First Edition Second Edition   HMS010 Matt Shoemaker Spots in the Sun CD First edition of 50 released: January 2, 2007 SOLD OUT Second edition of 400 release date: February 20, 2007 The second edition of Spots in the Sun is available at no cost. Customers merely have to pay for shipping on this item, or it will be shipped free of charge when bundled with other titles. Matt Shoemaker pulled his chin away from his hand after several ponderous moments, positing that the title to this electrically charged opus of encrypted drone holds at least two entry points. The most obvious reference for Spots in the Sun would be the astrophysical study of sunspots with all of the allusions to earthly disturbances triggered by events millions of miles away. Yet, on the other hand, Shoemaker also proposed an earthbound reference to regions of the world that only exist – perhaps literally, perhaps psycho-geographically – under the intense glare of sunlight. He then shrugged his shoulders, hoping for an ideal situation in which his audience will confront his work as a vacuum and allow personal references to be drawn from within. In simplest terms, Spots in the Sun is a grotesque, sonic landscape with details exaggerated out of proportion and narratives folded upon themselves in a magnificent abstraction of electro-acoustics, rarified field recordings, and particulate matter plucked from ether. Shoemaker works in monochrome, shaping his gray tonalities into rhizomes of shadow which occasionally erupt in brilliance of hyper-realized clarity. While the familiar sounds of encircling birds, turbulent weather, and temple bells litter Shoemaker's recordings, the sonic topography describes a vulgar and hostile landscape where fits of delirium and circadian arrhythmia are common human responses. Shoemaker achieves these complex metaphors through labyrinthine drones spiralling through irradiated fog and glassine vibrations, punctured by the scars of a landscape in perpetual revolt. In many ways, Shoemaker's Spots in the Sun could be mistaken for Bernard Parmegiani at his most focused or even John Duncan at his most gracefully brutal. Shoemaker has two previous recordings for Bernhard Günter's seminal Trente Oiseaux label of lowercase sound, and he currently resides in Seattle. The first edition of Spots in the Sun features corroded brass artwork and is limited to 50 copies. While this version is out of print, a second edition with letterpress artwork was published soon thereafter. Reviews: Paris Transatlantic Bad Alchemy Vital e/i Rockerilla Neural Liability Igloo Magazine Sands-Zine Brainwashed.com Mille-Feuille