Well, the first big solo show since moving to the city is nearly upon us. And it's a big one, at least in terms of the setup and preparation. Indeed, this is the largest and most complex setup I have used for a live show in quite a while, with both Mac and PC laptops, the tablet, MIDI keyboard, the Evolver synth, and the Proteus 2000 module. And of course the rather byzantine wiring and signal routing to keep it all together.



In the photo, one can see not only the equipment, but a couple of the acoustic instruments I will be playing including the ektar and the gopichand.

Why such a complex setup? Well, I wanted to a variety of pieces for this performance, combining both the newer simplified performances (such as those I did last year on tour with Polly Moller and Company), with some of the older more complex works. I also wanted to play the tablet, which I haven't done in a while, and it only runs on the older PC laptop; and include a couple of pieces from the CD, including Chimera and a variation on Xi. I was a little bit concerned about pulling out the old laptop for this performance, but after some effort it's running decently, and it's great to be able to blend elements from my older performances with the more recent ones. And in truth some of the older pieces are more fun to play, such as Chimera on the tablet, and the patch that responds to live drumming (officially called "drummer boy").

Luna has of course had to make her presence felt during the rehearsals, as you can see here.

After a shaky start, the program has come together quite nicely in the last few days, and I am now looking forward to performing tomorrow.

For those interested, the time and location is:

Thursday, May 8, 8PM
Luggage Store Gallery
1007 Market St.
@ 6th Street
San Francisco, California

More details can be found here.

It has been a really busy week at CatSynth, but we're taking some time to continue our "primary highways" series with a visit to the state of Indiana. Appropriately for our series, Indiana is nicknamed the "Crossroads of America." And that is how many of us know the state, passing from one place to another. It boasts eight major interstate highways: I-69, I-65, I-94, I-70, I-74, I-64, I-80, and I-90. These are indeed crossroads among major U.S. cities, New York, Baltimore, Washington, Boston, Chicago. Detroit, Seattle and are hometown San Francisco.

I have traveled through Indiana en route from New York to San Francisco multiple times on I-80, which is part of the Indiana Toll Road. (Anyone surprised that we are once again traveling along I-80 during this series?)This highway runs along the extreme northern section of the state, passing through farmland, old industrial cities, and the suburbs of Chicago to the west. One can imagine along this landscape the demographic divisions currently being portrayed in the media. One can also observe Indiana's well-known reputation for being flat, particularly in the north. Though in the south, towards Kentucky, the landscape becomes more hilly.


In the northwest, near Chicago, I-80 shares its path with I-94. To the west, I-94 splits off to become the major freeway in downtown Chicago; beyond that it heads towards Milwaukee, then Minneapolis and the northern plains. In Indiana, it hugs the coast of Lake Michigan "before heading east on the long road to Detroit".


A bit of amusing highway trivia involves I-69, which extends from Indianapolis north to Michigan and eventually the Canadian border. There have been plans for a while to extend I-69 south all the way to Texas and the Mexican border, creating another north-south transcontinental route. Former representative John Hostettler from Indiana was a strong supporter of the extension of I-69, but he also led a campaign to change its designation. Apparently, some "religious conservatives believe 'I-69' sounds too risqué". And of course stamping out anything sexually suggestive is far more important than say, actually maintaining our aging infrastructure (let alone dealing with a war and a deeply troubled economy). It should be noted that Hostettler lost his seat in the 2006 election.

The beanbag is back - and Luna has rediscovered it:



It's a great spot to relax by the window, and also supervise as I get ready for the show on Thursday.




Check out more Midnight Monday on House Panthers.

We welcome everyone to the 43rd Bad Kitty Cats Festival of Chaos. And, not surprisingly, we have some chaos with the official Blog Carnival site being out of service as the weekend began. But we still have many cats who joined us, so let's get started.



The theme of the week's festival is music, art and technology. And the cat boys Kashim and Othello get us started with their talents in singing and music criticism.






Over at Life from a Cat's Perspective, Samantha shows off her skills in the visual arts. Meanwhile, Mr. Tigger goes techno.







The kittens at Sleeping Mommy are all extremely cute . But Colby has found a pair of headphones, for some music and relaxation.






It looks to us like Cece is about to break into song at iInfidel. But he prefers this photo to the one posted at Mind of Mog.




Gree reminds us that "a sleeping cat is a work of art" at the House of the (Mostly) Black Cats.






Cheysuli takes to the road and presents Find Chey Friday posted at Chey's Place.


We're not the only ones who thing about wild cats. As wild cats move into cities, it raises some significant issues. A few of these are discussed on Everyone Needs Therapy/




Meanwhile, at Pet's Garden Blog, SonnyBob wants to know .. where are da fishies….Why won’t they come out to play?


Well, the probably don't want to meet the fate of the sardines at What Did You Eat. Little black kitten Laura enjoyed some fresh sardines with sher and some guests. Looks like she's growing, and with such fun cuisine we're not surprised.







That concludes this edition, for now. We'll continue to post entries as the come in through Monday. Thanks to everyone who participated.

An announcement for upcoming show in the city:


Thursday, May 8, 8PM

Luggage Store Gallery
1007 Market St.
@ 6th Street
San Francisco, California
Admission $6-10 sliding scale.

I will be performing a live electronic set, with two laptops, standalone
synths, "circuit-bent" toys and my collection of Indian instruments.
Mostly ambient and experimental, with bits of rhythm, beats and familiar
sounds thrown in.

I might even pull out the old graphics tablet, which I haven't really used
in the last year and a half!



Regular readers may recognize the Luggage Store Gallery from previous articles, including music reviews and my show w/ Polly Moller and Company in Feburary.

There's a lot going into this show, which is my first solo in a while. Watch for some more details during the week...

We are going to be hosting the Bad Kitty Cats Festival of Chaos here at CatSynth this weekend.

The optional theme is music, art, or technology.

To participate, submit your aticle, submit your post to festivalofchaos at gmail dot com or contact us.

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More fun can be found at Weekend Cat Blogging with Kashim and Othello and Astrid.

The Carnival of the Cats is coming this Sunday to Grace and Kittens.

And of course the Friday Ark is at the modulator.

Submitted by Ned of wildfreshness:





Clementine, the tortie, poses next to a Kurzweill keyboard.


If you haven't already visited our post on wild cats, please do so.



You can also check out more Cat on Tuesday.

Check out more Midnight Monday on House Panthers.