direct messages by Derek White

"Direct Messages" displays a sonic patchwork of melodic improvisational works, ambient minimalism, experimental synthesizer modulations, chants & hums, as well as middle eastern influenced drones & loops.

All pieces were recorded on tascam 4 track tape machines, which highlights on textures of tape hiss to create a hemi-sync listening experience. All songs were hand-mixed on analog equipment to highlight human manipulation, imperfection & subtle movements.

These sessions were intended for self meditation purposes, and also an exercise to create minimalist improvisational pieces. Most songs were created on the spot & recorded in a dark room.

It is recommended to listen on headphones, or in a quiet space and set positive intentions, relaxation, humor & escapism.

Instruments used: (analog synth - arturia microbrute, casiotone 610, an array of cracked midi synthesizers, natural sounds, & other acoustic instruments.)


The pieces found on Derek White’s latest release, direct messages, were created on the fly in a dark room, and seek to instill meditative states within the listener. Tones coaxed from analog synths, cracked midis, acoustic instruments, and the world itself bloom and drift and swell like trains of thought floating free through an emptied mind. “perhaps I should be more kind” centers on a repetitive guitar figure whose warmhearted chord change, underpinned by gentle maraca, acts as a clock’s second hand tick, anchoring the flow of the piece as it accumulates layers of muted drones, grainy trills, alien warbles, and humming chants. It gives off the feeling of an elaborate windup diorama, created and set in motion by a mysterious hand, in which each element finds its place and moves in conjoined harmony with all others.
-writeup by (bored in pittsburgh)


There's a elegiac quality to many of the pieces that gives the album a nice unity. -Andrew Pekler (faitiche records)

Derek White is an experimental ambient recording artist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He incorporates a musique concrète approach to sampling, alongside electroacoustic synthesis and tape manipulation. White is also a guitarist, percussionist, & singer; occasionally incorporating abstract field recordings, repetition, & subtle humor to create calming nostalgic sensory landscapes.

Instagram