Jesse Posco recently started a record label called Holohome. The record label was formed with the express interest of giving the proceeds from record sales to charity. Here at Modbang we applaud charitable behavior especially when the impact is coming from a community so dear to us.

“When I was 9, an Aunt and Uncle bought me a Yamaha PSS-100. It was my first exposure to a musical instrument. I certainly couldn't play it with any skill at the time (some things never change) but I spent untold hours with that stupid thing.

My young brain was fascinated with my new found ability to manipulate sound like a magician with just a few button presses. It was just a dumb square wave keyboard with a few options to change the sound but still - I was hooked. Plus, it was very easy to annoy those around me and I found that charming at the time.  We would eventually record this to our Talkboy - then playing those tapes at half speed which was our Paulstretch of the day.

Fast forward a couple years, and that same Aunt and Uncle whom had gifted me the PSS-100 had a bigger Yamaha model with loads more poorly imitated instruments at their house. The General Midi drumkit patch quickly drew my interest. I could now make drum beats that sounded in my head like the R&B of the early 90's, when in reality my rhythm was likely as stable as a Wogglebug.  Imagine how you, as an adult, might be annoyed as you would hear the same shit General Midi snare and kick drum sound mashed to hell with such pre-teen violence. Looking back, it was just a glimpse into my future ability of listening to the same sounds over into infinity and insanity, trying to make them perfect. I am certain that now, every single day my partner wishes I picked a different superpower.

Unfortunately, as I aged and got more interested in girls, video games and being a moody loner into my teenage years, I had lost my child-like interest I had with those early electronic instruments. It was reflected in my music consumption which in my teens up until that day had been the standard fare. Nirvana, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, 2-Pac or whatever I felt spoke to my fragile emotional state at the time. But - I remember clearly the day almost 25 years ago when I first heard Aphex Twin's "I Care Because You Do". A close friend had brought in the ICBYD CD to our Graphic Design shop class in High School. I was immediately and irreparably changed at that moment I first heard that first track "Acrid Avid Jam Shred". "What a weird name for a song", I thought to myself. But the sounds! I had never heard anything like this. From that point on - I had to consume everything I could like it. From there, I found Warp Records and Rephlex and devoured artists from B12 to Autechre to Bochum Welt and on and on. "Regular" music could no longer satiate me. It escalated quickly - as when I (remarkably) graduated from High School, all I wanted for a graduation present was a synthesizer. I had experimented with Goldwave, RB-338 and Hammerhead at the time (1999) but I had no taste of the real thing. I ended up with a Casio CZ-5000.

In hindsight - not the best synthesizer to learn on. I quickly and painfully learned that it took a lot more than a "real" synthesizer to make a great electronic artist. It didn't last long in my apartment as I had to sell the CZ-5000 to pay bills.

Since then I've owned (and sold) more synthesizers than I should have. I've recorded countless bands and songs of my own. I'm not sure I'm any better at playing the keys since the PSS-100. My sense of hearing has definitely sharpened and tastes narrowed. And with the pandemic - I've somehow spent less time making music.

Speaking of the pandemic, the best thing about it has been finding social replacement - a synth-based community via Discord to share experiences / thoughts / ideas with. Together our community decided to release an ambient compilation with 100% proceeds to charity (link below) last month. It exceeded any and all expectations raising $1200 for the ACLU. It felt good for all us to do good for others with our music. We intend to release more music soon, all with the intend to benefit different charities around the world.” -Jesse Posco

Take a closer look at Jesse’s work here:

Charity Label: https://holohome.bandcamp.com/

Yamaha PSS-100: http://weltenschule.de/TableHooters/Yamaha_PSS-100.html

Casio CZ-5000: http://www.vintagesynth.com/casio/cz5000.php

Most recent personal project: https://orbofthemoons.bandcamp.com/