MUDBOY

Raphael Lyon is the enigma known as Mudboy. From the incredibly detailed art/packaging to bizarre mp3 releases attached to scrap metal or plant matter to Freddy Krueger-inspired art installations, Lyon has always been one of the strangest cats on the scene.
This unique perspective also infects his music. Whereas many of today's kosmiche-influenced artists bubble up from the noise scene (with knob-twiddling pedal pusher seemingly a prequisite to sequencing synth jammer these days), Mudboy's work hints more toward the avant-garde as well as a touch of the classical.
Originally released on CD in 2005, This Is Folk Music finds Lyon placing each sound with purpose and carefully sequencing the songs to create a dark, slightly twisted yet strangely beautiful soundscape. Listen to the gunshot crack that kicks the album into high gear on "Solitron Wave", the seamless transition from the sparkling melody of "Running" into the jungle rhythms of "Beirut Dance Party", even commonplace field recordings of waves and night sounds take on a different dimension in Lyon's hands.
This Is Folk Music may have been his first major release but already, all the trademark elements are present: the skewed aesthetic, the attention to detail and especially, the strong compositional sense. This is Mudboy. (Label)