You Could Just Go Through Your Whole Life and Be Happy Anyway (Bliss Out v.18) in 2002 and Pure Tone Audiometry
in 2003. These releases would combine lo-fi electro and shoegaze, with the ambient
textures of modern composers like Morton Feldman
and Ingram Marshall
, defining Aarktica's innovative drone-pop hybrid.
Additional past contributors have included Andrew Prinz & Lorraine Lelis (Mahogany) and Gretta Cohn
(cello, of Cursive).
Aarktica's fourth full-length release, Bleeding Light, was released in April 2005 on Darla Records, followed by a limited split 12" with Aaron Spectre on Berlin's Moonbunny Records. In 2007, Aarktica released their fifth full-length recording, Matchless Years, with producer Charles Newman, best known for his work with The Magnetic Fields
.
Musical collective
Musical collective is a phrase used to describe a group of musicians in which membership is flexible and creative control is shared. Such entities have transitioned from the traditional hierarchical configuration that features either a frontman , or a plurality of band members in tension for...
based in New York City which was initially a pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
for Jon DeRosa
Jon DeRosa
Jon DeRosa is a guitarist, composer, singer-songwriter, and vocalist. He has been involved with several critically acclaimed acts, including Dead Leaves Rising , Pale Horse and Rider , as well as the musical collective known as Aarktica.- Background :Raised in the small shore town of Manasquan,...
, the collective's principal member.
Origin
Aarktica was conceived in the winter of 1998 with DeRosa's permanent loss of hearing in one ear as a distraction from his other musical interests. As his hearing loss became less of a distraction and more of a new way of listening, Aarktica became a means to execute the soundtrack of the life in mono now thrust upon him. One of audio distortions, aural hallucinationHallucination
A hallucination, in the broadest sense of the word, is a perception in the absence of a stimulus. In a stricter sense, hallucinations are defined as perceptions in a conscious and awake state in the absence of external stimuli which have qualities of real perception, in that they are vivid,...
s and a reliance on painkillers. The outfit's debut album, No Solace in Sleep, was recorded on a dying 4-track cassette recorder in various New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
dorm rooms and released on Silber Records in 2000.
After releasing the now out-of-print Morning One EP on Ochre Records in the UK, Aarktica signed to Darla Records
Darla Records
Darla Records is an independent record label founded by James Agren while he was in New York. Darla Record's first release was a 7-inch by Grifters, an indie rock/lo-fi band from Memphis.- Background :...
and released Or You Could Just Go Through Your Whole Life and Be Happy Anyway (Bliss Out v.18) in 2002 and Pure Tone Audiometry
Pure tone audiometry
Pure tone audiometry is the key hearing test used to identify hearing threshold levels of an individual, enabling determination of the degree, type and configuration of a hearing loss. Thus, providing the basis for diagnosis and management. PTA is a subjective, behavioural measurement of hearing...
in 2003. These releases would combine lo-fi electro and shoegaze, with the ambient
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
textures of modern composers like Morton Feldman
Morton Feldman
Morton Feldman was an American composer, born in New York City.A major figure in 20th century music, Feldman was a pioneer of indeterminate music, a development associated with the experimental New York School of composers also including John Cage, Christian Wolff, and Earle Brown...
and Ingram Marshall
Ingram Marshall
Ingram Marshall is an American composer and a former student of Vladimir Ussachevsky and Morton Subotnick. Son of Bernice Douglas and Harry Reinhard Marshall, Sr. He was a talented soprano in the Boy's Choir at the Mt. Vernon Community Church, and was influenced early by noted music instructor,...
, defining Aarktica's innovative drone-pop hybrid.
Roster
Over the years, Aarktica has evolved from a solo project into a collective. While DeRosa remains the principal member, the project regularly features a revolving lineup of musicians, so that drones and textures arise from the timbres of the ensemble, not solely from reverb units and delay pedals. Recent members include:- Aaron Spectre (beats/sequences, Drumcorps/AdNoiseam Records)
- Chris Carrico (guitar)
- James DuncanJames Duncan (Musician)James Duncan is a Canadian born musician, improviser and house music producer. He has recorded under his own name and has appeared on recordings in diverse genres such as free jazz, indie rock and post-punk as a musician....
(trumpet, of Le Systeme Records) - Mike PrideMike PrideMike Pride is the former editor of the Concord Monitor of Concord, New Hampshire.He has been a member of the Pulitzer Prize Board since 1999....
(drums, of Dynamite Club) - Nate Wooley (trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
) - Harry Rosenblum (saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
) - Ernest Adzentoivich (upright bass, Plexus)
- Seth Misterka (saxophone, of Dynasty).
Additional past contributors have included Andrew Prinz & Lorraine Lelis (Mahogany) and Gretta Cohn
Gretta Cohn
Gretta Cohn is a cellist who is best known for playing cello in the rock group Cursive from 2001-2005. She left the group in August 2005. Her departure was announced on the Cursive website in late August:...
(cello, of Cursive).
Aarktica's fourth full-length release, Bleeding Light, was released in April 2005 on Darla Records, followed by a limited split 12" with Aaron Spectre on Berlin's Moonbunny Records. In 2007, Aarktica released their fifth full-length recording, Matchless Years, with producer Charles Newman, best known for his work with The Magnetic Fields
The Magnetic Fields
The Magnetic Fields is the principal creative outlet of singer-songwriter Stephin Merritt...
.
Discography
- No Solace in Sleep (2000)
- Morning One EP (2001)
- …or you could just go through your whole life and be happy anyway (2002)
- Pure Tone Audiometry (2003)
- Bleeding Light (2005)
- Matchless Years (2007)
- In Sea (2009)