Jon 7 & Associates
Mangle Me
Net-Release
Label - Timetheory
Released: August, 2008

From the label - "Mangle Me began as a little tune generated from fractal MIDI, and was posted on a few forums to see who would be interested in mangling it. The real intention was to meet new folks and get to know them a little through their production styles. A few people did turn up with their 'mangles', and the results were collated into this release. Maybe there will be more mangles, maybe not, but the project was fun, and served as a small meet-and-greet." I am responsible for one remix. You can go HERE to download the album in it's entirety.

Various Artists
(TRISKAIDEKAPHOBIA) 13,000.00 MilliSeconds
CD
Label - Ratskin
Released: July 8, 2008

A collection of around 215 artists from all over the map (both location and genre-wise) each doing a thirteen second song. Released by Ratskin Records out of San Francisco, CA. Head over to www.ratskin.org to order a copy. I contributed one titled A Principal Vertex. Also on the comp are people like To Live And Shave In L.A., Matmos, Thrones, Venetian Snares and about 200 or so others. Good times.

FROM AUTUMN TO ASHES
Live At Looney Tunes
CD
Label - Vagrant
Released: June 17, 2008

Royal Crown Vs. Blue Duchess
Everything I Need

"Wow, did we really NOT want to do this record initially. We wanted to do a benefit show for Looney Tunes Records in Long Island as they had recently suffered a fire and anything you can do to help an independent record store was good in our book. But the thought of recording a "live album" in an atmosphere that really isn't even suited to playing a SHOW was a big turn-off. Needless to say, you couldn't move on stage, I had guitar amps right in my ear, but still couldn't hear a damn thing. The audience was lined back through the cd racks and couldn't really move or probably see much. We had to stop after every couple of songs to allow the guy recording it to reset the hard-drive. Not exactly "rock and roll". When all was said and done we got the tracks and examined them only to find one of the guitars lines had crapped out. Because of this the recording was un-usable but part of the deal with the show was people pre-ordered a CD which they were promised at the performance. We were in Europe when we found all of this out and almost ditched it. Thanks to Brian McTernan and his recording expertise we were able to not only salvage it but to make it sound damn good (for what it is).

While sitting at home with my broken foot I managed to put together a song sequence and arrange the recordings in a way that made the show flow a little better than it did in real life. Again, it turned out better than it should have.

So, instead of being a limited edition CD only available in NY it turned into a national release. One thing we COULDN'T save was my vocal mic. But, who am I to nitpick... I never really wanted to do any vocals with FATA anyway so... it's all fine by me."

CONELRAD
Sluts & Slobs
7-inch
Label - Oh No Vertigo!
Released: Sept 30, 2006

Fear And Abandonment

"In typical Conelrad fashion there was more than a year between the tracking of these songs and the release. These songs were recorded live in one day (with vocals being done as an overdub) and mixed the next day. Literally the next week I got the call to join ZAO and the label that was going to release the 7-inch backed out because we wouldn't be touring in the near future. This is why the record itself says it was released by "VERSION CITY" out of Brooklyn, NY. Eventually our long time friend Ben Smartnick decided to put it out. Somewhere along the line nobody thought to change the label info on the sleeve or the record.

After getting together the next year to do a release show for it Adam and I vowed to keep Conelrad alive and kicking in whatever capacity we were able. The song "Mr. Right" is actually penned not by Adam or I but by the wonderful Steve Moore of the band Zombi, who has been a major player in mine and Adam's musical development. Also included is a cover by the band NOMEANSNO.

The record is titled after the failed 1970's smut mag that featured Ms. Annie Sprinkle in a "vomiting spread". It is often referred to as the biggest failure of a magazine ever to be released. This is kind of how Conelrad felt about our place in the music world. "

ZAO
The Fear Is What Keeps Us Here
CD/DVD
Label - Ferret Records
Release Date: June 13, 2006

"One of the most relaxed recording experiences I've ever been involved in. We had 12 days booked at the studio and finished a day ahead of time (not without taking two breaks to watch the Steelers in the Playoffs).We tracked the record with Steve Albini at Electrical Audio in Chicago and so everthing was done live to tape except for some guitar overdubs here and there and the vocals. Basic tracking was done in two and a half days. Over dubs and vocals took another two days. The rest of the time was mixing.

The album was released in two different formats. The first was the stand-alone disc. The other was a limited edition with expanded cover art and a "Making Of" DVD. There is also the Japanese pressing floating around with our cover of Black Flag's "Black Coffee" on it, or so I've heard, I've never actually seen a copy. We did 2 tours on this record and then the band went on a touring freeze prompting me to move to NYC and start anew."

Various Artists
Black On Black Flag - A Tribute to Black Flag
CD
Label - Reignition Records
Release Date: March 13, 2006

Appearing on a track with ZAO

"This was like pulling teeth. We got asked to contribute a track to the re-release of this long out of print Black Flag tribute. The only problem was, I was the only real Black Flag fan in the band. So, I chose Black Coffee because 1) It is from the largely (and unfairly) overlooked later period and 2) because I drink a LOT of damn coffee. We basically went in and tracked and mixed it in one day and shipped it off to the label. Later down the road the Japanese label that released The Fear Is What Keeps Us Here threw it on the end of that album as a bonus track for the Japanese fans. Good ol' international relations!

ZAO
The Lesser Lights Of Heaven
DVD
Label - Ferret Records
Release Date: November 15, 2005

"Zao's manager Ryan J. Downey decided to help the band explain it's chaotic existence by compiling live footage and putting together a feature length documentary. When I joined the band they were in the process of finishing it up and decided to film a show on my first tour with the band. Something happened with the audio and they had to used the overdriven sound from the cameras on stage. So basically we have a pro-shot footage/bootleg audio version of a Zao show. Fortunatley for the fans there is a treasure trove of other live footage (including a whole other set from prior to my joining) and the TWO AND A HALF HOUR documentary (which I make one or two brief appearances in). For Zao die-hards."

Various Artists
Unicorn Mountain Volume 1
Book/CD
Label - Unicorn Mountian
Release Date: 2005

Appearing on a track with CONELRAD

"This is a perfect example of what I miss about Pittsburgh. There is a definate sense of community in the music and art scenes and this compilation/book is the perfect example of that. The general idea was to get a bunch of bands to record a track (all recorded by the same person, for free) in one of the local art galleries (which donated it's space for the cause) and a bunch of artists and writers to make a companion book. The thing is beautiful and I'm glad we got to be a part of it. Much like most of Conelrad's compilation appearances, this (entitled Taepodong II) is one of my favorite songs that we did. It's about nuclear armageddon at the hands of North Korea (and in case you are wondering... we're for it).

Various Artists
The Long Run Of Small Steps
Cassette
Label - Hardtravelin
Release Date: 2005

Appearing on a track with CONELRAD

"This is a limited edition (300 I believe) cassette only compilation put out by Pittsburgh's Hardtravelin' record label. The cassettes were red and came in a hand screened cardboard box with a mini-booklet inside. Conelrad's contribution is a cover of "More Of The Same" by legendary Pittsburgh punk band Half Life. We had initially recorded it during the Bezoar session to be used on a Half Life tribute 7 inch, but we missed a deadline and the track just sat on the shelf collecting dust. So we gave it to the Hardtravelin' guys. The weird vocal sound on the track was achieved by me coverng my mouth with the crook of my arm and me yelling into it. I wanted to sound like I was being smothered. This track also debuted the use of the "Old Smokey". This is a tiny 9 volt battery powered amplifier that looks like a pack of cigarettes (American Spirits to be exact). From this point on, every time I was in Epigram 154 studios in Pittsburgh, I found a place to use this amp on a recording (it's on some of the Sluts and Slobs stuff and also on the Zao "Black Flag" cover)."

CONELRAD/STEVE MOORE
The Torus Shock Trio Sessions
CD (Limited number of 50)
Label - Lost Tundra
OUT OF PRINT! But digital downloads are available in the STORE.
Release Date: September 30, 2004

"A Final Dissolution took SO long to get finished that we just blew off steam one night with Steve Moore. We took a case of beer to the space, hung a couple of mics from the ceiling into the four track and let about 40 minutes of "free-violence" take place. Everything you hear is everything that happened that night, in the order that it happened with nothing edited out. We did another one about a month later (which hasn't been released yet) and a radio broadcast which added an analog synth and a Danzig cover to the mix. All of the CD covers were hand screened by Pittsburgh poster artist Mike Budai and were assembled by yours truly and hand numbered."

UPTOWN RHYTHM AND BRASS
From Under The Covers
CD
Label - Smitty's Music
Release Date: August, 2004

"One of my forays into the 'wedding/country club' music world. I played with these cats for about two years or so, and one of the main reasons I did it was because of their song choices (lots of Blood Sweat and Tears, Chicago, Chase, etc -- basically all of that old 70's jazz rock stuff). Also, 5-FUCKING-PIECE-HORN-SECTION. Nothing like actually playing '25 or 6 to 4' with the actual horn section doing it too. You don't get to do that everyday. But, it was fun. We did a little session where we laid down some of our more "standard" songs to get more private functions and gigs. Some of these CDS are probably floating around Western PA and I'm pretty sure the band is still playing. A lot of my friends gave me a hard time for doing this at the time but the thing is... when I joined the band about 2 weeks before the first gig I played (when their drummer bailed) I already knew every song in the 3 hour set. I just grew up around this kind of music and used to play it when I was learning. Why am I explaining myself???"

CONELRAD
A Final Dissolution
CD
Label - New Addition Media
Release Date: September 17, 2004

"Never have I been involved in a recording process that was so damaged. We did the basic tracks fairly quickly (in about 2 days). Then our engineer Jason Jouver asked me to fill in with his band (Creta Bourzia) on a two and a half week southeastern US tour. When we got back we had issues getting back into the studio to do vocals. Once that was finally done, the studio shut down. It took a while and some sly moves but we eventually got the tracks back off of the harddrive and mixed them in Jason's bedroom. After all of that, it finally came out (one year to the day of when we started recording it). Regardless, it's the perfect example of what we were doing at the time. After this we tended to go a little bit more raw with stuff... which I prefer for the band. But, this is us finding our feet as a two piece."

CONELRAD
Bezoar
7-inch
Label - Hope and Hardtravelin'
Release Date - April 2, 2004

"The first official Conelrad release but actually recorded AFTER the "A Final Dissolution" sessions. We wanted something to come out in the interim of waiting for the full length to be done so we did two "simple" songs, an instrumental and Paranoid Chant (which is a Minutemen cover) in about 3 days and had our friends Joey and Q at Hope and Hardtravelin' press up some copies and get them out there. This ended up being my favorite stuff that we did and the three originals usually got played at every show we did from that point on. The title is a term used for a congeled mass of hair and food that forms in the stomachs of cattle. Some cultures believe it has medicinal purposes. You could ask me until the cows come home what that has to do with the record or the cover art, and I wouldn't be able to tell you."

Various Artists
Advvanced Calculus: Live on 88.3 WRCT
CD
Label - These Bricks Are Mine
Release Date: 2004

Appearing on a track with CONELRAD

"Another great example of not only the size and variety of the Pittsburgh music scene at the time but also of the forward thinking of the station to have the bands play and not only broadcast it in prime time listening hours, but also to do a damn good job recording it. Conelrad did probably 2 or 3 of these broadcasts and always had a good time."

Various Artists
The West Coast Of The East Coast: A Project to Benefit the Multi-Tool
CD/Zine
Label - Hope and Hardtravelin' Records
Release Date: 2004
Appearing on a track with CONELRAD

"This was a compilation that was put out as a benefit for the Multi-Tool project which was a bike workshop in Pittsburgh. The idea was that people would donate bikes and bike parts, and then you could go down and use their tools/parts to fix up your bike, or you could build a bike a donate it to the project, which they would then sell at a super cheap price that all proceeds went back into the project. My favorite Conelrad song hands down. The best conelrad songs always ended up on comps and on the 7 inches that nobody buys. Oh well."

Various Artists
Pure Trash
CD/Zine
Label - Pure Trash
Release Date: 2003
Appearing on a track with THE OPD

"This was a zine put out by some people in Pittsburgh that the opd was friends with. All copies of the zine came with a cd enclosed. This particular track (like most of the opd recordings) was actually a recorded rehersal that was later overdubbed on top of. Chad Stanko is the master of 4-track recording.

BEN HACKETT
Ben Hackett (ep)
Label - none
Release Date: 2003
Appears on one track as guest Drummer

"For a little bit the owner of this studio (Dave's World Studio's in Ambridge, PA) was calling me up to do drums on various recording sessios. This is one that got released. Sort of a singer/songwriter/ToriAmos kind of vibe. This hands down was the hardest gig I've ever had. They did the piano and vocals first (with no click track) and THEN decided to add drums. Needless to say, there was all sorts of weird stuff going on, extra beats on measures, tempo shifts. I tried my best to make sense of it. In the end, one track that I played on got used."

ZOMBI
Twilight Sentinel
CD
Label - Nightmare City
Released: 2003
Appearing on a track as guest Percussionist

"I helped out with percussion on the hidden bonus track on this self-released Zombi EP. The CD itself is out of print but was later reissued along with their first EP as The Zombi Anthology a few years later."

Various Artists
Circuts of Steel
CD
Label - SSS Records
Release Date: 2003
Appearing as "source material" on a track by TORUS

"This CD was a 2 disc compilation of various Pittsburgh electronic artists. As far as I know, Adam (Conelrad) MacGregor took some drum audio of me playing in the Conelrad rehersal space and used it as the source material for this piece. I had no idea until about a year later. But yeah, technically, I'm the basis for this piece."

THE OPD
The Opd Guide To Dating At Work
CD
Label: Slickville Records
Release Date: 2002

A 3 song EP that showcases the 4-piece line-up of the band that was playing out at the time. Recorded in rehersals (much like most of the opd recordings of that time frame) on a 4-track and later overdubbed with vocals and guitar overdubs. Long out of print.

THE OPD
Repressed Memories - The First Ten Years of The OPD
CD
Label: Slickville Records
Release Date: 2001
Appearing on 3 songs

A collection of various recordings (both released and un-released) by Chad Stanko's "the opd" project. Two of the songs I appear on were new recordings made for the release. The third song dates from a session I did with Chad from the early 90's.

BROOKSFOUNDJAKE
Waiting For San Diego
CD
Release Date: 2001
Appearing on Drums/Percussion on a track. Also on Glockenspiel on several others.

"After I got out of college I was so burnt out on music that I went through a bit of a dry spell. Thanks to these guys for giving me the call to play on a couple gigs with them and on this session. The sessions were kind of funny since they were recording stealth mode at a studio after hours (I remember leaving an orchestral gig in Johnstown, PA and driving to Indiana, PA at 2 in the morning and doing the drums for one of the songs as the sun came up). The glockenspiel parts were recorded in a rehersal room in the basement of the music building at Indiana University of PA. None of us were students at the time, so it was a guerrilla mission to take over the room, get the glockenspiel out of the percussion room, get all of the recording gear in a 8 x 8 room, and lay it down before someone kicked us out."

THE O-ZONE PERCUSSION GROUP
Whiplash
CD
Label: Klavier
Release Date: 2001
Appears on one track on Vibraphone/Marimba

"Wow. I had no idea this existed until the other day (almost 7 years after the fact). This is a "re-issue" of a CD by the O-Zone percussion group -- which was the name of the percussion ensemble at the college I went to-- that was led by Gary Olmstead. This particular re-issue contains a track that I perform on Bruce Yurko's Concerto for Percussion and Wind Ensemble that Mr. Yurko basically wrote for our percussion section. I can be heard leading the charge in the "demented clock" section of the piece. I'm actualy playing a really rare 4 octave Vibraphone on the piece. So rare in fact that the Boston Pops used to rent it from our school."

CATCHPENNY
Dajom
CD
Label - Next Records
Release Date: 1999

"Catchpenny used to play with Crank Radio all the time. I always liked the fact that they played really dark weird kind of stuff in the vein of early Shudder To Think. When their drummer was kicked out and they had a bunch of gigs coming up they asked me to step in. History has now proven this is the ongoing trend in my career: Crash course in the bands material with a gig a week off and end up staying in the band. I like the 2nd half of the cd where things are a little weirder and darker. A review in Heartattack I think at the time said that the first half of the record sounded like the Friends theme. I can't argue with that. This record is also important because it hooked me back up with childhood friend Rick McNerny who later went on to record almost all of the Conelrad material in addition to some OPD stuff and Zao material. I still have a few of these lying around if anyone wants them. "

CRANK RADIO
IKYS
Cassette
Label - Bobo Has A Friend
Release Date: 1997

"Third Crank Radio cassette, third bass player. We were like The Melvins of our city. This release is pretty rare and as a result we had no problem recycling riffs later down the road for Conelrad."

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Instability Is Inherent (60 Minutes Of Noise)
Cassette
Label - None
Release Date: 1996

"A compilation of 60 noise artists from around the world doing a one minute song. I used the name Christus Apollo. I couldn't tell you who put this out, why I did the track or how I found out about it, but there it is."

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Stairs To The Closet
CD
Label - AFM Records, INC.
Release Date: 1996
Appears on one track with Crank Radio

"It is usually my policy to never shit talk people I have worked with in any kind of professional music situation, but these guys take the cake. We get asked to participate in a compilation that is going to showcase this studio/record label in Pittsburgh. Great. Hey, we'll even give them an exclusive song! So we go down there, lay down the track everything sounds good. Here's the discussion that follows:
Us: "So when can we come down to mix it"
Them: "We don't allow the bands to sit in on the mixing"
Us: "Really? That kind of stinks.
Them: "Don't worry, we'll let you approve anything we do, and then we'll give you the multi-track master for a small price"
Us: "Okay, We can live with that"
FOUR MONTHS LATER
Them: "Your mix is done, it's been sent to the press"
Us: "Can we hear it?"
Them: "You can hear it when the CD comes out"
Us: "Fine. Can we have our tape?"
Them "We erased it"
These guys were crooks. On top of the fact that they did all sorts of ridiculous "tricks" like adding terrible digital harmonies to vocals and drenching the whole thing in ridicolous reverb. I tried talking 2 different bands I was friends with out of going to this studio and both had bad times. The 2nd band actually had the label/studio shut down and run off to LA with their money and master tapes. Lessons learned."

CRANK RADIO
Country
Cassette
Label - Bobo Has A Friend
Release Date: 1995

"For some reason everyone in the Greensburg, PA music scene grabbed onto this thing. We pretty much sold a copy to everyone around at the time. How do I know this? We sold 300 copies in the town and there were probably only that many people coming to shows. Years later when I joined Zao, our bass player, Marty, would play the the songs all the time at soundcheck. It was weird, I didn't get it at the time and I didn't get it then. Much like most things I'm involved with I just thought it was terrible when we were done. And yes, I still think that."

CRANK RADIO
Atonal, Asymmetrical...We Must Burn!
Cassette
Label - Bobo Has A Friend
Release Date: 1994

"Recorded on a rented cassette 6-Track and probably the ONLY time I'll record with triggers on the drums. This was only done because we didn't have the channels available to "mix" the drums. Cover art is by my brother Adam. He was really upset that it wasn't included in the discography... so here you go buddy."

NAPOLOEN IN RAGS
Toast
Cassette
Label - Trajic Walrus
Release Date: 1992

"The second NIR release. This one has it all: Tribal drums, flutes, female vocals, acoustic numbers, trippy soundscapes and a more reasonable song structure. Notable for being one of the first recordings with myself and Adam MacGregor (who would turn into a long time musical foil) Also appearing on flute is future author Kelly Braffett. Weird."