Greg Fox (Liturgy, Ex-Eye, Z’s) will release a new solo album, Contact, available on May 29, 2020 on vinyl and digital formats. This follows his 2017 album The Gradual Progression. We’re looking forward to this new album since Greg is an exceptional, thoughtful artist. The album features original artwork by Emma Kohlmann and design by Will Work For Good. Produced and mixed by Randall Dunn, Contact sees Fox accessing ever more raw and ruminative states. Greg has also launched a Kickstarter to release the album and build a new studio. Watch the new video for the single ‘From the Cessation of What’, directed by Michael A. Flanagan and artwork by Emma Kohlmann.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/studiote/help-launch-studio-te

Greg commented:

For the past two years, amidst maintaining my parallel careers as a professional musician, teacher, and coach, I have been slowly building a music studio in Brooklyn, NY. Recently, the space adjacent to mine in the building where my studio currently exists became available, and the possibility of shifting to a fully professional, public-facing operation became a reality. I began making plans, and took over the rent on March 1st.

the raw space

My initial plan for 2020 was simple and ambitious: bring the space up to par with necessary construction and equipment upgrades to open a fully professional, public-facing tracking studio ideal for music and sounds of all kinds – from bands looking to record albums, to voice-over artists who need a clean take, to soundtrack composers and everything in between. Furthermore, I needed a space to better host my practice of teaching drums and modular synthesis both in person and virtually to students of all ages and all backgrounds that looks and feels professional.

I outlined a budget, and after having numerous conversations with other musicians, engineers, and friends, decided a fundraiser through Kickstarter would be the best way to proceed. Folks seemed to think that crowdfunding this project was a good idea, and I was convinced.

The plan has since shifted somewhat, in light of this global pandemic we find ourselves in the grips of. My touring year as of now has been completely cancelled. I was expecting, over the course of multiple rounds of international touring in 2020, to make somewhere in the ballpark of $20,000 – from performance fees, merchandise sales, and teaching workshops. This was going to be my main source of income for the year, and would provide enough to cover my parallel home and studio rent while I made the upgrades to the space and got it running. Once finished, the thought was that I would start bringing in clients to track, and it would basically support itself. Now that all of my projected income as a working musician has pretty much evaporated, the plan to get this studio off the ground is somewhat in question, along with my livelihood in general.

Even so, it seems that digging in and investing now in making this space a reality is the way forward. The global pandemic will not fully end the practice of recording music, and we will need spaces to facilitate that – especially ones where the day rate is not exorbitant or prohibitive, where there is a good, comfortable vibe, and where you can work with people who have weathered all kinds of storms that go along with living as a professional musicians.

Studio Te will offer very competitive prices for tracking day rates in NYC. I am consulting with a some of the best engineers in the city to ensure that I can meet and exceed the needs of any type of recording situation, without costing clients an arm and a leg for a day in the studio.

Timing being what it is, I also have a new solo record coming out in May on the record label RVNG INTL – As of the time of writing this, the plan is still to release this music as originally scheduled and planned. Because of the alignment, we decided that it made sense to pair these initiatives – so, we are simultaneously announcing both this fundraiser and my new album, “Contact” (I swear I gave it this title over six months ago, without any idea that it would now take on very much added significance). The pre-sale for the album will be conducted here, directly, as one of the reward tiers. Some of the music on that album was recorded at Studio Te. The first single is below, the video animation is by Michael Flanagan, and the artwork comes from the inimitable Emma Kohlmann:

It is obviously a very strange time. I have reservations about doing anything right now that calls attention to myself. While I am certainly struggling to figure out how to proceed, how to make money, how to live among the daily multitudinous existential crises that we are all dealing with, I am also very aware that overall, I am doing quite well: I have a home, a support network, and my health. Cancelling this plan, backing down, would be the wrong move now. I hope that if anything this campaign can be a source of encouragement to others. I believe in the future of music. I believe that we will find a way to get through this. I believe that all of the broken aspects of our society, which are currently coming to bear, will change for the better as a result of this global crisis.

I am building a studio. I am asking you to help support me in this endeavor, to lay the foundation for something new. It is called Studio Te.

De (/də/; Chinese: 德), also written as Te, is a key concept in Chinese philosophy, usually translated “inherent character; inner power; integrity” in Taoism, “moral character; virtue; morality” in Confucianism and other contexts, and “quality; virtue” (guna) or “merit; virtuous deeds” in Chinese Buddhism.

My goal here is to raise $15,000. In truth, I need to raise a lot more than that. It is astounding how much professional level audio cables cost – let alone the rest. Rent needs to be payed, construction materials and soundproofing are not cheap, and the list goes on. But, my hope is that this will help – and all the folks who participate by pledging and receiving the various rewards will be an integral part of the foundation of Studio Te. Fingers crossed!

Thanks for taking the time to check this out. Wishing you good health, peace, happiness, and liberation, wherever and whoever you are.

Tracklist

Vedana

Arising and Passing

Contact (sukha & somanassa)

Parasthesia

Contact (dukkha & domanassa)

Ill Being

From the Cessation of What

Contact (upekkhā)