Craig Padilla is an internationally celebrated and award-winning electronic music artist. After more than two decades of performing live and recording his own music using many vintage analog and newer digital synthesizers, his style reflects the classic electronic musicians of the past, while finding new sound and music styles that are unique to the true ambient electronic music genre (often found in categories from New Age to Trance to Electronica). His music and creative environment is inspired and influenced by the lands surrounding Coeur d’Alene, Idaho where he once resided, and by his earliest influences of being raised in far-northern California where he resides again. He first explored the works of Wendy Carlos, Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk, Steve Roach, and many other pioneers of the electronic form. He has composed soundtracks for various television, theatrical, and film productions. His music is heard on XM Satellite Radio and radio stations throughout the US, and on celebrated radio programs “Echoes” and “Hearts of Space” repeatedly.

In his own words, “Discovery of Meaning is about the concept of experiencing life in the present moment and beyond: The birth, the now, the future, and everything in the Universe is affected by the meaning of its own existence. It’s a continuous discovery that we humans learn by living life through our own space/time continuum. Throughout our childhood and our adulthood, we are constantly learning the meaning of new things, the meaning of relationships, the discovery of health, the meaning of intuition, and realizing the pros and cons of surrounding ourselves with positive (and negative) energy. To be a child, to be a parent, and to be a child again. Time and space, stars, planets, cells, atoms, souls, everything has a meaning of its reason for being here. We are connected beyond ourselves. We are one with Time and Space. And that’s a concept we learn once we experience the Discovery of Meaning.”

He continues, “The music on this album has been another natural evolution of my own musical experience. It combines elements of electronica, trance, new age, drone, ambient, and cosmic space music. And almost every track uses a synth built by George Mattson (MST/Division 6 Modular Synth and Mattson Mini Modular Synth).”

George Mattson is universally credited with the invention of the Syntar, the first fully self-contained “keytar”, in 1978, and is founder and owner of his enterprise, Mattson Mini Modular. The idea for the Mattson Mini Modular began as a challenge, with size and portability a priority. The first Mattson Mini Modular system was introduced to the world on September 15, 2007.

Discovery of Meaning was inspired by Padilla’s daughters, as well as some new music that they were hearing, particularly Porter Robison, Jon Hopkins, and fellow Spotted Peccary artist DeeperNET. The project began life at the end of 2019 just prior to the COVID pandemic, and was completed during the shutdown of the world in 2020. He tells us, “This album is an influence of my living situation in 2019, spending a Summer and Fall in my Oregon home with my soulmate brother Howard Givens and my actual home in California with my children Melodee and Harmonee Padilla and soulmate companion Colleen Roady. During this time, my Northern California home had ‘adopted’ a foreign exchange student from Germany, Paula Franke (no relation to the former Tangerine Dream member). She lived with us because she and my daughters were all studying music in high school.”

While in Portland, he was finishing an album with Howard Givens (The Bodhi Mantra ) and working part-time at a modular synthesizer shop where he was learning more about modular synthesizer techniques, as well as being exposed to more electronic music around the Portland area. He had also purchased some new music gear which helped to set the music in motion. This Portland energy, and the energy of the sudden onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic, was hugely influential for the music he was creating for this new album.

“I’ve always wanted to create a piece of music that included the beautiful voices of my daughters. And now that I had another ‘daughter’ in our house from Germany, I knew it would be great to try to record a song that featured all three girls. I thought it would be cool to have Paula record something with me because I thought that it would be a very unique experience for her while visiting the USA.” And he realized that it would be extra cool for his daughters to be involved with the project since all three of them hadn’t ever before participated in a project like this.

Suddenly, Paula’s trip in the USA was cut short due to the pandemic, and she knew that she had to go back home to Germany. Due to the uncertainty of the events of the world, she had no idea when she was going to be on a plane other than it would be at a moment’s notice.

At that time, Chuck van Zyl had commissioned a track from Padilla with the concept of what artists were doing to stay sane and healthy during the sudden change of events in the world.

Chuck van Zyl has been making his own unique style of electronic music since 1983 with a tone that veers from synthesized and atmospheric, to the reckless energized pulse of tumbling sequencer patterns, on down to a somber interiority – moving between the three in an impressive aural narrative. van Zyl is best known as a host of STAR’S END which is WXPN’s renowned radio program of space music dreamscapes, and as coordinator of The Gatherings, Philadelphia’s premiere concert series of innovative music.

Padilla decided to be extra proactive and finish work on “Continuum”, a track that would include both German and English spoken words about the concept of “Time” (“Zeit”).

“I came up with a written concept, Paula translated the words into the German language, she recorded her words, Harmonee and Melodee Padilla improvised some musical vocal passages into the music, and the rest is history. I couldn’t ask for a greater opportunity than that. The experience was extremely positive for all of us!”

Human knowledge comes from human observation, experimentation, and rational analysis, and possibly from supernatural sources; the nature of the universe is what people discern it to be. According to naturalistic pantheism, the meaning of life is to care for and look after nature and the environment. I like that.

Some have suggested the existence of a cosmic consciousness, and we are here to gain knowledge and experience and to have joy. Different generations may have different experiences at similar points in their own time-lines. Origins and the ultimate fate of the universe are an ancient and universal mystery, imagine a tunnel of light and spiritual figures, often described in reports of near-death experiences.

Awareness of environmental elements through physical sensation might cause you to make meaning of what you perceive. Take a moment to think of all the things you perceive on a daily basis. The recognition stage is an essential part of perception since it allows you to make sense of the world around you. Music can remind you to always try to pay attention, and to practice mindfulness. Perception requires you to attend to the world around you.

Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? Why are we here? What is life all about? What is the purpose of existence? The evaluation of meaning, whether by a single person or an entire society, are human products. Answering any of those questions leads to territory that has nothing to do with our task at hand here today, what about the music?

Electronic inner space journeys using the magic of music unlock a quest into the colorful regions of the cosmos inside, blending the far distances with the infinite interior spaces, frequently evoking the neural processing of vision as well as hearing, creating marvelous audio sensations of spatial locations relative to the listener.

It has been said that a definition of the “Berlin School” style of music stems from the early German music pioneers who specialized in electronic music using sequencers that would play repeating music patterns, originated in the early ‘70s by Asha Ra Temple, Tangerine Dream, and Klaus Schulze. I recommend, for further exploration and historical context, an essay found on the website of the BrainVoyager radio show/experience and cosmic enterprise, on the story of electronic music.

The album Discovery of Meaning touches on the power of freedom and of being able to reach out and touch whatever is coming next, exploring the passions, obsessions, dreams and developments in technology, science, modern art and the chaotic universal tumult constantly surrounding us.

The track “Cottonwood” was inspired by sounds recorded on a handheld digital recorder, “You can hear a breeze moving some wooden windchimes, and some birds in the trees,” says Padilla. “In the evening, I went into the front yard to record the sounds of frogs and crickets. I loved the way the recordings sounded, and I got inspired to make a piece of music with them. I added some organic electronic textures and sequences…” and the overall vibe of the music was also inspired by the meditation sessions that he was experiencing while visiting in Portland with Howard Givens.

Intimacy is the essence of Discovery of Meaning: the intimacy of solitude, the intimacy of family and the intimacy of a single moment. In this work Padilla faces isolation and finds connection in spite of it: connection to the sylvan wonder of his home environ, connection to the artists who inspired him and connection to his daughters, his family, his friends. Discovery of Meaning is an exploration of the immediate moment—and a celebration of the connections no distance can break.

Mastered by Howard Givens, Discovery of Meaning is available for physical purchase in CD format and in 24-BIT AUDIOPHILE, CD QUALITY LOSSLESS, MP3 and streaming formats. The CD version of Discovery of Meaning arrives in a factory sealed 6-panel gatefold package that includes vibrant artwork, liner notes, a 4-page booklet, and artful package design by Daniel Pipitone.

Tracklist:
01 Perception Stream
02 Discovery of Meaning
03 Continuum, Part 1
04 Continuum, Part 2
05 Adrift in Memory
06 Cottonwood
07 Festive Awakening

About Spotted Peccary Music:
Portland-based Spotted Peccary Music is North America’s finest independent record label with a focus on deep, vast and introspective soundscapes. For over three decades, the artists of Spotted Peccary have been on a mission to develop, produce, publish and release ultra-high-quality, deep-listening experiences that engage the listener and exceed expectations. Every release is carefully prepared in a variety of high quality formats from MP3 to high-res studio masters. Explore more than 165 titles and 45 artists at www.SpottedPeccary.com and www.AmbientElectronic.com.

Links:
Spotted Peccary Album Page: https://spottedpeccary.com/shop/discovery-of-meaning/
CD unboxing video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YQDbhpjpAw
Bandcamp: https://ambientelectronic.bandcamp.com/
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Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/user/spottedpeccary