Dan Deacon, Macula Dog, MSHR
For over two decades, Baltimore-based composer Dan Deacon has built a singular musical universe—one where ecstatic synth compositions, philosophical curiosity, and radical joy collide. Expanding the visionary world of albums like Mystic Familiar (2020), Deacon’s work channels both absurdity and profundity, transforming personal reflection into sweeping sonic landscapes. At the Pioneer Works Main Hall, these kaleidoscopic songs will become participatory spectacles: a room full of strangers moving together through waves of sound, guided by Deacon’s boundless energy and belief in music’s power to connect us.
The evening opens with performances by Macula Dog and MSHR. New York duo Macula Dog channels discordant electronic art-pop into immersive performances that merge sound, performance art, and surreal spectacle. Meanwhile, the Portland-based art collective MSHR constructs living audiovisual ecosystems from handmade electronic instruments, weaving light, circuitry, and human presence into hypnotic sculptural compositions.
Together, the artists trace a spectrum of experimental electronic practice—from cybernetic installations and art-pop performance to Deacon’s radiant, communal sound.
About the artists
Dan Deacon is a Baltimore-based recording artist and performer renowned for his five studio albums of innovative electronic music, his live performances in both contemporary and classical settings, and his extensive body of work in film scores. Deacon has premiered compositions at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, and collaborated with artists and institutions including Kronos Quartet, Sō Percussion, The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the LA Philharmonic, and Justin Peck with the New York City Ballet. Deacon has also toured internationally with popular recording artists including Arcade Fire, Miley Cyrus, Future Islands, and The Flaming Lips. His albums Spiderman of the Rings and Bromst were both named Best New Music by Pitchfork, and his album Gliss Riffer received 4-star reviews from outlets such as AllMusic and The Guardian. He released his fifth studio album Mystic Familiar, featuring “Become A Mountain” and “Fell Into the Ocean,” in January 2020.
Macula Dog is a duo known for their singular style of discordant electronic art-pop. Since 2014, the band has developed a reputation for their immersive live performances. In their current live configuration, they carry their equipment and custom hologram projection system on harnesses, wearing impact-resistant clothing in case their exoskeletal sit-stand legs slip out from under them.
MSHR is an art collective that collaboratively builds and explores sculptural electronic systems. Their performances and installations present cybernetic audiovisual environments as living compositions. MSHR was established in 2011 in Portland, Oregon. Their name is a modular acronym designed to hold varied ideas over time, pronounced as letters or as one who meshes.