Today I’m going to be telling you about Experimental / Alternative rock artist Left Operant.
Here is his story in his own words!
Enjoy!
VMS: “When did you start writing and performing your music. “What’s your backstory and current lineup.”
Left Operant: “I have been playing music and performing since graduate school, where I formed my first band with Emily Clede called “The Wade Ruths”. I also dedicated myself at the time to learn as many instruments as possible, including bass, drums, and lap steel. My first show ever was a bootleg in the back indoor alley of some business center in Lawrence Kansas. After leaving grad school and selling all of my gear, I took an almost 10 year hiatus until I moved to Las Vegas. I helped start the short-lived band “Townie”, and since then, I have mostly been performing solo. Left Operant is my first solo project.”
VMS: “What artist or bands inspire you and your sound.”
Left Operant: “One of my biggest influences starting out again was “Silversun Pickups”. The combination of interesting vocals, and a mix of alt and shoegaze sounds really spoke to me. I’ve also been influenced by a lot of noise rock, especially “Sonic Youth”. Probably other artist I’ve been most inspired by is Ceschi Ramos, his ability to move across the genres and his dedication to live performance really inspired me to write what I want. That’s while you’ll hear bits of country, hip hop, and rock at all of my shows.”
VMS: “What’s your writing process and inspiration for your lyrics.”
Left Operant: “I actually never write lyrics to my songs. Occasionally I will pick a theme, but it usually begins with a riff or chord structure on the guitar. This usually comes from just playing around and recording riffs over a drum machine with my looper. I often get inspired by new guitar pedals I bring into the fold. Once I have that down, I usually start playing and improvising vocals while also recording on my phone. It usually takes me a few tries, but once I decide on a theme for the song it usually comes fairly easily. The next step is usually testing it out live. I almost always partially improvise my “new” songs at shows. I keep what works and lose what doesn’t until I get down to a consistent set of lyrics. My song’s lyrics come from a lot of places, but are usually inspired by whatever I’m going through at the moment.”
VMS: “I love your songs “VR/ RR (live)” and “Drift (Part 1 and 2)”.What is the inspiration or story behind these songs.”
Left Operant: ” “VR/RR” Started as a simple blues riff, and was originally played with much less gain on the guitar. I wanted to write a song about conman, as it’s always been a fascinating topic to me, so I put together a song called “Confidence Man”, which I played live at a few shows. It was okay, but was missing something and got a weird response at a show (the lyrics were satirical, so it could have been misconstrued I suppose). So I went home and back to the drawing board. One inspiration for my more bluesy playing is Jack White of the White Stripes, and he always infused Fuzz into his blues.
So the low gain riff from “Confidence Man” became the fuzzy blues lick in “VR/RR”. The lyrics came from my background in Behavior Analysis (I have a PhD in Behavioral Psychology). VR and RR are short for Variable Ratio and Random Ratio schedules of reinforcement, which are often used by things like slot machines because they keep responding (spending) high while providing minimal payout, which fit with the earlier theme of con men.
“Drift” is an older song that I wrote while working with “Townie” that didn’t really fit the band’s sound. We played it at a few shows, but had no intention of recording it as it was too outside of the mellower sound we had.
After the band broke up, I kept the song in my pocket and when I started playing shows again, it was my closer. I finally got around to recording it (as well as adding bass and additional lead guitar). It was inspired by some of my greatest irrational fears, drifting off alone in space with no one to save you.
But from a metaphorical standpoint, it is about accepting when bad things happen to you and dealing with the circumstances you are given. “Part II” was (is) a freestyle that I put over a beat that was in line with the feeling of “Drift Part 1″, and is a little B-side gift to my fans. It will continue to be free styled at every show I play it.”
Listen to “VR/ RR (live)” and “Drift (Part 1 and 2)” on Spotify:
VMS: “What do you want your audience to feel and experience at one of your live shows.”
Left Operant: “I honestly want people to have a good time and feel the energy that I try to put into performances. I’m a one-man band running a drum machine, a massive pedalboard, doing live guitar looping, and singing or rapping depending on the song with often improvised lyrics. I get gross and sweaty and I love every minute of it, and if the audience can get some of that energy and love, that’s what it is all about for me.”
VMS: “Which local artist would you like to work with and why.”
Left Operant: “Too many to name honestly. I’ve loved sharing the stage with so many talented people in Vegas, it’s hard to pick just one. I would like to get a chance to do a show with “Switterbeat”, just because our last show together didn’t work out.”
VMS: “What’s your overall theme or message of your music.”
Left Operant: “I wish I could say there was a consistent theme, but I really love music of all genres, and I try and when I’m writing or working on a song, I don’t think about it fitting with any of the others. I suppose that’s the closest to a theme I put out there.”
VMS: “Tell me about your EP “Drift”. How did this album come to fruition and what was your process through the whole experience.”
Left Operant: “”Drift” was really a lesson in patience for me. I knew I wanted to finally get a real recording of Drift after recording so many live shows, so I started getting the lyrics totally finalized and written down and tightening up the main guitar parts. I also wanted to not be constrained by my pedal board, so I disassembled it and selected pedals for each part of the song. After fine tweaking, and tweaking my amp, I started laying down each track one at a time, starting with the drums and main guitar parts. The vocals were honestly the hardest part, because I don’t have the best singing voice, but they came together in about 5 takes. Finally I spent hours on hours mixing and finalizing the song. For the B-side, I wanted to show the other side of Left Operant that really has only been seen in shows. I usually include 1-2 hip hop songs in my set, including freestyles, so I went for a more rough recording in one take.”
Listen to the “Drift” EP On Spotify:
VMS: “Do you have any crazy or interesting stories from working in the music scene.”
Left Operant: “Actually, the craziest thing that happened to me actually happened at my first ever “planned” show. “The Wade Ruth’s” were playing a benefit show at the Granada Theater in Lawrence KS. Not 20 minutes before we were supposed to come on, smoke started coming up from the stage. There ended up being a fire beneath the stage which caused some damage to the theater. I got interviewed for the local news about it as well. I like to say we literally lit the stage on fire when I tell that story, but really I’m glad we were all okay and no one’s gear got damaged.”
VMS: “What does the future hold for “Left Operant”.”
Left Operant: “Right now I’m focusing on writing songs for a full length album and doing shows. I love the Vegas music scene and how much it has embraced me, and I hope to be able to give back to it going forward as it has already given me.”
What I love about “Left Operant” is his gritty, raw, and experimental music and sound. When I listen to his songs I feel the depth of what he went through and I appreciate that it’s not necessarily about what he’s saying (even though lyrics are wonderful as well of course) but how he’s translating that emotion into the songs. I feel it and experience it rather than just enjoying it. In that sense, I feel more connected to him as an artist, it feels more real. His live performances are definitely an amazing journey as well. That insane energy he puts into his self exploration of his sound, he puts into his shows as well. You don’t know if he’s gonna rap, rock out, or everything in between. He keeps his shows spontaneous and exciting, which makes for a once in a lifetime experience.
I am very aware that he is in the beginning stages of this journey that is “Left Operant”, but that is what makes all of this so exciting! He already has a solid foundation as a musician, so wherever he decides to take his musical evolution is really up to him, and I’m so incredibly excited to watch that journey unfold in real time.
And that is why he is my Artist of the Week.
—-VMS
For More Information about “Left Operant”, check out his social media accounts:
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/leftoperant?igsh=MTZzcjZpNGhmZGRzeg==
Bandcamp:
https://leftoperant.bandcamp.com
Spotify: