Dan Shea:
Can you tell us about the Scene’s Sunset Hang 2020 and the event’s history?

Scott Buchanan:
This is our 10th year doing the sunset hang – typically it would’ve been in Salem Mass on the Salem Willows shell. This year our acts adapted to the conditions and we decided to do it virtually…14 acts 30 mins sets.

DS:
What I appreciate about you Scott is the breadth, depth, AND quality of your taste in underground electronic music. How do you come to this flavor, what are some of your formative influences?

SB:
Influences come from the sounds – mostly. Retro sounds of analog gear or music made with certain chip sounds. l like music made through a gameboy sound chip for example /// I love different genres of music but it’s the sounds that inspire me. Genres like skweee, chiptune and the improvised chaos of noise music really fit with the vibe at Sunset Hang.

DS:
The compilation, tell us all about it!!

SB:
Compilation. Well, we just had to see if the artists could send over a little something, something and create a comp and it really worked out. Everything down to the artwork [done by Heikki S of @treemengames] in Toronto, to the mastering by Jorgen in Olso Norway. This is a real nice collaboration of locals artists, Boston artists and international artists. Headlining the event is Bastian Void, a solo moniker of Joseph Bastardo; artist and vintage synth historian. Hailing from the Worcester, Massachusetts – His music is awesome and we are happy to have him on the bill. Other artists on the compilation are Salemite Jesse Ciarmataro aka Qwill and Boston’s !@#$% – they create instrumental vibes that hint at early electronic music styles but add their own current edge. All the artists involved were hand picked by me and we have been talking about doing a remote gig like this for a while. So making a compilation to accompany the live event feels right.

DS:
The pandemic and live underground music, don’t want to get dark, but what are your thoughts for the future?

SB:
erm…
I hope that we can all get silly again in small rooms and listen to loud fucking music!!!

DS:
Have you been working on music, have anything coming out? Parting thoughts?

SB:
I have been working on a new batch of OP-1 tunes. I made them in january or “hashtag” JAMUARY

Every day make a tune etc etc – so I used my 1 hr lunch break at work to write a tune a day for the month of january / I made a few cool beats and I’ll get it out to the masses by dec 31 probably