Base Camp Beta

Elizabeth Davis aka Wilted Woman joins us this week to talk the comics/noise scene, recording music on flip phones, and how to make music commodity again. Check Lizzie's work out https://virtual-slap.net/info and her latest record 'Flowers' https://wiltedwoman.bandcamp.com/album/flowers and of course JOIN THE PATREON www.patreon.com/basecampbeta

We're joined this week by producer, musician, technologist, distributor, and CD burner extraordinaire Keith Fullerton Whitman to talk digging for Japan-exclusive Duran Duran mini CDs in the West Village, fine Digitech products, and the kindness of strangers. Video for this episode at our YouTube here https://youtu.be/FMC7VurjMbE Check Keith's work at https://keithfullertonwhitman.com/ JOIN THE PAT...

It's a heat wave all over Europe so in this PATREON EXCLUSIVE episode Shawn and Chris talk celsius vs. farenheit for far too long before moving on to talk about some of the pieces of gear that have most marked their own music. To hear the full episode join the Patreon patreon.com/basecampbeta

Inter-disciplinary artist & musician Julia Santoli joins us this week for a wide ranging discussion covering room acoustics and feedback, ritualism in performances, teaching ethnomusicology, and building a global community of artistic radicals. Check out Julia's website here https://www.juliasantoli.net/ and JOIN THE PATREON patreon.com/basecampbeta

M. Geddes Gengras joins us this week to talk about recording with The Congos, the late 00s LA scene, and childhood sports memories. Make sure to check out Ged's fantastic new record Guest List on Hausu Mountain: https://mgeddesgengras1.bandcamp.com/album/guest-list and join the PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/basecampbeta

Shawn and Chris dive in to the legendary Roland SH-101. We talk about why it is such a beloved piece of gear - both in terms of its sound and its usefulness as a studio and live instrument - and look in to some of our favorite tracks using the 101 - from Chicago and Detroit jack tracks to minimal wave, IDM, and italo-disco. Part 2 of this episode is available on the Patreon: https://patreon.com/ba...

Our good friend Nick Klein is back getting the much coveted BCB hat trick. We talk about how different these three eras that Nick has been on the show (2019, 2023, and now 2026) feel and more generally about the interesting questions facing mid-career artists. We talk innovation, community, and also a bit about the increasing difficulty of running a record label in a world full of tariffs and trad...

Base Camp Beta pivots to video - and what better guest to join us than Kiernan Laveaux! We talk J-rock fashion, getting in to Midwest house and techno, learning to DJ, and The Crow. Video is on our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/qDTszD_xKBc Thanks to Public Sound Studio publicsound.net/public-sound-studios Join the Patreon www.patreon.com/basecampbeta

Chris is back from Superbooth 2026 in Berlin with EXCLUSIVE insights on incredible new PRODUCTS you need to buy this year!!! But before you head to the debtors' prison make sure to sign up for the Patreon https://patreon.com/basecampbeta

In this Patreon bonus episode Chris talks a bit about his early attempts to put out records and we talk some early L.I.E.S. history and the enduring spirit of DIY and being an amateur. To hear the full episode go to Patreon https://www.patreon.com/basecampbeta and sign up for the Alpha Tier.

Jen Kutler joins us to talk about her band whose music is completely outside the audible spectum, making wobbulators, and the enduring DIY spirit. Check Jen's work out at her website: https://www.jenkutler.com/ and join the Patreon: http://patreon.com/basecampbeta

William Selman joins us as we trek out into the field with our starter field recording kit and cringey Jon Hassell texts. We also have a bit of a Critique of Everyday Life special, with Bill talking about his new record "Sanctioned Departures" and Shawn and Chris talking about theirs. Check them all out at https://critiqueofeverydaylife.bandcamp.com/music And join the Patreon patreon.com/basecampb...

Unlock the full episode by joining the Alpha Tier: http://patreon.com/basecampbeta In this Patreon bonus episode Shawn and Chris talk about our first attempts at releasing records. At least that was the idea, but as usual we got caught up in many tangents talking about the presence of voice in music, late 00's music journalism, and just what it means to release music these days.

Ron Kuivila of Wesleyan University and Lovely Music joins us for a wide-ranging and decades-spanning conversation. We do a bit of Lovely Music story time encountering friends along the way like Nicolas Collins, Éliane Radigue, and David Tudor, and we talk installations, early work with Supercollider, and the duties that come with being a teacher. www.patreon.com/basecampbeta

This week we are joined by composer and associate professor at NYU R. Luke DuBois where we talk about everything from serialism to being negged by Xenakis, from Harrison Ford to synthesizer accessibility, and from Serge history to the problem of oysters not having sex. NYU IDM: https://engineering.nyu.edu/faculty/r-luke-dubois TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zix9vIUOFF8 Hit the Patreon:...

Just Chris and Shawn today shootin' the shit. First half we talk about Chris' newly relaunched YouTube series which looks into cybernetics and the work of Roland Kayn, Jaap Vink, and others. And in the back half we do some cultural criticism and eulogize the passing of the record store clerk guy from this cultural coil. Chris' YouTube Series: https://www.youtube.com/@lasynthesehumaine6932 Hit the...

This week we're joined by Matthias Puech from the GRM (Groupe des Recherches Musicales) and lead developer of GRM Atelier. We talk about his history developing alternate firmwares for Eurorack modules, composing for GRM's Acousmonium, and take a side trip to Fourier's tomb. GRM Atelier: https://grm.tools/en/atelier.html Matthias' Website: https://mqtthiqs.github.io/ Hit the Patreon: www.patreon.co...

Shawn and Chris fly solo in the first of our Patreon exclusive bonus episodes. We talk about our first live sets, covering everything from failing computers and MIDI clock drift to passing out from drinking an entire bottle of chartreuse. Go to our Patreon and join the Alpha Tier to hear this episode in full: www.patreon.com/basecampbeta Opening music: Beau Wanzer - Basement Dwellers basecampbeta8...

Greg Zifcak joins us to talk about early interactions with synthesizers in the Bay Area, becoming a more social shut-in, doing math on the synthesizer, and Moroccan rhythms. Greg Zifcak - "Chaabishaav" https://ziftracks.bandcamp.com/album/chaabishaav Greg's Website: https://www.gzifcak.net/ Hit the Patreon: www.patreon.com/basecampbeta Opening music: Beau Wanzer - Basement Dwellers basecampbeta808...

John Elliott from Emeralds, Imaginary Softwoods, Spectrum Spools, and more joins us to talk about basement dwelling Cleveland gear flippers, laptops on stage, and how good Pink Floyd sounds on weed. Imaginary Softwoods: https://imaginarysoftwoods.bandcamp.com/ Hit the Patreon: www.patreon.com/basecampbeta Opening music: Beau Wanzer - Basement Dwellers basecampbeta808@gmail.com

Shawn and Chris are back with season 2 of Base Camp Beta premiering a cool 6 years after season 1. In this episode we discuss our new plans for the podcast - namely interviewing fellow artists and trying to figure out what it means to be an artist under whatever stage of capitalism it is we're currently living through. We talk a bit about what we have each been up to recently and finish up by talk...

On this Very Special Episode of Base Camp Beta, Chris and Shawn trek down to Sheepshead Bay to visit their friend Salvatore Carlino aka P. Leone at his newly opened pizzeria, Lucia of Avenue X. After having some killer slices, they dive into a deep discussion of the topics that really matter: fermentation techniques, dough hydration, what Pete Wells looks like, and answering the age old question o...

Chris and Shawn hike to Prospect Park, eat jerk chicken, and then have a technical glitch while talking about their now-infallible recording process. They reconvene a few days later to talk about the art of learning.

Live from L&B Spumoni Gardens in Brooklyn, NY. We talk giallo and italo-disco, dough hydration, and Richard H Kirk.

RIP Jasen Loveland We dedicate this episode to our friend Andrew Smith aka Jasen Loveland who recently passed away. An incredibly prolific producer who immersed himself deeply in his music, we read through his "12 Studio Traditions" - a set of guidelines and traditions for keeping creativity flowing. Please explore Andrew's work over at his Bandcamp: https://jasenloveland.bandcamp.com/ Outro Music...