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I've seen Matt perform solo — acoustic guitars and several amps, in someone's large St Louis home living room. He arrived in a Saab and made several people cry mid-set.

I've seen him perform with his other band, Centaur, in the parking lot of his Tolono, IL bar, Loose Cobra. I watched as the band had just begun their sound check, Matt playing heavy and distorted low octave power chords as a freight train ambled past a few blocks away in the distance.

Last night, and the night before, I got to see Hum for the first time, as they closed out the sold out LA leg of Slide Away fest (with Chapterhouse and Nothing). I've loved their records since I first saw Stars on Beavis and Butthead, some 30 years ago, so it was great to finally see them live. They sound incredible. Loud, heavy, authoritative. I was happy to hear Iron Clad Lou 2 nights in a row. It was such a trip to see the crowd erupt for Electra 2000-era songs I thought only I enjoyed. 10/10

Listening — Week of May 19, 2026 2026-05-26

Here's what I've been listening to this week:

Priscilla Ermel — Origens Da Luz (2020 · Music From Memory)

Yeison Landero — Santa Lucia (2026 · Names You Can Trust)

Mohammad Reza Mortazavi — Nexus (2025 · Latency)

Deaf Center — Low Distance (2019 · Sonic Pieces)

Allan Holdsworth — Warsaw Summer Jazz Days '98 (2019 · Manifesto)

Deaf Center — Owl Splinters (2011 · Type)

Mara Menace — Ederlezi (2026 · Float Records)

Deaf Center — Pale Ravine (2005 · Type)

Deaf Center — Neon City (2022 · Miasmah)

Grateful Dead — March 24, 1990 Knickerbocker Arena (Dusborne matrix)

Lawrence — The City Of Tomorrow IV (2026 · Dial)

Gene Richards Jr — Research (2026 · Float Records)

[Ahmed] — Play Monk (2026 · OTOroku)

Franz Jäger — Evo Devotion (2025 · Float Records)

Pharoah Chromium — Chronicles from the Arab Cold War (2026 · Discrepant)

Diepzeebeest — Detox (2025 · Float Records)

Mark Vernon — Sounds of the Modern Hospital (2026 · Death Is Not the End)

Dire Straits — Brothers in Arms (1985 · Vertigo)

Belt of 8 Ranges, six years later 2026-05-20

Belt of 8 Ranges by Head Dress. Released May 29, 2020 on Neologist Productions. Four tracks, 71 minutes. Modular synthesis, field recordings, and digital signal processing. Recorded in Los Angeles and Saint Louis.

The original tape release was pro-dubbed on high-bias chrome cassette, housed in handmade Maltese-cross casings, in a hand-numbered edition of 30.

The full album is now up on the player here, and the digital version remains available in all formats on Bandcamp.

Disquiet Junto Project 0743: Make It Happen 2026-03-30

Disquiet Junto Project 0743: Make It Happen
The Assignment: Do something you've been meaning to do.

There is just one step this week. The year is still young. Think of something musical you've been meaning to drive, and do it.

The prompt for this week's exercise reminded me that I have been meaning to share what I've been working on lately.

Just a few updates 2026-03-18

New additions:

Head Dress - Slow Chime (Hylé Tapes) Celebrating 10 years. I still dig the B Side.

Death Club - 2013-2014 (Unreleased Demos) Unreleased and barely shared. All programming, guitars, keyboards and vocals by yours truly. There's a lot more of this stuff lying around which will eventually become a Chain Winder release.

Testing the post to email system 2026-02-24

This system, in theory, should convert the attached photo to .webp and discard the original, while stripping all the style info out of the email body.

Welcome Back to Norelco Mori 2026-02-08

Celebrating the relaunch of norelcomori.com with the first new episode in 7 years. The full archive of 75 episodes has migrated from the old Squarespace to its own custom site.

All episodes are available to stream directly from the site or subscribe via your preferred podcast app. The podcast feed has been updated and existing subscriptions will redirect automatically.

Browse the complete episode archive or hit play on the transport bar above to start listening. Tap the playlist button on the top right to expand the full archive. Tap again on any episode title to immediately play it. The info button on the right will take you straight to the episode details page.

Blofeld Keyboard 2026-02-02

Waldorf Blofeld display showing pixelated portrait of Friedrich Nietzsche with German text

Fitting, that the 3rd and most recent Waldorf Blofeld I've purchased arrives on Groundhog Day. After a white and then black desktop unit, this is the first keyboard version I've owned. I really like it.

The Blofeld will temporarily replace the Quantum as the display heads back to Germany for repair. It suffered from the dreaded oil stain issue — which nagged me so incessantly, when powered off, it was as if a giant neon arrow pointing towards the minute imperfection was strobing in the corner of the room.

When I purchased my Quantum, the first unit I received got pretty banged up in transit. It didn't ship in a protective outer box and the display was already experiencing the oil stain issue. I was bummed to have received this (then $4300) purchase in such a state that I decided not to send the next one back, despite the center octave LED refusing to light. Everything else looked and worked perfectly so I kept it. I was way too excited to dive in to wait any longer.

I've ordered a new pitch/mod board to come with the repaired screen and will install them both.

In the meantime, I will be getting reacquainted with the Blofeld. The keyboard looks great in black. I am excited to have this paired with the new Blofeld plugin. I expect this combination will unlock faster patching and I am excited to do that while reclining in my desk chair.

"That which is perfect should not have come into being." —Nietzsche

"Hertz Donut MK1 & MK2, 4 Voices" 2025-11-30

4 voice generative patch with 2 Industrial Music Electronics Stillson Hammer MK2s sequencing Hertz Donut MK1 & MK2.

"IME // Iterations 06" 2024-07-19

4 independent channels sequenced by Polyend Seq / Poly2.

Sending outputs from all 4 Industrial Music Electronics oscillators (2x HD MK3, 2x PH MK3) to Black Locust / Evin 209.

To create the ambling background sludge and hiss, I'm interfacing with Source Audio Ventris, Nemesis, Tasty Chips Electronics ECR+ and Mutable Instruments Beads fed to Time Sefari MK2 with 2 Polivoks filters to process the stereo outs.

"IME // Iterations 05" 2024-07-10

Polyend Seq+Poly2 providing 4 sequences with varying lengths over 4 channels to the Industrial Music Electronics system.

Voices: 2x Hertz Donut MK3, 2x Piston Honda MK3.

"IME // Iterations 04" 2024-06-30

Nothing fancy. Industrial Music Electronics sequenced by Polyend Seq+Poly2.

"REPETITION | Industrial Music Electronics modular system." 2023-11-14

No-crystal, succulent-void modular performance. Beware of Dynamics.

4-voice patch, utilizing 2 Hertz Donut MK3, Hertz Donut MK2, Piston Honda MK2, sequenced via 2 Stillson Hammer MK2.

"DST Observation Begin // Buchla & Tiptop Audio" 2023-11-06

DST Observation Begin

3x 245T Sequential Voltage Source

"DST Observation Begin" excerpt recorded on November 4, 2023.

Buchla & Tiptop Audio 9U wedge. WMD MSCL in parallel. Mutable Instruments Beads adds reverb.

Despite interruption, we will sing our song.

"IME // Iterations 03" 2023-08-03

Heavy ambience with the Industrial Music Electronics system.

"IME // Iterations 02" 2023-08-01

No-crystal, succulent-void performance with the Industrial Music Electronics system. 4-voice patch, utilizing 2x Hertz Donut MK3, 2x Piston Honda MK3.

"IME // Iterations 01" 2023-07-29

Heavy ambience with the Industrial Music Electronics system, Mutable Instruments Beads and Tasty Chips Electronics ECR+. Ergonomic modular synthesizer enclosure by Matthew Goike.

"Virus TI 2 techno" 2022-09-18

Quantum, A4, Rytm.

"Arturia MatrixBrute Noir Edition - 150 BPM" 2021-09-29

Just plain fun. This thing rips. Sounds so much better in black.

"Tower | Elektron Analog Four MK2" 2021-09-25

Spent the evening with Analog Four MK2.

4 evolving sequences shift high probability trig positions to a dual instance backdrop of Barry Martin's Hopalong Orbits Visualizer.

Ligature | IME, Fauxland, Matriarch 2021-09-22

Heavy ambience with Industrial Music Electronics, Fauxland System 100 and Moog Matriarch.

"WASH | GR 1 / Digitakt" 2021-03-30

Quick capture using the Digitakt's class compliant USB audio out to feed the GR-1's live sampling mode. A murky wash of dread.

Workspace, February 2021 2021-02-20

Current state of affairs in the workspace. I've been recording guitars with IME accompaniment. Routing through several Quantum particle oscillators in live granular mode. Dumb riff becomes ear candy. Video coming shortly.

Recording workspace — It's a mess in here.

Doepfer modular case — 9U Doepfer A-100 Monster Case.

Octatrack and Hydrasynth setup — Live looping the Quantum's live granular output via Octatrack MK2.

"IME Hertz Donut MK3 Piano" 2021-02-14

2 short, looping "piano" sketches with the Industrial Music Electronics system. Stillson Hammer MK2 instructing Hertz Donut MK3, fed to Tyme Sefari MK2 through Bionic Lester MK3.

"Almonds" 2021-01-06

Hydrasynth, Toraverb 2. KVLT Drums II. MIJ Dinky through REVV G3, Precision Drive, Radar, Analog Heat.

Phone mic recording adds to the ambiance.

LITANY | Industrial Music Electronics System 2020-10-25

First video with System II, featuring components from Industrial Music Electronics. Custom wedge case by Goike. Reverb by Valhalla Room.

"Interview with O.N.G. Records: Head Dress Makes Anti-Positive Non-Hopeful Ambient Music Perfect for Now" 2020-08-08

Originally published on O.N.G. Records

What kind of music do you make?

I make techno. I make ambient music. For Head Dress, I deliberately stay away from anything hopeful or positive. It's anti-positive, non-hopeful ambient music.

What gear do you use?

Hardware synthesizers are central to my workflow. The Waldorf Quantum is my main voice - it's incredibly deep with its particle oscillators and live granular mode. I also use the Tasty Chips GR-1 for granular work, and the KORG Wavestate for evolving textures.

Everything gets recorded into Bitwig Studio. I find the modulation capabilities in Bitwig complement the hardware well.

You moved from Los Angeles to Saint Louis. How has that affected your work?

The Midwest has a different energy. There's more space, more silence. The music scene here is smaller but dedicated. I've found collaborators I never would have met in LA.

Lake Above Clouds (Demo) 2020-06-29

A quick sketch from this afternoon.

Head Dress - Belt Of 8 Ranges (Neologist Productions) 2020-05-29

New release on Neologist Productions. A 72-minute cassette featuring the 35-minute title track.

This record blends modular synthesis, field recordings, and digital signal processing. Created in Los Angeles and Saint Louis.

Available on Bandcamp.

Head Dress - Faceless (Drowning Signals) 2020-04-17

New album on Drowning Signals.

A dedication to those in the background, the invisible, the unnamed many.

The work combines tape hiss, found sound, and field recordings with minimal synthesizer layers.

Head Dress - Surfaces (Drowning Signals) 2020-03-03

New release on Drowning Signals.

Recommended for gapless playback.

Available on Bandcamp.

Head Dress - Obituary (Audio. Visuals. Atmosphere.) 2020-01-17

New release on Audio. Visuals. Atmosphere.

Found sound, modular, field recording and a stack of Elektron music machines.

Imperceptible cycling segments of gleaming hollows, rugged walls that grasp for a scabrous escape. Remote bells toll in succession. Aerial abstractions of sunken tones cull the evening from the afternoon, the fountain from the spigot.

C32 cassette edition limited to 55 copies.

December 2019 | Several Moments 2019-12-20

Several moments from December.

Super Stable 2019-09-22

My phone has this video feature called "Super Stable." I experimented with it while running the Analog Rytm, Digitakt, Monomachine and Digitone Keys all through the Octatrack and Analog Heat.

Won't be using that feature again.

Two Days in with Monomachine 2019-09-21

Two days deep into the Monomachine.

The menu structure is dense but logical once you understand it. The vocal synth features are surprisingly capable. The feedback and filter exploration has been particularly rewarding.

You can simulate a full band's worth of guitars with this thing.

Monomachine 2019-09-19

Finally acquired a Monomachine SFX60.

I've wanted one of these since 2007. Sleep Clinic's work with it was formative for me. The depth of the Elektron ecosystem continues to impress.

The customization options are overwhelming in the best way.

Head Dress at Bruxism #40 2019-08-28

Playing alongside Syna So Pro and Philosopher's Culture at Bruxism #40 in downtown Saint Louis.

Developing Workflows 2019-08-26

Been refining audio routing workflows using Bitwig Studio with MOTU AVB interfaces.

Multiple machines can be networked together for integrated recording and effects processing. The MPC and Octatrack have very distinct output characters from one another.

Finding the right balance takes time.

Head Dress at Furniture Music Sundays 2019-08-04

Playing a set featuring old and new recordings.

Beauty Sleep Special Mix 2018-11-07

Beauty Sleep w/ Head Dress - New New World Radio

Beauty Sleep special. Celebrating one year of sonic healing on New New World Radio.

Listening Center - Echo Location
Tristan Magnétique - 4.4
Cheekbone - Erioclaucin
Thet Liturgiske Owäsendet - Hazel Green
Oxherding - In The Sky
The Black White State - Chains of Polaris
Thet Liturgiske Owäsendet - Iron Ridge
Izanasz - Tapestries
Izanasz - Memories of Broken Character Armor (Excerpt)

New Episode Schedule for Fall 2018 2018-10-24

The podcast has relocated to Saint Louis.

New episodes will air twice a month on the 2nd and 4th Fridays.

Patreon supporters received early access to Episode 070 featuring Neologist Productions from Omaha.

Saint Louis 2018-09-05

The podcast has moved to Saint Louis, Missouri.

Fall programming coming soon.

Norelco Mori Live On NTS Radio 2018-01-10

Live broadcast on NTS Radio from the LA studio.

January 15, 2018, from 6-7PM (PST).

Featuring new material from several labels.

Norelco Mori on Patreon 2017-07-22

The podcast is now on Patreon.

Producing the show is a considerable amount of work. Over four years, I've curated experimental music from around the world. Streaming has reduced download revenue. Algorithm-based playlists dominate discovery.

Your support enables discovery of experimental music worldwide.

62 episodes and counting.

Win a KORG Monologue from Norelco Mori 2017-04-19

Giveaway time.

Enter to win a KORG Monologue synthesizer by donating $6.66 per entry.

UPDATE: Winners announced!

- Nicoli Vargas (synthesizer) - Richard Laverde (t-shirt) - Yuri Yamaguchi (t-shirt)

Norelco Mori, The Shirt 2017-04-18

Merch is here.

T-shirts featuring the new logo on the left breast and full-size design on back. Printed by Mineus Print.

High-quality 100% cotton from Bella + Canvas. $20 with free US shipping.

Limited Interest Winter Batch 2017 2017-04-18

Two new cassettes from Limited Interest:

LTD-4: HAINBACH - CELLO PATTERN — C50 from Berlin's Stefan Paul Goetsch. 100 ivory cassettes.

LTD-5: SHASTA CULTS - ARGUMENTS FOR TRIVIALISM — Ambient/drone C45. 100 copies in matte white.

Also available: represses of DELIBLE (second edition) and KARL FOUSEK - ONE ANOTHER (second edition), both with new artwork.

All tapes dubbed in-house in real-time on chrome cassettes.

Night Gaunt Recordings Presents 2017-02-18

Night Gaunt Recordings presents: Tower Tar + Silent Servant, Adios Mundo Cruel, Head Dress at Townhall

Tower Tar + Silent Servant. Adios Mundo Cruel. Head Dress. Townhall, Los Angeles.

Top 5 Tapes: 2016 2016-12-16

Year-end favorites.

1. Tim Gray - Sandstone — Hypnotic and addictive synthesized ambient pieces.

2. Joel Danielsen - Lines Of Withdrawal / The Possibility of Resonance

3. XAKATAGAWA - Vol. 2 — Haunting and punishingly sad.

4. Grozny Penthouse - The Death Of Objects — Heavy and deafening techno.

5. Cinema Perdu - A Perfect Negative — Double cassette, nearly 2 hours long.

"Inbox: Hylé Tapes" 2016-12-06

Recent arrivals:

- Jefferson Aircrash - "Large Hadron Collider" - Anders Brørby - "Mulholland Drive, 1984"

"Inbox: Paperbark & Fernlodge, Skittish Arc" 2016-12-05

Three releases:

- Paperbark - "Forgotton Narratives" (Black Box Tapes) - Skittish Arm - "The Outside Inflation" (Psi Lab) - Fernlodge & Paperbark - "Remote Feed" (Cave Recordings)