Jake Meginsky

Jake Meginsky is an electronic producer and percussionist from Northampton, Massachusetts, who creates music under his own name and under the Vapor Gourds moniker. Jake is one of the most adventurous minds in experimental music today. His solo work as Jake Meginsky serves as a reminder that less can be more in music, with his last LP, Seven Psychotropic Sinewave Palindromes, released in 2016 on NNA Tapes, being a prime example. In this gloriously disorienting and conceptual work, Jake uses only four elements—sine waves, square waves, white noise, and an 808 kick—to create music that is precisely what the title suggests: psychotropic. Vapor Gourds, on the other hand, is a different kind of beast: a reimagining and revitalization of several familiar genres that intermingle to create something that paradoxically sounds natural. Jake also collaborates on various projects, such as F/I/P with guitar player Bill Nace and X.O.4, while also participating in various interdisciplinary artistic ventures.

In the records

STM 195 combines many worlds that may initially seem disconnected, but they all find their place in Jake’s music. The mix includes the inquisitive explorations of Mads Emil Nielsen, Nicola Ratti, Andrew Pekler, and others, yet these are never far from their “practical application” in dance music—the rhythmic, grating aggression of Container, the minimalist patterns of footwork godfathers RP Boo and DJ Rashad (The Quietus noted that Seven Psychotropic Sinewave Palindromes sounds like a footwork remix of Phill Niblock’s deepest tones). Then there are the peculiar flavors of Joe Meek, Public Image Ltd, Raymond Scott’s theme-park-esque “Sleepy Time,” and others. This is a music nerd’s mix—far from straightforward—yet it feels charmingly personal and easy to grasp. It’s almost catchy. And again, this seems to echo Jake’s own work in its enigmatic relatability. The mix evokes Morris Louis’ 1959 abstract painting Seal: there is mystery in the forms and hues, but the softness is irresistible.