Overview
I have had a long musical career. I was in a punk band called Psychic Religion that never left the basement, a goth band called Black Dahlia, a psychedelic funk rock band called The Zealots, an art noise shoegaze band called Whims of the Great Magnet, another punk rock band called Excellent Sinners and a funk band called Slumlord Byron. I also did a recording project with DJ PE called Temple of Tomorrow, which was a mixture of rock, electronic music and various other genres. And I did another studio project with Bird Williams called Bo Byron Project which was mostly funky electronic music and a little straight funk and soul. As a solo artist I recorded several electronic albums under the names G3nGhI$ Pr@Wn, Icarus Whip and Magnus Mattias. Currently performing in a Spaghetti Western Gothic band, Bone River Reckoning and in the process of forming another with Tim Huthert, the drummer from Specimen. I also have a cyberpunk dark synth solo project, Biohack Syndicate.
Discography
Magnus Mattias
Take Back Your Peace – 2023
Electronic meditative soundscapes based on nature.
Bo Byron Project (Funk and Funky Electronic)
Whatever You’re Doing, Don’t Stop – 2021
Slumlord Byron (Funk)
No albums, active in 2014-2015
G3nGhI$ Pr@Wn/Icarus Whip (Experimental Electronic)
Desert Planet (EP) -2005/rereleased in 2012
I Can See Weirdly Now (EP) -2006/rereleased in 2012
See? Food! -2007/rereleased in 2012
See? Food Too! -2008/rereleased in 2012
Temple of Tomorrow (Rock and Electronic mixed with other genres)
Temple of Tomorrow -2015
The Zealots (Psychedelic Funk Rock)
The Zealots -1995
Black Dahlia (Goth/Post Punk/Dark Psychedelia)
Red Like Rome (EP -Demo)-1990
House (EP)-1991
Nomad -1992
Black Dahlia -1993
Kingdom of Glory/Face the Winter Single -1993
Links
Magnus Mattias
Take Back Your Peace
Here’s the link to my latest album, 2023’s ‘Take Back Your Peace’ by Magnus Mattias. It is electronic meditations on the sounds of nature. (The album link is below the player.)
https://magnusmattias.bandcamp.com/album/take-back-your-peace
Bo Byron Project
Whatever You’re Doing Don’t Stop
This is a studio project that I did with Bird Williams. The album is titled ‘Whatever You’re Doing, Don’t Stop.’ Bird and I co-produced and co-wrote the songs and each of us sang and played various instruments on the album. It’s mostly funky electronic music, but there is a straight up funk song(Slow Down) and a tribute to Motown that’s just vocal and piano (I’ll Be Patient.)
Slumlord Byron
This is an 8 piece funk band that I fronted as Slumlord Byron. It was a real privilege to play with these uber talented musicians.
Hardcore
Here is an original song recorded for Z19TV during band practice. It’s called Hardcore.
Here is a single worthy song that I recorded with Slumlord Byron. Slumlord consisted of Kyle Storm Greer (guitar), John “Clue” McNeill (bass), Chris Nelson (keys), Maurice McDaniels(conga), Omar Lopez (sax), Jessica Chambers (background vocals), variously Keith Brown and NaJashi Abdur-Rasheed (drums) and myself (vocals.)
Worship You
https://youtu.be/Nbjnkarchcw?si=q0RRg52RxRd6tJt5
Temple of Tomorrow
Temple of Tomorrow
Here is the link to the whole album on Apple Music.
itunes.apple.com/us/album/temple-…rrow/id956835595
GeNgHi$ Pr@Wn (Now Icarus Whip)
This is one of the names I used in my solo experimental electronic music period. I think I’ll just rerelease everything under Slumlord Byron at some point for simplicity sake.
Here’s the backstory for G3nGhI$ Pr@Wn.
From his meager beginnings as a lowly plankton, GeNGhi$ Pr@wN is now poised to cut a swath of musical destruction through the sea of electronica.
Desert Planet (EP)
My electronic music and sound recording professor in college, Paul Geissinger, was a successful electronic musician himself who went by Starkey. When he first heard the song, ‘Desert Planet he said, “I don’t know what time signature this is in, but it’s really cool!” Here is the Desert Planet EP. Besides the hauntingly offbeat, ‘Desert Planet,’ it also contains the psytrance tune, ‘I Believe,” a 1960’s girlgroup pop song put into a blender and played in a futuristic dance club called Chaos and Disorder and the avant garde, ‘Fighting Dirty.’
I Can See Weirdly Now (EP)
I took a speech by Ted Kennedy and rearranged words and syllables to make him say “Ronald Reagan is a man who has taken many forms over many years. Crocodiles, elephants, plants and trees.” From there it spiraled even more out of control in a very fun way. Thus, “Ronald Reagan Was a Shapeshifter” was born. Also on this album is “Hope Springs Infernal,” electronic metal with a synth solo instead of a guitar solo. Finally, appears “Dragons of Jupiter” which contains a dragons roar that I created by blending a roaring tiger, a squealing pig, a sneeze and an explosion. The music was inspired by the fight scene music from Star Trek: The Original Series and a calliope.
See? Food!
Then came my experimental electronic album where every song title is food related. The dischordant 8 bit catastrophe, “Bread and Circuses.” which has been described as being like an old computer connecting to the Internet. Then comes “Nacho Yeti Blunderbuss” which a friend described as “a hike through a nature reserve on mushrooms.” Song #3 is Romulan Ale, chill, atmospheric house music. Then ‘Water” which uses actual clips of splashing, sloshing, and pouring water along with a sonar sound. One of the beats of the composition is rhythmic waves. I don’t want to spoil all the surprises, though. There are 8 more tracks.
See? Food Too!
This album continues the food titles theme. “Yum Yum” so named because the synth sounds like a distorted voice repeating those words and with a sick beat that I’m particularly proud of. “Royal Jelly,” what I imagine a rock band composed of bees would sound like. The boisterous, “Rum Raisin’” and rollicking “Roast Beast.” The flatulent “Mud Pie.” The angelic/demonic “Fallen Angel Food Cake.” etc. This album is only available on soundcloud as of yet.
Zealots
Zealots
My psychedelic funk rock band with Paul, the guitarist from Black Dahlia, Norman Carter and Jesse. We released one eponymous demo.
Black Dahlia
Before there was “The Black Dahlia Murder” there was my goth band, Black Dahlia. I have a lot of stories which I’m planning to weave into my Rock memoirs at some point.
Here is one of our songs, “Chameleon.” The video was unauthorized. An electrofunk remake of Chameleon is on the Temple of Tomorrow album.
Michael John Bobak 