Roy Gonzales |
From the nuances of purposefully destroyed
office equipment to the garbled voice emanating from the
intercom at a drive-thru restaurant, Roy Gonzalez enjoys
capturing everyday sounds and transforming them into something
entirely different to be used in a musical way.
This concept, combined with Gonzalez’s desire and
love for acoustical instruments and the deep basses of
synthesizers (some of which are created by Gonzalez himself),
results in a mind-altering experience for the ears.
“I love re-synthesizing and tweaking organic tones
to create original sounds to be used in the production
of my next project,” says Gonzalez.
“The process of creating these new “timbre-etically” inclined
wonders can be somewhat like taking a block of clay, folding
it over and pounding it, and folding and pounding, over
and over again,” he says, jokingly adding, “On
the other hand, it can be as delicate a procedure as a
self-lobotomy without any anesthesia.”
The Moab Happenings December Artist of the Month, 20-year-old
Gonzalez defies convention and categorization as he strives
to express his creative urges using not only music, but
a variety of media, including video, photography, painting,
drawing, and animation.
 One
of Gonzalez’s favorite (and funny) homemade video
clips includes an image of Gonzalez’s fingers walking
around and kicking things, while a roll of toilet paper
takes over the scene by flying in and chasing off his fingers.
“This,” says Gonzalez, “was just an experiment
on testing my sound design skills. I designed sounds for
the finger’s footsteps, impact noises, and the roll
of toilet paper (which was jokingly made to sound like
a space ship landing) all with the basic knowledge of a
synthesis and arranged the video with good ol’ Adobe
Premiere Pro.”
Stored on Gonzalez’s hard drive are plenty of digital
video clips he has shot, many of which are “time-lapses,” such
as ice melting and Moab’s morning sunrise. There
are also many other curious videos that he has created,
including animations and random footage synced to his own
original music.
“Arranging video is very similar to arranging audio,” says
Gonzalez, “and so much easier than composing.”
In some of his video clips, the images are synchronized
to the accompanying music, creating an interesting and
highly evocative effect. One clip in particular starts
out with a surreal montage of various images -- some are
related, many are not. The mood shifts from relaxing to
intense as the rhythm beats harder and faster. “It
just depends on the mood I’m in at the time,” notes
Gonzalez.
 Gonzalez’s
versatility and talents have enabled him to help other
musicians sound better. “It really makes jam sessions
better if you know how to ‘EQ’ and what other
sound(s) you need to integrate in order to create so-called ‘ear
candy,’” he explains.
Gonzalez has played guitar since he was a freshman in high
school. He also plays the bass and whatever else he can
get his hands on. With his laptop computer, he can replicate
the sound of virtually any musical instrument imaginable,
and record anywhere.
“It’s like having an entire recording studio
with you all the time,” he says.
He takes his acoustic guitar (or the “Strat”)
and laptop with him just about everywhere he goes, and
will often pick up the guitar and play something interesting,
such as a song he made up or a catchy riff that just popped
into his head.
A native of North Carolina, Gonzalez moved to Moab with
his family when he was in 1st grade. During his sophomore
year at Grand County High School, he dropped out, moved
to Texas, got his GED, and started studying music. Since
moving back to Moab, he has tried to make a niche for himself,
working with the local film commission and video producers,
and taking sound design classes to further hone his skills.
Gonzalez currently holds two certificates from the Berklee
College of Music in Boston, labeling him a “Professional
Sound Designer” and a “Master Producer.”
Although mostly self-taught, Gonzalez realizes that there
is always room for improvement. Earlier this summer, he
visited technical schools in New York and Boston, to see
what programs they had to offer. After flying back east,
he drove back, by way of Texas, amassing 28 hours of drive
time with very few stops. He is still deciding what path
to pursue, but for now he remains in Moab, where he’s
currently working on a website, another demo DVD, and various
other multimedia projects. He may be contacted via e-mail
at parable66@hotmail.com
Gonzalez says his dream job is “to get paid to make
music, and to entertain people with music and/or visual
images.”
“I also try to touch another person’s mind,
and change the way that people think,” he adds.
He may be contacted via e-mail at parable66@hotmail.com,
and his web site can be found at www.myspace.com/parable66. |
