Brian Parnham
Using atmospheric textures, drones and grooves, electronic artist, Brian Parnham, carves out a meditative space for auditory exploration, creating an escape tunnel from the chaos of daily life.
Parnham's inspiration comes from the peaceful solitude of the Western U.S. deserts, drawing from both the wide open landscapes and the cloisters of the slot canyons. He fully embraces all levels of technology to create deeply stratified and spacious sonic imagery.
Parnham's foray into electronic music began in the mid-1990s when he was a junior at of University of New Hampshire. Dismissive of pop music at the time, he frequented local record stores in search of something new and extraordinary. He sifted through bins of electronic discs, which were often relegated to a hodgepodge of New Age, electronic and other hard to classify titles.
During that time, the tribal-ambient electronic music scene had about peaked with labels such as Hearts of Space and associated label, Fathom still holding some shelf space. He was lucky enough to come across titles from the likes of Steve Roach, Robert Rich and Michael Stearns -- which were then, mostly unfamiliar sonic territory.
Intrigued by these musicians, Parnham borrowed a Korg M1keyboard from his cousin and started tinkering. With the keyboard, an effects box, and a discount-store clay pot, he would stay up all hours of the night, fascinated by infinite amount of rhythms and atmospheres he could evoke.
Particularly awestruck by Roach’s releases “Origins” and “Artifacts,” Parnham researched the source of an unfamiliar sound, he later identified as the Australian didgeridoo. In time, he acquired some of the hollowed tree branches and learned to play -- mastering the distinctive circular breathing technique which contributes to the instrument's core drone sound. He later went on to craft his own didgeridoos, using agave stalks he'd collected during walkabouts in the Southwest deserts.
In 2000, after a number of years with random explorations recorded to 4-track cassette, many of which are missing to date, he independently released a short run of the album, “The Broken Silence.”
In 2002, he contributed a track to the “Passing Strange -- Directions in Electronic Music” multi-artist complilation (Broad Vista Music).
In 2005, “Between Here & There” was released and is now known to the majority of his listeners as his debut album because “The Broken Silence” fell out of print shortly after it was created.
After a two-year hiatus, and with the help and commissioning of friend Steve Roach, “Mantle” was released (SteveRoach.com) marking an exploratory phase in his career. The album is made of deep atmospheric structures and drones, without the use of any rhythms, beats or grooves.
Now utilizing a variety of analog, digital, virtual and analog-modular synthesizers, didgeridoos, percussion, programming and processing, Brian Parnham is an emerging contributor of the next generation of electronic artists. He follows in the footsteps of the pioneers of Ambient electronic soundscapes, with an aspiration to delve into new territory or drop into the next canyon.
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