In a world where musical boundaries are constantly being pushed, Elaine Walker’s latest album, “No Terrestrial Road”, stands as a beacon of innovation and introspection. This audacious work continues the thematic journey from her previous album, delving deep into the realms of microtonality and futuristic soundscapes. With each track, Elaine Walker seamlessly blends mathematical precision with artistic expression, creating a sonic experience that is as intellectually stimulating as it is emotionally resonant.
“No Terrestrial Road” is not just an album; it’s a profound exploration of the self and the cosmos. Elaine’s inspiration stemmed from a playful mathematical observation, evolving into a musical odyssey that reflects her inner journey and her fascination with extraterrestrial themes. From the title track to the alien-themed songs, each piece embodies a unique blend of personal revelation and cosmic wonder, showcasing Elaine’s distinctive ability to weave complex concepts into accessible and engaging music.
The album’s retro-future aesthetic and use of microtonal scales like the Bohlen-Pierce Scale highlight Elaine’s commitment to pushing musical boundaries. Her background in mathematics and her experiences in high Arctic research add layers of depth to her work, infusing it with a sense of exploration and discovery. We talked to Elaine Walker while she continued to pave the way for microtonal music.
Can you tell us about the inspiration behind your new album “No Terrestrial Road” and how the concept came to life?
It started with the title track. I was working on some math with my partner, and there was a 4-dimensional surface involved. You have to travel a certain way to get from one part of the surface to another, although it deceivingly looks like you can take a shortcut. So I was joking that there is no terrestrial road from here to there, then thought to myself, “That’s a great album title!” and proceeded to write a title track. Then I wrote “Otherworld Express,” which I imagined as the fast rocket that could get you from here to there in one piece. Give a nerd the ability to make music, and this is what happens.
As for the other songs, “Eleven,” “Invaders,” and “Don’t Leave My Planet” are alien-themed. I love the idea of aliens and feel drawn to them. Speaking of that, “Inner Alien” is about my recent autism diagnosis, which I’m actually very happy about. It sure explains a lot! “Vultan Valley” was inspired by a Queen song, Vultan’s Theme (Attack Of The Hawk Men) from Flash Gordon. Only the best and brightest ever catch my obscure Easter eggs! “Flow Field” and “Involution” are mathy titles–echos of my previous math-inspired album, “Four Momentum.” Lastly, “Matter Over Mind” is based on my book with the same title. It’s my brain in the form of a book. Imagine holding it in your hands!
How did your experiences in NASA-funded humans-on-Mars research and your time in the High Arctic influence the themes and sounds of this album?
It’s funny you mentioned that because it will significantly influence my next album. It’s called the NASA Haughton-Mars Project and takes place on Devon Island in the High Arctic every Summer. I’m finally returning in 2025, and I know it will be amazing. It’s truly “Mars on Earth.” I’ll be surrounded by research scientists figuring out the best ways for humans to live and work on Mars. I’ll interview them and blog about our adventures. I also hope to make another music video there (see Martians by ZIA, 2003). Although my five seasons on Devon Island didn’t directly influence “No Terrestrial Road,” it was magnificent character development. I went from never having camped a day in my life to suddenly sleeping in my tent on the permafrost on the largest uninhabited island on Earth, 75˚N. The idea of humans living and multiplying on Mars seemed more real after being there. It’s a Martian landscape as far as you can see––so much more “me” than Burning Man could ever be.
Think about it. Who knows how many times there have been civilization-ending catastrophes in the past? Especially in this digital age, we don’t want to exist only on Earth because all traces of our knowledge could be lost. The real Mars is right next door–our neighboring planet! Mars is calling us with its Earth-like day-night cycle, carbon dioxide for plants, tons of water, and a fun degree of gravity.
Your music often explores microtonal and xenharmonic concepts. Can you explain these concepts and tell how you incorporate these elements into “No Terrestrial Road”?
My professor at Berklee College of Music, Dr. Boulanger, introduced me to the Bohlen-Pierce Scale and other microtonal tunings that made my hair stand on end! It was like notes from outer space that I had never heard before, yet the songs “Dr. B” composed were coherent, melodic, and nice. Right then, I knew I wanted to devote my music career to exploring microtonality. Back then, it was like a physical workout to get my hardware synthesizers in tune with each other, but now it’s easy with software synths. I label my songs with the tuning they are so listeners can get to know the different “flavors” of microtonality. For example, if it says 10edo, that means 10 equal divisions of the octave (instead of the usual 12). 10edo is actually my favorite. There is very little “music theory” worked out for most tunings. But I’ve always composed by ear anyway, so for me, microtonal scales are as easy as standard 12-tone. Seriously, anyone can try–even nonmusicians. Just pick a tuning and play around with the notes until it sounds good. Delete the “bad” notes and keep trying. AI can’t compose microtonal music yet, so you’ll have an edge!
“No Terrestrial Road” features the use of the Bohlen-Pierce Scale. Can you explain what this scale is and how it contributes to the overall sound of the album?
The Bohlen-Pierce Scale is the most alien-sounding scale of all and was quite a crazy way to be introduced to microtonality. It’s so “out there” that it doesn’t even contain octaves! That means there is only one of every note across the keyboard. So you can’t simply play an octave down to make a baseline! Instead of the frame of the scale being an octave, it’s the musical interval that musicians call a “twelfth” (an octave + a fifth) divided into 13 equal steps to create the scale. Most musicians are amazed that such a crazy scale with no octaves is actually more in tune with itself than a standard piano tuning. It’s very different from what we’re used to–so haunting–and challenging to compose with. I work long and hard on my Bohlen-Pierce Scale songs! But my BP songs always get the most play. It’s become very in vogue. There’s just something about it. It’s like alien notes communicating with us!
The album has a retro-future aesthetic. How did you balance these seemingly contrasting elements in your music?
Part of my musical brain has always been stuck in the 80s (sometimes 70s), but I constantly dream about the far future. Will we build cities on Mars? Befriend Aliens? Augment our brains? This futurism organically weaves through my music. Something about the unfamiliarity of microtonal scales brings the 80s vibe into the future. I call it pop music from the year 3000.
Your work spans music, mathematics, and philosophy. How do these fields intersect in “No Terrestrial Road”?
There’s an interplay between the three. My futurist philosophy and math concepts I’m working on inspire my music, which is also meant as background music for anyone reading my book or math research.
What was the most challenging aspect of creating this album, and how did you overcome it?
I work best when there’s only one thing I do in life, but nowadays, I have multiple interesting projects going on at the same time. It often feels like a race to compete with other mathematicians across the globe who don’t even know we exist yet somehow are on the verge of producing similar theories. My microtonal music keyboard invention is about to need serious funding, so I’ve had to focus on the patents. It’s always easy to put music on the back burner since it’s ethereal. It’s an art that doesn’t know it needs to exist until it exists, whereas math is commonly thought to already exist, and we’re paleontologists doing all this hard work to reveal its mysteries. It’s fun but also really hard work. Ensuring an electromechanical invention will work and can be manufactured reasonably takes a lot of time and energy. But then I remind myself that composing microtonal music is also a priority since not enough exists in the world, and a younger version of myself promised to devote a music career to it!
As a pioneer of microtonal music, how do you see the future of this genre evolving, and what role do you hope to play in it?
Microtonal music existed in the United States for 75 years before I entered the scene but was still considered “out there” or “avant-garde.” That’s understandable since it had appeared as an alternative to the mainstream in the first place. But still, after all that time, there wasn’t much in any genre I liked other than my professor’s music, Charles Ives, Ivor Darreg, and a handful of others. Finally, two decades later, Sevish entered the scene! And it seemed like an explosion of new electronic microtonal music after that–Mercury Tree, Zhea Erose, Brendan Byrnes, Fast Fast… so many others. They say they were influenced by me. I was like, “What took you guys so long?” Well, it turns out that Sevish was two when I wrote my first microtonal music. Literal time just had to go by!
They’re all on the Xenharmonic Alliance group on Facebook, along with every other microtonal musician or enthusiast on Earth. That’s the place to go. We’re all very welcoming of newcomers and happy to help in any way. I realize my role is to keep producing more xenharmonic music that can be analyzed since not much theory exists yet for many xenharmonic scales. And I hope to keep influencing people to try it out for themselves.
With the release of “No Terrestrial Road,” what are your hopes for how listeners will engage with and interpret this album?
As far as engaging with it, it’s music to study by, fall asleep to, incorporate into video games, or dance to like an alien. My fans interpret it in the best ways– “Elaine Walker convinces us that by staying in our 12EDO straightjacket, we’re missing out on most of the sonic universe”… or “happy little detours into chiptunes”… or “chip tune disco on acid, tinged with transdimensional intimism.” I’m honestly a little naive about transdimensional intimism.
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