Here's my guy, here to bring the weird music.
[hider=Jame J. Byrd][img]http://theoasisfest.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Derrick-May-e1453947535979.jpg[/img]
║ Name ║
James J. Byrd

║ Birthday & Age ║
May 22nd, 1971

║ Gender & Sexual Orientation ║
Male, Asexual

║ Occupation ║
Software Engineer

║ Appearance ║
He’s middle aged and doesn’t stand out particularly. He keeps off the pounds that come with age thanks to his routine of working with the rowing machine he keeps in the basement. His hair is a little messy, but not enough to be inappropriate in a corporate work environment. Business casual describes his style on and off the job, and for show he dresses up in a nice suit, as he believes that’s how a real musician should dress when performing for a crowd. He often wears a visor or sunglasses on stage, as it helps both him and the audience focus on the music.


║ Personality ║
James is a withdrawn man, and doesn't speak when he doesn't need to. He is stubborn, and doesn't like to compromise. He seems calm but serious, though he is more jovial when he is around people he knows well. He really enjoys learning and teaching, and likes to help those in need, even though he rarely shows it externally. Even though it is hard for him to make friends, he has a positive outlook and doesn’t hold many grudges. When he does have a good friend around he can talk for hours, rambling around, but strangers make him more reclusive. James is also blunt, not often mincing words or hiding his real feelings, which is off-putting at first, when people don’t realize that it’s more out of social awkwardness than contempt.


║ My Dreams ║
"To find my own place to be. It doesn’t matter if anyone else is there, it’s all about being in a space and state of mind where everything comes together.”


║ Autobiography ║
James was technically born in Detroit proper, but his parents moved out to one of suburbs when he was young, everyone could see the decline happening around them. His dad was a jazz drummer that played in local bands, but gave up the hobby as he got older, being an assistant manager took up too much time, but he kept his record collection around. James listened the old greats, and his dad didn’t shy away from the more experimental stuff, Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman and Miles Davis’ electric period were some of his favorites. When he grew up he started listening to radio, paying special attention the few DJs that played Detroit Techno. His family was present, if hectic by the constantly changing jobs and shift-work as both parents had to work just to make ends meet.

He joined his school’s jazz band, but found himself dropping out as all of the extracurricular activities strained the family’s budget. James now turned to making music alone, using a cheap Casio sampling keyboard and tape recorders. In his free time he picked up a hobby of working with electronics, first learning to modify cheap tape players and fix his keyboard, then gradually learning the deeper theories behind it all. In high school he was known as a weird kid, always tinkering but he didn’t bother anyone so he made few foes. He took extra math classes to spend more time in the computer lab, and found that working with numbers or computer code stimulated the same instincts as working with wires; it was all about experimenting within certain boundaries, and finding new ways to solve problems.

Later in high school he did manage to find a place with some of the other musicians. He earned money on the side fixing people’s gear when it broke, eventually scrounging up enough to buy a computer. James’ offers to collaborate didn’t find many takers, so he practiced alone, although there was one group that stayed together. He made beats for a couple of his friend’s attempts at a rap group called “The Overlord Crew”, an era that he is not fond of looking back on. His studies paid off with good grades, and he went on to attend University of Michigan after graduation, becoming the first member of his family to go to college.

It took James some time to decide on a major. Initially he wanted to go into music, but his parent’s advice and his own uncertainty led him to a path with a better guarantee of success, electrical engineering. He worked hard and made a small group of friends across a few different departments, the circle was united by their eccentricity, and some like Noor Al-Medina went on to great success afterwards. Musically, he got involved in the tracker music scene, contributing to a few compilations under myriad aliases, and swapping files over floppies and the early web. This was the first time he released music to the public, the tracks were quirky but well received, however the amount of time he spent on schoolwork meant he couldn’t find the dedication to become a member of any particular demo group. 

After graduation he found a niche as a programmer. Having worked extensively with analog circuitry, he became a specialist in writing software to model the behavior of physical circuits. This line of work brought him to Philadelphia and provided him a good income, while still leaving some time for his hobbies. James has kept involved in the music scene, but some of his greatest contributions have come in the form of homebrew plugins and patches, trying to go experiment and go beyond the saturated markets for music software.

In Philadelphia James has kept his day job, making music without much recognition as a hobby. Some people in the small local scene appreciate him, and small as it is, his internet following is growing. One of his buddies told him about Endeavor and put in a good word with him, so James checked it out on a whim. He was impressed with their approach and felt like they could really be on to something new in the music industry, so he gladly signed on when they showed interest.

║ Reputation ║
James has a few fans among the tracker scene, but that era has since faded away. After that, he traded tapes by mail and made a single or two for minor labels, hitting one of his most successful periods in the late 90s when he was asked to do official remixes for some of the bigger names and signed with an indie label. There he released his first official album, Arkestral, which was met with underwhelming sales. After that, he turned to self-publishing his albums online, barely making any money but enjoying the freedom. He’s played at some small clubs but never toured, but also does some work on the side as a sound designer. His latest album was called ZERO//KNOWLEDGE//PROOF and has been his most successful to date, but has garnered little attention outside of a couple blogs and niche publications that cover the experimental electronic scene.

║ Extra information ║

Face claim: Derrick May
Partially joined the label because he’s hoping he can convince to them fund a fancy modular synth.
Typical live rig: Arturia Matrixbrute, Modal 008R, and his laptop
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