Artist Interviews 🎶 Studio Tours 🎛

Hello music people 👋

Today in the spotlight, Null Phi Infinity

Currently in the United States, he expresses his creativity in multiple outlets and genres and shares his ways with us 🎶

Interview & Studio Tour

Who are you and what is your relationship with music?

I am Null Phi Infinity, a Baltimore based musician, artist, podcaster, and printmaker.

I first got started in music playing piano and guitar before discovering circuit-bending, sound art, synths, and experimental music. Also, I currently run The Rat's Nest Podcast which is dedicated to creating a patch with modular synths every episode.

Which piece of equipment in your studio is essential to your production process?

I would have to say the computer.

It's where everything is recorded and edited and where I create artwork for both the podcast and my music. Before I had modular I was using a lot of Pure Data, Max/MSP and AudioMulch to create my music.

What is the least expensive piece of gear that gave you the most results?

Definitely contact microphones as they are an unconventional way of recording sound. They give really interesting results and are very easy and cheap to DIY. You can even dip them in plasti-dip to make them waterproof and make DIY hydrophones!

Walk us through your process for creating and producing music.

Honestly I don't have one set way of creating music.

Sometimes I'm just patching to patch and I stumble across something I have to record. Other times, I will take random modular recordings, and/or field recordings and see how they blend with each other. Or, I have a recording I like and specifically patch something to accompany it. Or, I could be inspired by a field recording and I process it with the modular.

I think it's important to be open to trying different techniques and seeing what works.

What is a production technique that you always come back to?

I love a good tape loop, something I've used in my music and in live performances, they're also pretty cheap and a lot of fun to make yourself.

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How would you describe your style?

Dark, Glitchy, and Textural are a few words I would use to describe it. If I had to give a genre I suppose drone, ambient, or noise could describe it but I have also released beat-based albums so I'm a little all over the place.

What is a big challenge you have as an artist?

I definitely struggle with imposter syndrome and being confident enough to put myself out there on social media and promote myself.

Part of that is just hating having to advertise yourself and monetize something you love doing. Part of it is just not feeling like anyone cares what weird noises you're making with your nest of wires on the internet.

Has building a hardware setup changed your perspective on music or life in general?

I would certainly say it has changed my perspective on music, especially creating it and what possibilities modular opens up for you.

I would also say I love having a physical thing and manipulating it to create sound. While I love the computer as a tool, it sucks as a performance device unless you've got an interesting way to interface with it.

I'm not as certain that it changed my perspective on life in general but,

One tip on how to spark creativity?

Experiment, use something in a way you've never used it before or learn a new way to create that you've never tried before.

A book, movie, article, or album that has inspired you?

Books:

• The Dispossessed by Ursula K Le Guin

• Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky

• Dune by Frank Herbert

• Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu

Movies:

• Interstellar

• Spirited Away

Albums:

• The Moon is a Dead World by Gospel

• Board Up the House by Genghis Tron

• Simulacrum & Stimuli by Infinite Hex

• every album by Rolo Tomassi

Anything else you'd like to say?

Listen to The Rat's Nest Podcast!

Where can people find more of your music and connect with you online?

Bancamp | Instagram | YouTube

Gear List

• Knas Ekdahl - Moisturizer

• Modded Nintendo Gameboy

• Modded Korg Monotron Delay

• Circuit-Bent Casio MT-140

• Korg - Volca Modular | Volca FM 2 | SQ-1

• Arturia - Keystep

• Zoom - H4n Pro Recorder

• 2 Portable Cassette Players

• Various Contact Microphones

• Various Acoustic Instruments (Kalimba, Tongue Drum, Ocarina, Guitar)

Modules:

• DIY Ornament and Crime

• Make Noise - Morphagene | Maths | Mimeophon

• Noise Engineering - Cursus Iteritas | Basimilus Iteritas Alter | Numeric Repetitor | Desmodus Versio

• Erica Synths - Black Wavetable VCO | Pico VCO | DIY Multimode VCF | Pico DSP | DIY Swamp | Pico RND

• Befaco - Even VCO | Chopping Kinky | Sampling Modulator | Rampage | Mutes | Out V3

• AI Synthesis - Quad VCA/Mixer | Matrix Mixer | Stereo Matrix Mixer

• Zlob Modular - Vnicursal VCA | SVF Filter | Diode Chaos | Entropy V2 | VC F3DB

• Sonocurrent - Dual Triode DIstortion | Triple Crossfade Array

• Schlappi Engineering - Angle Grinder

• WMD Devices - Kraken

• Qu-Bit - Data Bender

• Doepfer - A-124 Wasp Filter

• Pittsburgh Modular - Crush

• After Later Audio - Monsoon | Ornament and Crime

• Bastl ABC Mixer

In Case You Missed It

125 - spank.au

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Giannis @giannis.kampiotis