Decades ago, the advent of magnetic tape and the portable synthesizer brought drones to musicians everywhere. You could record a single tone for as long as the tape lasted (slowing the tape dropped the pitch and elongated the drone), fashion a tape loop, or twist a few dials and program your synth to sustain into infinity (though some of us just held the keys down with Scotch tape). Today, computer software and cheap storage allow anyone to extend any sound to any desired length. Whether you prefer a cavernous rumble or a poetic whine, you can pick the resulting pitch, too. Alas, less-musical drones seem to be everywhere, from the bellowing of overhead jets, to the rasping whir of small single-engine planes, to the Niagara-like roar of nearby roadways.
Apart from the inescapable drones of modern life, Dronerama2 offers a "roll your own" version. An army of experimental musicians--bios+a+ic, inBOIL, R. S. Pearson, Chaos Is Your Destiny, Nth, xaxis wye, Ffej, Noise Poet Nobody, Toneman, Vance Galloway, Intonarumori, komafuzz, Jeremy Winters, Brad Hawkins, Andrew Luthringer, table:artist, Dan White, Mutant Data Orchestra, the Mood Channel, and Jim Fink--plan to create an immersive display of simultaneous drones. Each artist will use independent sound amplification systems scattered throughout the gallery, enabling you to explore and regulate your intake of the vast collage of morphing mixes. CHRISTOPHER DeLAURENTI
Delve into Dronerama2 Tues June 3 at 8 pm (Consolidated Works, 500 Boren Ave, 381-3218), free.
