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FEATURED
13-May-2022
AKA \ Tim Husmann
Artist Biography: by Jon C. Ireson
Vignettes of a misty dreamland with emergent, pulsing mantras
and addictive breathy vocals. 1st Base Runner is the immersive
new project from Texas singer-songwriter and producer
Tim Husmann. The visionary artist draws on shoegaze,
alternative, and dream pop to create powerful songs that
carry the weight of raw emotion and hard-won wisdom.
Music is a compulsion. In another life, Husmann performed
with international acts at storied venues all across North
America from the Troubadour and the Fillmore to
Montreal's St. James United Church, playing drums, synths,
and arranging electronic live setups. For the 1st Base
Runner mastermind, a hiatus of seven years was
necessary to clear out the creative coffers of past
projects in order to forge ahead with a fresh new sound.
Striking out on his own he sought to coalesce his
inspirations into an endeavour that tied together his
love of vintage synthesizers, atmospheric musical acts, and surrealist cinema. With all this
musical flotsam and jetsam floating around in his head, he was compelled to make his
long-awaited return to the scene.
Born in Amarillo, Texas and residing for most of his adult life in Austin, Husmann now lives
in the hills outside of the hip cultural capital. He crafts his concertos conveying the ironies
of the human condition from the privacy of his personal studio on the acreage. A highway
burn removed from the neon distraction of Sixth Street and the live music crucible of the Red River District, Husmann can channel the wind whistling through the thicket on those vast Texas plains to inspire the airy waves of cascading sonics that proliferate his pieces.
His return, the aptly named Seven Years of Silence, is a testament to patience and precise planning. Tim Husmann works with the meticulousness of a Reznor or slow play masters Godspeed You! Black Emperor, wrapping each of his astral post-punk pieces in airy layers of cosmic synthesis. Husmann's mix of gravelly whisper and ruminating croon offers words of guidance over danceable dreamworld gothic pop. The record maintains its grainy glow from start to finish enveloping the listener in rich analog goodness.
This June, Universal Music Group will be releasing music videos for 'Break Even' and 'Only One' directed by visually-arresting visionary video director Matt Mahurin. Of the music film maestro, Husmann says: “I really respect Matt a lot. I find his technique to be incredibly unique. He has a very wonderful way of combining moving image with painting and still photography”. The director is responsible for Sturgill Simpson's 'In Bloom' and Tom Waits' 'Hell Broke Luce' videos. Both feature a striking set of heightened reality visuals and demonstrate a style perfectly tailored to Husmann's cinematic compositions.
On the heels of Seven Years of Silence, 1st Base Runner will release the Ellis EP this September, a collaboration with longtime friend Bryan Ellis. With the creative floodgates now open and the contributions of Ellis added to the record, the new release is markedly more lively. Brighter chords and percussion moved to the fore while keeping the same hazy glow that gave Seven Years its ineffable vibe. Under the guidance of longtime Radiohead Creative Director Dilly Gent, the project will drop a video for the lead track 'Near Me' in July. Effervescing synths bubble over a beat both warm and fuzzy and effortlessly cool. Husmann and Ellis craft a score for young love stumbling through the long summer evenings. Not to be stopped during this prolific boon, 1st Base Runner has another full-length on the docket to be mixed in August. This third release expands upon the sound of Seven Years and Ellis while adding a good dose of post-punk edge with the introduction of live drums to the fold.