Underground Power Trio Brings Unique Electronic Soundscapes to Santa Monica

By Jorge Casuso

September 7, 2017 -- Tone Drift, a trio of some of LA's most sought-after underground musicians, will showcase their improvised electronic soundscapes at the Santa Monica Library next month.

Assembled by guitarist G. E. Stinson, the group, which includes electric bassist Steuart Liebig and trumpet player Kris Tiner, will perform Wednesday, October 18, at 7:30 p.m. as part of the library's free Soundwaves concert series.

G.E. Stinson

Stinson, an original member of Grammy-winners Shadowfax, is known for coaxing a universe of unusual sounds using his "extended technique" and "frequency manipulation." In 1989, he left Shadowfax and became a leading figure in LA's fertile underground music scene, working with Adam Rudolph, Nels Cline, Alex Cline, Alex De Grassi and Napalm Quartet, among others. Liebig, who has played on most of the music Stinson has created since Shadowfax, is also known for his improvisational talents and a wide-ranging sound palette honed with his former band The Mentones.

Stinson has called the mufti-faceted bassist "one of the most significant improvising electric bass torturers and electronic manipulators in recent memory."

Trumpet player Tiner has been featured on NPR Music as one of a handful of new trumpet voices impacting modern music, while the LA Weekly has written that his playing "can turn barbed wire to beauty.”

The monthly Soundwaves series presents artists who appear on the DRAM (Database of Recorded American Music) streaming service. The Santa Monica Library is the first public library to offer this service to its cardholders.

Listings of past and upcoming Soundwaves shows as well as sound and video recordings can be found at SoundwavesNewMusic.com

This event is free and open to the public. Seating is limited and on a first-arrival basis.

The Main Library is served by Big Blue Bus routes 1, 7, R7, R10 and 18 and provides bicycle parking racks.

For more information, visit smpl.org or contact the Santa Monica Public Library at (310) 458-8600.