DDCT
Aaron Diko, former synth-commander in POW! made the jump from the Bay back to his home turf of Circle City, Indiana to make a wealth of recordings with creative comrades like Creeping Pink’s Landon Caldwell, Vacation Club’s Mitch Duncan, Burnt Ones’ Mark Tester. The result is a self-titled album mastered by Spacemen 3, E.A.R., Spectrum’s Sonic Boom that was recorded in a East Indiana house half-inch tape made over the course three days of unrelenting humidity & according to Aaron was largely improvised. Like the more electronically imbued facets of POW!’s sound to the most motorik of pop provocateurs both classic & contemporary—DDCT abides by a code of mind expanding electronic experimentation that illustrates an intuitive approach to the artistic process. With the DDCT self-titled available August 11 as a split between Empty Cellar & the new Indiana imprint Medium Sound; we are proudly present the grand premiere for whirring electro-extra-terrestrial “Tracks”. Like the group’s mandated mantra/ethos for the record:
Bring the gang over. Plug them all in to one another and flip the switch. Results of recording upstairs on borrowed time with a room full of hardware and optimistic intentions. Sequencers, drum machines and hand-moved knobs clash with analog synths and crisscrossed signal paths. Direct-in guitar overdubs rub shoulders with rhythmic happenstance.
Aaron along with the DDCT crew of Landon, Mark & Mitch make-believe something of a flying-saucer happening that becomes manifested through the dimensions & departments reached with their collaborative contributions. “Tracks” begins with the warm-up sound of switches flipping consoles into the on position as the entire operations kicks into first gear. This is where DDCT collect together a plethora of rising & falling keyboard progressions that operate like a dizzying array of bugs discovering a new habitat full of lavish floral vegetation serving as environmental decorum. The gang makes something of a video game of their own devising as keys dive & dip in a symphony of abstract yet connective synthesizer motifs. From loops to disrupting buzzes & bleeps that emerge into the ear’s radar; the DDCT task-force create a strange synthesis of surreal & adventurous sequences that will inspire the mind’s eyes/ears/imaginations to paint portraits & films that evolve with each new listen.
We had the chance to catchup with Aaron Diko in the following interview transcription:
Tell us about the jump from the Bay to your homeland of Circle City, Indiana and how that invigorated your creative processes.
Well, before San Francisco I was living in Chicago with my sister for a few years. So once a year I’ll fly back to Chicago and hang out before taking the bus to Indiana to see friends and family. I’ve known Landon and Mitch for about 18 years. We grew up together in a small corn town just north of Indy. Mark is a good friend with my older sister so we’ve really been in the same circle for almost a few decades. Landon’s been pushing me to get this out for years. You kinda need that encouragement from others. With our history we all vibe really well together and there’s no second guessing when we make music with each other. It’s just flows.
Describe how your collaborations Landon Caldwell (of Creeping Pink), Mitch Duncan (of Vacation Club) & Mark Tester (from Burnt Ones) have further enlightened the electro components at work in your own hive/incubator.
They’ve inspired me in many ways. Personally and musically. I’ve learned you can have a huge impact sonically with very little. Repetition can be very entrancing when done the right way.
How did you all get the legendary Sonic Boom to master the record?
Honestly, I just asked him and he was into it… which is a dream fucking come true for all of us. There are so many opportunities around us at all times and you just need to ask or let it be known.
Further thoughts on what you all learned from the collaborative process with everyone on this new release?
We figured out how to sync a ton of synths and drum machines together. I think we had 8 synths and a few drum machines at Mark’s home studio.
Other artists & events we should be hipped to?
As far as synth music. Bands from Melbourne. Total Control, Nun, Mikey Young’s (of Total Control) new solo record rips. Born bad records is good for 80’s minimal wave. What I’ve been listening to lately is a lot of Northern African and Middle Eastern music. Labels to check out are:
Awesome Tapes From Africa, Sahel Sounds, Pharaway Sounds, Sublime Frequencies.
Fall & winter hopes/wishes?
I’m working on a new project called Gravité with a friend. Right now we’re mainly improvising with a bunch of synths for live shows. Hope to put out some of that soon. Also we’re in the process of actually structuring and writing songs for recording but I think our live sets will mainly be improv. DDCT is a cross country recording project. I hope to release new DDCT recordings in the future, but seeing as we live so far away…it’ll take some time. All of us being there present in the moment is what made it happen.
Aaron Diko’s DDCT self-titled will be available August 11 via Empty Cellar/Medium Sound.
