Palette is the first compilation project released through the avant en garde! label. true to its name, it displays various shades of music within it’s 15 tracks, not necessarily tied together by its musical cohesion, but rather by a shared love of lo-fi electronics and home recording.

After being involved with the organisation of Continue’s RESTORE compilation, as well being a part of mutants mixtapes series of compilations, i felt the need to use the platform i had created in avant en garde! to release a project that could benefit a cause. Additionally, I felt this could help the label with exploring and perhaps even settling on a cohesive sonic aesthetic for future releases going forward. palette was born out of this sonic exploration, showcasing 15 different artists with 15 unique styles ranging from pop to techno, to hardcore punk, to ambient and psychedelia. Needless to say, I never found sonic cohesion. But, i did end up finding a conceptual through line, as all the artists involved recorded from home and involved lo-fi electronics. The result is a compilation full of open hearts, genuine emotions amidst electronic sounds.

All proceeds from this release have gone to lgbtq related fundraisers. the first three months of proceeds have been donated to the Transgender Education Network of Texas, totaling to $529.25. Subsequent proceeds have been donated to individual fundraisers.

Artwork

For the artwork i wanted to expand on all the themes I had been working with for releases on the label so far. I wanted to create a piece that would not only encapsulate the 15 tracks contained within the tracklist, but also the label itself, seeing as this compilation would effectively represent the label.

building on the existing themes of art history found within releases such as “Temporary Collection”, “art practice” and “online”, as well as the label’s name being referential to avant-garde art movements, i felt the need to explore further to encapsulate a project of this scope. I considered the cover art as an art piece itself, referencing artworks in museums, complete with a label and a blank wallpaper backdrop, which i made by editing a scanned image of a piece of packaging material. This framing also allowed me to continue working in blending traditional and digital media. Going a few steps further than i had done before, this piece features circles of acrylic paint on cardboard, resembling a artist’s palette, complete with instructions on cutting out the shape with a pair of scissors. this was then worked on digitally, with every colour in the palette developing into a little world of sorts, with each world resembling a song on the tracklist. The information card also plays with the idea of blending different media, referring to the piece as mixed media, which can be interpreted as music and visual art, or the art style blending traditional and digital art.

The piece is made out of a combination of digital art and traditional art. Unfortunately, I did not manage to capture the creative process for the traditional portion of this work. The digital part however has been captured with a timelapse, which is available below.

palette

released june 17 2022 through avant en garde!

tracklist

1. theydevil – missed connections
2. vera, etc. – moiré patterns in my head
3. Hexosphere – Water Temples
4. Thana Orchard – Tethers
5. Gala – Straed ar C’hastell
6. emmaoryx – Dogshows
7. Klonoa Grace – Sometimes
8. mousemallow – lately
9. florelle – ladybug
10. Jellica – 012021 techno 1 fast
11. Cyanide Dansen – recenter
12. Holographic Catholic – Cute
13. root vegetable boy – blue 123
14. inchworm race at sunrise – i am safe inside this container called me
15. Trees and Flowers – Hot n’ Hard

additional credits

vera, etc. – art, curation, publishing