Omake & Johnson
Matthew Thomas Shoemaker and I began making music together when we became roommates in 2000 and soon after started playing and recording music together under the pseudonymous Omake & Johnson. While we had only 2 official releases and a handful of live appearances, over the years we continued to get together for recording sessions exploring free improvisation as well as simple graphic, conceptual and intentional scores. I was deeply saddened to learn that he took his own life in August 2017.
To honor Matt’s exceptionally deep and unique creativity, working with Jack Straw Studios, Robert Millis, myself and the Shoemaker family present an immersive installation of his paintings and audio, created over the course of his too-short life. In addition, a replica of Shoemaker’s spring/feedback experiments (he often used springs to both process his sounds and bring the audio environment around him into the emerging musical signal) will be displayed and activated to allow listeners a window into how he manipulated space and time.
Brain Goreng: An installation of paintings and audio by Matthew Thomas Shoemaker
Jack Straw’s New Media Gallery, April 13 – May 18, 2018
Here are some details about specific events to attend during the installation’s run:
Opening reception: Friday, April 13, 7pm : Jack Straw Cultural Center
Memorial concert: Saturday, May 5, 7pm : Chapel Performance Space Wayward Music Series
Featuring Climax Golden Twins, Jim Haynes, Eric Lanzillotta & Dave Knott, with a film by Jesse Paul Miller
Youth and family workshop May 12, 1 -4 pm View Flyer Here
Presented by Steve Barsotti & Dave Knott, featuring some of Shoemaker’s techniques
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For more about Matt and his work, please visit Tiny Mix Tapes, Framework radio podcast & Helen Scarsdale Agency. Experience Matt’s curated collection of photos and reflections on music via his blogs of old Java photos and SE asian cassettes: Brain Goreng.
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Acousmatic electronica and recontextualized sonic equiliberation
by Matt Shoemaker & Dave Knott