According to Hunter, missing scenes is his first fully realized project, allowing him to explore the interplay between the natural and synthetic, the light and haze, and the designed and unexpected.
Commenting on the history behind the project, Hunter says: “As 2021 was coming to a close, I was on a walk late one night. It was nearly a full moon. An idea came to me as I looked up. Each month on the full moon in 2022 I will record one new piece of music. I will go out and create field recordings or work on piecing together the elements of a track. The idea grew from there…”. Hunter stresses one constant that unites all his current work: one needs to create space for dreams.
“I tend to think in terms of a book or a movie in miniature while developing a piece, while completed pieces can be a sort of livable space” – says Hunter adding: “I walk through the front door, take my shoes off, admire the view out of the living room windows, notice any art on the walls, books on the shelves, etc. Mindfully taking it all in.”
Greetings from Metalheads Forever Magazine, I’m Keith Clement, How are you today?
Doing great, Keith, thanks for taking the time.
Cold Moon/Worm Moon was out on June 14th Can you tell me about the Music and production behind it?
A lot of cold moon/worm moon came together through layering. Creating a drone or base layer which was then built on top of. The process was a bit less organic than what I’m using for pink moon/buck moon, where I’m really just performing a piece from start to finish and not really doing any overdubs. Just some creative layering to fill the pieces in. Also, cold moon/worm moon focused a bit more on sounds captured in nature such as rain, early evening sounds, deep bass wind chimes, etc.
Was there any particular concept behind the album?
Cold moon/worm moon is the first in a triptych of albums being recorded across 2022. Each work is related, but will ultimately have a different sound from the previous. The new album I’m working on is a lot more focused on creating a specific atmosphere for its entirety, while cold moon/worm moon showcased many facets of my work.
The artistic way you create and put music in this is quite amazing, Each full moon day you stay out and create a masterpiece of a song, How did this idea came, can you tell me the feeling, the emotion and work that was put behind this?
The moon is a constant friend, and looking up at it in late 2021 the idea just struck me.
I have an honest need to create, and I’d been having writer’s block as well as an overall lack of time to dedicate to music.
Setting a crazy goal of finishing one piece each month reigned in my normal impulse, which is generally to over-engineer.
Can you tell me how the project “Missing Scenes” started?
Honestly the main concept behind missing scenes is that I’m getting older, and even though I have released some music in the last decade, I feel time slipping away. I haven’t performed live since my early 20s and a lot of my recent work has been rewarding, but more geared towards creating for concepts cooked up by others. For example, Snares of Sixes is very much Jason Walton’s (JWW of Agalloch) vehicle. It’s a lot of fun to create alongside him and others, but missing scenes is all about what I want to hear and work on.
You have been making some amazing work for the last two decades, how has the journey been so far?
It’s been a lot of fun. Obviously the technology has changed a lot, from a four track, to a Yamaha QY70, to Cool Edit Pro, Cubase, and on and on. But the intent has always been to just create, no matter what media I have available.
What would be some of the upcoming plans for you?
Right now I am preparing for my first live show as missing scenes. I’ll be performing June 20 at Litha Cascadia, a really interesting and diverse festival outside Olympia, WA with a lot of metal, folk, experimental and electronic musicians. There is also a tentative plan for at least one more performance in Portland, OR this year.
I also have nearly an hour of music to choose from for pink moon/buck moon, which should be out late summer or early fall of 2022 on Earth in Sound.
What has been the biggest turning point in your career?
It’s a hard question to answer because while I love creating music and sound in general, I can’t call it a career. I have my full time career and am also a husband and father of two, so I think maybe I have three competing priorities in life, all of which take as much time as you’d imagine.
I think late 2021 when I decided to focus time across 2022 to creating a unique piece monthly could be considered a turning point. It’s a renewed focus on doing something I love, whether or not anyone else is listening.
What would be the message for the fans?
Where’d you come from and how’d you get in? Would you like some coffee?
Tracklist:
- telfecgniron
- lectreus
- ysrea
- creating space to dream
Bandcamp
https://missingscenes.bandcamp.com/album/cold-moon-worm-moon
