Recording: Cosmic Homeostasis

Artist: Cosmic Homeostasis

Songs: [set 2 excerpt] + [set 4 excerpt]

Recorded at St. Matthew's Clubhouse, Riverdale Park (AGA Arts' "Outdoor Gestures" life drawing session), May 31, 2026.

Cosmic Homeostasis - [set 2 excerpt]

Cosmic Homeostasis - [set 4 excerpt]

On a beautiful afternoon to be outside, the Cosmic Homeostasis crew settled in under some big trees in Riverdale Park and served as part of the background sounds for a life drawing session. (Other parts of the background sounds were provided by birds, dogs, passing streetcars and other environmental features.) Drawing takes time, so the session stretched out well over two hours, giving lots of space for sound exploration and drift.

The homeostasisists this time around were:

• Abigail Trotsky - electronics (sets 1 + 2)
• Broken Pink Umbrella - theremin + effects
• Chris Trotter - electronics (sets 1+2)
• Dan Friedman - wood flute, harmonica, oscillators, resonance, feedback, memory
• Del Stephen - keyboard synthesizer, flutes, whistles
• Heraclitus Akimbo - Sound Urchin, lyre, synths, Zoia
• Mira Martin-Gray - laptop (sets 3 - 5)
• Paul Newman - tenor saxophone
• Rob Cruickshank - electronics
• Siobhan - OP-1 synth
• Zack Berwick - eurorack sampler
• birds - bird sounds

And as always, the full set is available over on bandcamp:

[The next scheduled Cosmic Homeostasis gathering is at The Tranzac on the afternoon of Sunday, August 30th.]

Recording: Cosmic Homeostasis XXXI

Artist: Cosmic Homeostasis XXXI

Song: Where Have All The Melodicas Gone? [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), March 29, 2026.

Cosmic Homeostasis XXXI - Where Have All The Melodicas Gone? [excerpt]

The year's first fifth-Sunday-of-the-month brought a robust group of droners together to listen to each other and explore some distant zones.

The full ensemble for this occasion was:

• Abigail Trotsky - noise boxes, flanger
• Broken Pink Umbrella - theremin + effects, namer-of-things
• Chris Trotter - synths + pedals
• Dan Friedman - synths, flute
• Diane Roblin - melodica, kalimba [set 1 only]
• Heraclitus Akimbo - karaoke machine + synths
• Ian McPhedran - guitar
• Jim Davis - bass + fx
• Leslie Partridge - guitar
• Mike Filippov - wave drum
• Nilan - gtr + preparations
• Paul Newman - tenor saxophone
• Rob Cruickshank - electronics
• Vic - melodica
• Zack Berwick (Cosmic Clouds) - modular synths

As always, you can dig into the full session over on bandcamp:

[Due to a full-weekend Tranzac booking, Cosmic Homeostasis is being bumped, and will be performing in The Tranzac's Living Room on Sunday, May 17th at noon. However, also keep an eye out for a special offsite fifth-Sunday-of-the-month gathering!]

Recording: Cosmic Homeostasis XXX

Artist: Cosmic Homeostasis XXX

Song: A Gracious Limestone [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), November 30, 2025.

Cosmic Homeostasis XXX - A Gracious Limestone [excerpt]

Joining together at the Tranzac for the thirtieth time, this session marked the end of a productive year for the C.H. collective, meeting inside and outdoors to create come drones and community vibes. Keep an eye out in 2026 for a new "studio" album and more gatherings.

The homeostasis crew on this occasion included:

• Chris Trotter - radio, pedals, namer-of-things
• Dan Friedman - virtual line hum, flute
• Del Stephen - keyboard synthesizer & keys
• Fahmid Nibesh - contact mic/amp/guitar/pedals/metals
• Heraclitus Akimbo - chimes, Roland S-1, pedals
• Ian McPhedran - guitar
• James Bailey - cümbüş, rattle
• Jim Davis - fretless bass gtr
• Jonny Luke - cornet + fx
• Mira Martin-Gray - synthesizer/resonator
• Niamh Girling - tanpura
• Paul Newman - tenor saxophone
• Rob Cruickshank - synth/pedals
• Scott M2 - Roland S-1
• Sterling McPhedran - banjo-ukulele

You can check out some more from this afternoon over on youtube:

And, as always, you hear the whole session over on bandcamp:

Recording: Cosmic Homeostasis

Artist: Cosmic Homeostasis

Song: Eclipse Drone [excerpt]

Recorded at Christie Pits, April 8, 2024.

Cosmic Homeostasis - Eclipse Drone [excerpt]

Well, a total solar eclipse isn't something that happens every day, and even if Toronto was limited to a mere 99.9% of totality this was an event worth getting outside for. So, returning to the scene of previous park gatherings, a robust crew gathered to experience the unsettling gloom that manifested even under cloudy skies. There was a visual score offered as a suggestion at structure, but as is usual with this ensemble, the sounds were satisfactorily self-regulating. And even with such a large group, it was still an intensely quiet experience — the zone of sounding attracted some notice from passers-by, but wasn't disruptive outside its bubble.

What an amazing turnout! The full ensemble consisted of:

• Ian McPhedran - prepared guitar
• Kai Schmidt - child's keyboard
• Helen Lhazan - monotron synth
• Elka Cruz - wrist bell + cyborg pancreas + kalimba
• styrofoamNosebleedPrincess - wrist bell, jaw harp, flexitone
• Mira Martin-Gray - synth, harmonica
• Simon Webb - tambourine + bell
• Eric Cinnsealach - bass clarinet
• Dame Cook - haunted laptop
• Alex Simons - harmonicas, bell
• Chris Price - voice
• Max Donaldson - voice
• Ivy Carroll - voice
• Daisy Betlej - bowed flexitone
• Kaya McGregor - tongue drum (soprano)
• Marius / Lenny / Adriano - stuff & vibes
• Naomi McCarroll-Butler - jaw harp
• Matthew + Anna - harmonica, whistle, thumb piano, pistachios
• Sara Constant - flute
• Kat Estacio - cymbal, Tibetan singing bowl
• Abigail Trotsky + Chris Trotter - DIY resonance box + bow w/ reverb + multi-effect
• Erin Corbett - cello + mandolin
• Mickle32 - bass
• Heraclitus Akimbo - synths, Zoia

You can listen to a (lightly-edited) version of the full experience over on bandcamp:

#mfs15 playlist: Chris Trotter

MFS has turned fifteen! My introductory thoughts on this landmark can be found here, but long story short: I asked some folks from the MFS community to help me celebrate by picking some selections from the archives, and possibly sharing some thoughts or stories.

Today's list is from Chris Trotter.

Thank you for all the wonderful and good work that you put into this project!
It's astounding and amazing.
Here's some selections for the playlist.

---

David Jones + APA - [excerpt]

Recorded at Dundas Video (Track Could Bend #13), April 5, 2016.

wonderful space and sonic entanglement

Within - Balkan Song

Recorded at Holy Oak Café, July 2, 2015.

such a joy to have this moment captured

Cosmic Homeostasis XI - Out Among the Reeds [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge, June 30, 2019.

amazingly delicate work by so much interplay

iderdown + abigail trotsky - unknown

Recorded at The Steady Café (Track Could Bend #31), October 3, 2017.

Greatful for the archive of such a fun night!

Cares - [excerpt]

Recorded at 1161 Dundas St W. (Endless City: Invoking The Spirit), January 31, 2016.

carried off on a dark fractal

---

You can always click on the tags below to look for more stuff from these artists. Has there been five or so songs posted here that made an impact on you? If you'd like to get in on the action and make a list, feel free to send me an email: mechanicalforestsound@gmail.com.

#mfs15 playlist: core

MFS has turned fifteen! My introductory thoughts on this landmark can be found here, but long story short: I asked some folks from the MFS community to help me celebrate by picking some selections from the archives, and possibly sharing some thoughts or stories.

Today's list is from core.

please accept this quiet drifting ode to the incomparable JOE STRUTT - citizen, writer, listener, maker, musician, fan, devotee and enthusiast, group drone organizer, promoter of improvised offshoots, and possibly the nicest most generous inclusive person in the whole modern tkaronto/toronto music scene. also, in the running for best name award.

---

Scott M2-kat estacio-Heraclitus Akimbo - [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Cosmic Homeostasis & Audiopollination: Pre-NYE gathering + celebration), December 30, 2023.

a recent show by some local favourites that i missed but was delighted to listen to safely from home

Germaine Liu/Mira Martin-Gray/Karen Ng - [first piece, part 3]

Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Music Hosted by Karen Ng), September 17, 2019.

playful dynamic experimentations on full display

Cosmic Homeostasis - She Sells Moondust Down by The Sea of Tranquility [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Cosmic Homeostasis VIII), September 30, 2018.

shout out to the cosmic homeostasis crew, this afternoon was memorable for the guest appearance of my friends' kids, wolfgang and annika whose improvised vocal contributions can be heard in the mix xo

Abigail Trotsky/Chris Trotter/Mike Spears - [excerpt]

Recorded at Array Space (Audiopollination #53.1), April 8, 2017.

a rare and treasured collaboration with my longtime partner and our longtime friend xo

Brigitte Bardon't + SlowPitchSound - Sylvia Anne Virginia [forest noise scene redux] [excerpt]

Recorded at Double Double Land (NASA – Noise Against Sexual Assault), July 10, 2016.

with thanks for creating a soundtrack to safer spaces through solidarity and digital noise forests

thanks for everything,
corinne aka core aka abigail trotsky aka lane/louise

---

You can always click on the tags below to look for more stuff from these artists. Has there been five or so songs posted here that made an impact on you? If you'd like to get in on the action and make a list, feel free to send me an email: mechanicalforestsound@gmail.com.

Recording: Within

Artist: Within

Song: Jacob

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), August 6, 2023.

Within - Jacob

This folky project from Judith Muster and Chris Trotter has been around for a few years now, with a couple different bassists filling out the trio. That chair is now occupied by Stefan Hegerat, showing off a different skill-set to those who have only seen him working behind the drumkit. The flow here is through rivers and trapdoors, the songs given space to meander and bloom rather than being plucked right away.

Monday Roundup #116

Concert announcements:

Musica Universalis (feat. SonoRa [Glen Hall/Alan Mackie/Tilman Lewis/Andrew Furlong]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2023-04-14 (Friday)

%%30%30 presents ["fully acoustic, fully outdoors, all proceeds going to the West Lodge tenant-run food bank"] (feat. Output 1:1:1 / FEURA / Mark Ballyk / Kurt Newman / FuZzy / Psychosics) / Parkdale Provincial Park 2023-04-15 (Saturday). $PWYW, entry by donation, NOTAFLOF.

The Ossingtones [Glen Hall/Diane Roblin/Bruce Cassidy/Andrew Furlong/Lowell Whitty] / La Rev 2023-04-15 (Saturday)

Dan Pitt & Harry Bartlett / Sellers & Newel 2023-04-21 (Friday). Minimum donation $15. [FB event]

---

Shows this week:

"We've Got Nothing" live album recording series (feat. Peripheral Vision / Aline's étoile magique) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2023-04-04 (Tuesday). $PWYC ($10 suggested).

Track Could Bend #78 (feat. Density Creep / Flip Side [Allison Cameron/Fahmid Nibesh] / James Bailey & %%30%30) / Wenona Lodge 2023-04-04 (Tuesday). $pwyc. [FB event]

The Allison Cameron Band [Allison Cameron/Kurt Newman/Thom Gill] / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2023-04-05 (Wednesday)

Cots (Alex Lukashevsky) / Tibet Street Records 2023-04-06 (Thursday). $20. [FB event]

Audiopollination (feat. Martin van de Ven/Grace Scheele/Mira Martin-Gray / James Bailey/Susanne Farkas/Nilan Perera / Daniel Field/Jack Brock/Shanika Maria / Tapocalypse Now [mkl32/fuZzy/Heraclitus Akimbo]) / Array Space 2023-04-07 (Friday). $10 (or PWYC). [FB event]

Ayal Senior & Friends (feat. Ayal Senior/Kurt Newman/Andrew Furlong / David Sait / Nick Flanagan / Jaz Tsui) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2023-04-09 (Sunday – 2:30 p.m.) [FB event]

Sundays in April Residency (feat. Eucalyptus) / Hirut Cafe and Restaurant 2023-04-09 (Sunday). Suggested $15 per person.

Caleb Klager/Stefan Hegerat/Michael Palumbo / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2023-04-09 (Sunday)

---

Bandcamp corner:

• Good Friday is also Bandcamp Friday, so if you're lucky you'll have the day off to pick through the many, many wonderful artists you can support. Here's a couple things on my list:

---

It happened this week...

• ...on April 7, 2017 at The Music Gallery (Emergents III).

Laura Swankey with Patrick O'Reilly - unknown

• ...on April 8, 2017 at Array Space (Audiopollination #53.1).

Abigail Trotsky/Chris Trotter/Mike Spears - [excerpt]

[Do remember that you can click on the tags below to go back and find the original posts (and often, more stuff) from these artists.]

Recording: Cosmic Homeostasis XI

Artist: Cosmic Homeostasis XI

Songs: Out Among the Reeds [excerpt] + Windows and Passageways [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge, June 30, 2019.

Cosmic Homeostasis XI - Out Among the Reeds [excerpt]

Cosmic Homeostasis XI - Windows and Passageways [excerpt]

As the month's fifth Sunday rolls around once more, a robust turnout of musicians (and audience) showed up at the Tranzac to hang out and hear some pleasantly-unrushed drift-drones.

The afternoon's performers included:

• Dame Cook - electronics, namer-of-things
• Ron Blake - ipad apps
• Michael Lynn (mkl32) - bass
• Niamh Girling - push chime
• Abigail Trotsky - guitar, ebow, pedals
• Paul Newman - tenor saxophone
• Chris Trotter - synth
• Laura Swankey - voice, pedals
• Mira Martin-Gray - electronics
• Jordan Brown - synth, pedals
• Matt Wells - bells
• beard closet - guitar, noisebox
• Del Stephen - piano, synth, drumstick
• Heraclitus Akimbo - static, found sounds, effects

You can also check out the full sets over on bandcamp:

[Cosmic Homeostasis will be back in the Southern Cross on the afternoon of Sunday, September 29th!]

Recording: Cosmic Homeostasis

Artist: Cosmic Homeostasis

Song: She Sells Moondust Down by The Sea of Tranquility [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Cosmic Homeostasis VIII), September 30, 2018.

Cosmic Homeostasis - She Sells Moondust Down by The Sea of Tranquility [excerpt]

Another cheerfully-cluttered afternoon at The Tranzac, gathering past performers and new faces together to generate some spacious ambient drones. The crew this time included Patrick O'Reilly, Del Stephen, Niamh Shiffra Girling, Jordan Brown, Mira Martin-Gray, Abigail Trotsky, Chris Trotter, Ronnie Blake, Paul Newman, and Heraclitus Akimbo and got some welcome vocal assistance from aspiring homeostasisists Wolfgang and Annika. As usual, you can stream/download the whole thing over at Bandcamp:

[Cosmic Homeostasis IX will take place at The Tranzac on the afternoon of Sunday, December 30th — and the series will continue with four more fifth-Sunday-of-the-month instalments on 2019!]

Recording: Iderdown

Artist: Iderdown

Song: ap050918 [movement II]

Recorded at Handlebar (The AMBiENT PiNG), May 9, 2018.

Iderdown - ap050918 [movement II]

A pleasant night out at the Ping saw some new sound experiments from familiar faces, leading off with Chris Trotter's electro-ambient explorations. Performing a new suite (that has also just emerged on bandcamp in a home-recorded version), there was a nice arc at play, from wall-rumbling low-frequency electro-pop excursions to trip-hop abstractions to the close brush with acid jazz heard here.

Recording: Davison/Trotter/Labikova

Artist: William Davison/Chris Trotter/Bea Labikova

Song: [excerpt]

Recorded at Array Space (Track Could Bend #37), April 3, 2018.

William Davison/Chris Trotter/Bea Labikova - [excerpt]

Continuing a series tradition, Track Could Bend marked its third anniversary by inviting back all of the previous year's performers for a celebration. That's enough of a crowd to warrant a larger stage, so for one rainy night, the action shifted over to Array Space. There ended up being sixteen players, all of whom put their names in a hat to be drawn to create spontaneous ensembles for a series of quick sets. The hat once again obliged with this excellent mix of organic and electronic sounds, giving space for a nice contrast between Chris Trotter's electronic textures, William Davison's concrète clonks, and Bea Labikova's sax explorations.

[TCB will be having a special extra-early show at The Baby G on Tuesday, June 5th, with sets from Barry Prophet, Nicole Rampersaud and Lisbon's Sal Grosso.]

Recording: iderdown + abigail trotsky

Artist: iderdown + abigail trotsky

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Steady Café (Track Could Bend #31), October 3, 2017.

iderdown + abigail trotsky - unknown

This was, as usual, a joyful night of acoustic and electronic sounds that was rendered a little bittersweet in retrospect with news of The Steady's closing. I first encountered this pair making some abstract sounds as part of a trio set at Audiopollination and knew right away I wanted them to come down to TCB. With a tasty assortment of instruments ranging from laptop and Volca to ebow and toy piano there was a nice sonic range here, everything from mellow pastoral drift to some more structured material reminiscent of Chris Trotter's usual work as iderdown.

[You'll be able to find Track Could Bend at The Belljar Café on Tuesday, December the 5th.]

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Cosmic Homeostasis

Artist: Cosmic Homeostasis

Songs: A Tender Kiss on the Cheek for Everyone [excerpt] + Eleven Sun Cats [excerpt]

Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Cosmic Homeostasis IV), July 30, 2017.

Cosmic Homeostasis - A Tender Kiss on the Cheek for Everyone [excerpt]

Cosmic Homeostasis - Eleven Sun Cats [excerpt]

Another fifth-Sunday-of-the-month came around with a robust turnout from eager homeostasisists — eleven in all, this time round. There was a rather peasant mix of electronic drift-tools with acoustic elements, including Laura Swankey's vocalizations, Nilan Perera's prepared guitar and the mind-meld saxophones of Kayla Milmine and Paul Newman (which just might be the secret sauce that really makes the whole thing). The crew this time was:

• Kayla Milmine - soprano saxophone
• Paul Newman - alto saxophone
• Ted Phillips - radio, phone
• Nilan Perera - electric guitar
• Rob Cruickshank - electronics
• Chris Trotter - electronics
• Abigail Trotsky - electronics
• Del Stephen - keyb, piano, namer-of-things
• Laura Swankey - voice, electronics
• Joe Strutt - electronics, 4-track recorder, tactical memo
• Ronnie Blake - electronics

If you'd like a bigger dose than these samples, the whole session is also posted as an album over at Bandcamp:

[Cosmic Homeostasis will return on the next fifth-Sunday-of-the-month, which just happens to be October 29th, 2017.]

[photo by Megumi Morisawa]

Recording: Trotsky/Trotter/Spears

Artist: Abigail Trotsky/Chris Trotter/Mike Spears^*

Song: [excerpt]

Recorded at Array Space (Audiopollination #53.1), April 8, 2017.

Abigail Trotsky/Chris Trotter/Mike Spears - [excerpt]

This trio lead off a night of Audiopollination explorations with some carefully-constructed drift-sounds. Clustered around a table like participants in a three-sided Battleship game, they carefully built up a cloud of ribbon synths, pedals, knobs, guitar and ebow.

[You can also check out some footage of this set over at Audiopollination's youtube page. Audiopollination is on hiatus until September, when its self-curated series will resume.]

^* An earlier version of this post misidentified Mike Spears, who was a last-minute replacement for Owen Lyons. Apologies to all!

Recording: Within

Artist: Within

Song: Balkan Song^*

Recorded at Holy Oak Café, July 2, 2015.

Within - Balkan Song

I didn't know anything about this band before hearing them play, and the sight of a familiar face at hand — Fresh Snow's Tim Condon — didn't provide any clues, given the different musical space he was operating in here. Offering up minimalist folk tunes delivered with Judith Muster's clear vocals, the band showed a sly propensity for both stretching out their silences and finding moments to insert a bit of subtle abrasiveness.

[Showing that this show's comfort with performing alongside more abstract, ambient sounds was no one-off, Within will be playing with FAVX (and Montréal's happymovie) on Saturday (July 18th) at the Monarch.]

^* Thanks to Tim for passing along the title to this one.