On Saturday, April 26th, Frontal Lobe hosts Oakland-based investigative musician and engineer Zachary James Watkins. After studying composition at Cornish College and receiving an MFA in Electronic Music and Recording Media from Mills College, Watkins has gone on to craft a diversified body of work via commissions, performances, residencies and collaborations. Highlights include: his band Black Spirituals opening for pioneering Minimal Metal band Earth; a commission from the Kronos Quartet; and a residency at the Headlands Center for the Arts.
In 2024 Watkins released the 6-part suite, Affirmative Action (Sige Records), realized in three modes of practice: solo improvisation, composed notation and ensemble writing. This rich and sweeping relational exploration reflects his “current sonic and social concerns” through melodies, drones, empty space, and the harmonic exchanges between instruments.
That same year he put out Chatty Mandrill Volume III on his tape label Sixty Hurts. This playful “solo-nasty-space-dub” journey features riffs from local sax legend Raffi Garabedian and drum samples by Thriftstore Cowboys’ Kris “Tug Boat” Killingsworth. Tune in to KALX Live! to expect the unexpected from this deeply thoughtful experimentalist.
Photo by Benedetto Manzella
