The downtown ep, like all of bobby’s work investigates absence and abundance, isolation and intimacy, longing and communion.  More specifically, the downtown ep is about a quiet life in a loud city.  It is an attempt at poetry more tied to rhythm than to words.

This ep encapsulates the 1st few months of 2013.  I was living alone for the first time, surrounded by more noise and more movement, and having more neighbors than in any previous living situation.

This batch of songs and vignettes were a response to this new environment, particularly with regard to its effects on my creative process and recording methodology. 

I realized quickly into working on what would become ‘downtown #1’ that I had to alter my production techniques to make it a quieter affair.  This would result in recording direct (without amplification) guitar and hushed vocals, as well as greater reliance on keyboards and programmed drums.

In March of 2013, when a second vignette materialized sharing a similar vibe to ‘downtown #1’, I decided, merely as an exercise, to make a series of pieces in the first few months of this new situation using a similar toolkit.  I would not try to massage these tracks into conventional arrangements, insisting instead only that they worked on impressionistic and rhythmic levels.  I would put them in a chronological collection and release them a short time later with little fanfare.

Further, because I had just finished making a maximalist album, taking a couple years to record (and many more to write), involving many players and collaborators, and requiring a constant supply of resources; the downtown ep was deliberately to be a smaller-scaled affair.  I was eager to revisit my days of home-recording, which required almost no budget or coordination.

 At any rate, thank you for your time and attention.  Let this record be a companion.

In my experience, the best way to enjoy this collection is on foot or bicycle with headphones.

"downtown ep" can be purchased here:

https://bobbyblunders.bandcamp.com/album/downtown-ep

It can be streamed in full on all major outlets.