Alan Licht (born June 6, 1968) is an American guitarist and composer, whose work combines elements of pop,

noise Noise is unwanted sound considered unpleasant, loud or disruptive to hearing. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference aris ...

free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...

and minimalism. He is also a writer and journalist.

Biography

Licht was born in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

in 1968. His earliest musical influences, in the 1970s, were mainstream rock bands like the Bee Gees and

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

—he remarks in an interview with ''Paris Transatlantic'' magazine that 'What made me want to play guitar was that painting of Wings in concert in the gatefold of ''Wings Over America''. It looked so exciting... I wanted to be part of it.' Later, in school, he listened to

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

and no wave bands like

Mission of Burma Mission of Burma was an American post-punk band from Boston, Massachusetts. The group formed in 1979 with Roger Miller on guitar, Clint Conley on bass, Peter Prescott on drums, and Martin Swope contributing audiotape manipulation and acting a ...

Hüsker Dü Hüsker Dü () was an American punk rock band formed in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1979. The band's continual members were guitarist/vocalist Bob Mould, bassist/vocalist Greg Norton, and drummer/vocalist Grant Hart. They first gained notabili ...

and Sonic Youth. However, his musical trajectory was set when his guitar teacher gave him a copy of Steve Reich's ''Music for 18 Musicians'', which would lead to his discovery of other minimalist music. Licht majored in Film Studies at

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely foll ...

in New York. Since the 1980s, he has worked and recorded with the bands Love Child, Run On and

The Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

and with other

avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...

musicians including Jim O'Rourke,

Rudolph Grey Rudolph Grey is a musician and the biographer of filmmaker Ed Wood. As an electric guitarist, Grey has recorded and performed with Mars, under his own name, as well as leading various ad hoc ensembles called The Blue Humans. His music draws on ...

, and

Loren Mazzacane Connors Loren Mazzacane Connors (born October 22, 1949) is an American guitarist who has recorded and performed under several different names: Guitar Roberts, Loren Mazzacane, Loren Mattei, and currently Loren Connors. His music has touched on many genres ...

. He has also recorded several solo albums. Alan participated as drummer 42 in the Boredoms 77 Boadrum performance which occurred on July 7th, 2007 at the

Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park Brooklyn Bridge Park is an park on the Brooklyn side of the East River in New York City. Designed by landscape architecture firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, the park is located on a plot of land from Atlantic Avenue in the south, und ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York.

Musical style

Licht's music draws on a wide range of different styles, from tape-loops, to noisy guitar (sometimes using a prepared instrument), to pure pop music.

Writing

Licht is also a music journalist and writer on minimalist music, and in 2000, he published his first book, ''An Emotional Memoir of Martha Quinn.''Drag City 2000. In 2007 Rizzoli published his book ''Sound Art: Beyond Music, Between Categories''. In 2021 his book ''Common Tones: Selected Interviews with Artists and Musicians 1995-2020'' was published by Blank Forms Edition.

Discography

Solo

* ''Sink the Aging Process'' (

Siltbreeze Siltbreeze is an American independent record label based in Philadelphia. It is known for its eclectic roster of artists and releases of experimental, noise, folk, and rock-based music. Founded in 1989 by Ohio native Tom Lax, the label evolved ou ...

1994) * ''The

Evan Dando Evan Griffith Dando (born March 4, 1967) is an American musician and frontman of the Lemonheads. He has also embarked on a solo career and collaborated on songs with various artists. In December 2015 Dando was inducted into the Boston Music Award ...

of Noise'' ( Corpus Hermeticum 1997) * ''Rabbi Sky'' (

1999) * ''Plays Well'' (Crank Automotive 2000) * ''A New York MInute'' (XI 2003) * ''YMCA'' (Family Vineyard 2009) * ''Four Years Older'' ( Editions Mego 2013)

with The Blue Humans

* ''Clear to Higher Time'' ( New Alliance 1992)

with
Jandek Jandek is the musical alias of Houston, Texas based lo-fi folk singer Sterling Smith. Since 1978, Jandek has independently released over 45 albums without granting interviews or providing any biographical information, releasing on a self-made lab ...

* ''Glasgow Sunday 2005'' (Corwood Industries 2008) (Uncredited on 'Tribal Ether')

with
Loren Mazzacane Connors Loren Mazzacane Connors (born October 22, 1949) is an American guitarist who has recorded and performed under several different names: Guitar Roberts, Loren Mazzacane, Loren Mattei, and currently Loren Connors. His music has touched on many genres ...

* ''Live In NYC'' ( New World of Sound 1996) * ''Two Nights'' ( Road Cone Records 1996) * ''Mercury'' ( Road Cone Records 1997) * ''Hoffman Estates'' ( Drag City 1998) * ''In France'' ( FBWL 2003)

with Love Child

* ''Okay?'' (

Homestead Homestead may refer to: *Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses * Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres *Homestead principle, a legal concept t ...

1991) * ''Witchcraft'' (

1992)

with Run On

* '' On/Off'' (

Matador A bullfighter (or matador) is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter and describe all the performers in the activit ...

1995) * '' Start Packing'' (

1996) * '' No Way'' (

1997)

with
The Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

* ''So Beautiful and Cheap and Warm'' ( TeenBeat Records 2002)

with
Aki Onda Aki or AKI may refer to: Places in Japan Aki District, Hiroshima, a district in Hiroshima Prefecture Aki, Kōchi, a city in Kochi Prefecture Aki District, Kōchi, a district in Kochi Prefecture Aki, Ōita, a town in Ōita Prefecture *Aki Provi ...

* ''Everydays'' (

Family Vineyard Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

2008)

with
Lee Ranaldo Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, guitarist, writer, visual artist and record producer, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth (guitar and vocals). In 2004, ''Rolling ...
and the Dust

* '' Last Night on Earth'' (

2013)

Bibliography

* * * * *

Biography

Musical style

Writing

Discography

Solo

with The Blue Humans

with
Jandek Jandek is the musical alias of Houston, Texas based lo-fi folk singer Sterling Smith. Since 1978, Jandek has independently released over 45 albums without granting interviews or providing any biographical information, releasing on a self-made lab ...

with
Loren Mazzacane Connors Loren Mazzacane Connors (born October 22, 1949) is an American guitarist who has recorded and performed under several different names: Guitar Roberts, Loren Mazzacane, Loren Mattei, and currently Loren Connors. His music has touched on many genres ...

with Love Child

with Run On

with
The Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

with
Aki Onda Aki or AKI may refer to: Places in Japan Aki District, Hiroshima, a district in Hiroshima Prefecture Aki, Kōchi, a city in Kochi Prefecture Aki District, Kōchi, a district in Kochi Prefecture Aki, Ōita, a town in Ōita Prefecture *Aki Provi ...

with
Lee Ranaldo Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, guitarist, writer, visual artist and record producer, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth (guitar and vocals). In 2004, ''Rolling ...
and the Dust

Bibliography

Notes

External links

Biography

Musical style

Writing

Discography

Solo

with The Blue Humans

with Jandek Jandek is the musical alias of Houston, Texas based lo-fi folk singer Sterling Smith. Since 1978, Jandek has independently released over 45 albums without granting interviews or providing any biographical information, releasing on a self-made lab ...

with Loren Mazzacane Connors Loren Mazzacane Connors (born October 22, 1949) is an American guitarist who has recorded and performed under several different names: Guitar Roberts, Loren Mazzacane, Loren Mattei, and currently Loren Connors. His music has touched on many genres ...

with Love Child

with Run On

with The Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

with Aki Onda Aki or AKI may refer to: Places in Japan *Aki District, Hiroshima, a district in Hiroshima Prefecture *Aki, Kōchi, a city in Kochi Prefecture *Aki District, Kōchi, a district in Kochi Prefecture *Aki, Ōita, a town in Ōita Prefecture *Aki Provi ...

with Lee Ranaldo Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, guitarist, writer, visual artist and record producer, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth (guitar and vocals). In 2004, ''Rolling ... and the Dust

Bibliography

Notes

External links

with
Jandek Jandek is the musical alias of Houston, Texas based lo-fi folk singer Sterling Smith. Since 1978, Jandek has independently released over 45 albums without granting interviews or providing any biographical information, releasing on a self-made lab ...

with
Loren Mazzacane Connors Loren Mazzacane Connors (born October 22, 1949) is an American guitarist who has recorded and performed under several different names: Guitar Roberts, Loren Mazzacane, Loren Mattei, and currently Loren Connors. His music has touched on many genres ...

with
The Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

with
Aki Onda Aki or AKI may refer to: Places in Japan Aki District, Hiroshima, a district in Hiroshima Prefecture Aki, Kōchi, a city in Kochi Prefecture Aki District, Kōchi, a district in Kochi Prefecture Aki, Ōita, a town in Ōita Prefecture *Aki Provi ...

with
Lee Ranaldo Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, guitarist, writer, visual artist and record producer, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth (guitar and vocals). In 2004, ''Rolling ...
and the Dust