Dan Swift

The ticketa-tick-tap of the computer keys, the rapid-fire click click of the mouse button, and then a string of musical notes, break the silence momentarily. The musical movement rises in a beeping language that is supposed to resemble a piano, but sounds more like a Pac-man machine doing its best impression of Beethoven's Fifth. The scales and chords resonate around the room, rising and falling in perfect harmony, until a harsh blast of mismatched notes are vomited from the crackly speakers, and the movement abruptly grinds to a halt. A heavy sigh followed by an up-tempo drumming of fingers on the desktop signaling his frustration is heard. Then a flash of inspiration sets off his next salvo of ticks and clicks, and again the piece is set to take-off for another trial run. This time the harsh blast is replaced by an ear-pleasing crescendo of perfectly blended tones. The composer has done it - the piece is finished.”

- EZB circa 2001

Albums

Parallels

Parallels is the 7^th album by Dan Swift. Released on Leap Day 2024, Parallels is a 4-track EP building on the previous album. The title track, Parallels, features an acoustic setup. None of my albums would be complete without some kind of ballad, and this one is no different (Penny Never Spent). Robot Man is a fun electronic song that is very appropriate given the current media popularity of AI. Lastly, the rocker Yellow Light Life speaks to anyone, at any age, whether you are driving or not.

A Front Row Seat to a 2^nd Life

A Front Row Seat to a 2^nd Life is the 6^th album by Dan Swift. Released in 2023, this 5-track EP album features the hit single Secret Millionaire. It also includes 2 songs featuring a mixture of spoken word and singing, an alt-rock style ballad, and a fun electronic song. A Front Row Seat to a 2^nd Life has something for everyone. The collector's edition of A Front Row Seat to a 2^nd Life includes 3 previously unreleased recordings: Secret Millionaire (piano take), Your #1 Fan (piano take) and The Heckler as part of Unreleased Volume 2.

What Is, Was, Could Be

What Is, Was, Could Be is the 5^th album by Dan Swift. Four songs and five years in the making, What Is, Was, Could Be (EP) was released in 2016. Each song sounds like something that came out of the 1990s alt-rock scene. This is the second album to not include an unreleased volume as part of the collector's edition.

Zombies Ate My Hamburger

Zombies Ate My Hamburger is the 4^th album by Dan Swift. Don't let the 14 tracks of chiptune music fool you. Zombies Ate My Hamburger (EP) is comprised of music meant to be played as a loop. With a mix of 8-bit and 16-bit sounds, this album is clearly the soundtrack for a fantastic video game which never happened … or did it? The collector's edition of Zombies Ate My Hamburger also included 2 previously unreleased recordings of Untitled Chip Music 6 and Untitled Chip Music 8 as part of Unreleased Volume 0b.

On 7/14/23, a limited edition version of Zombies Ate My Hamburger was rereleased as an NFT on the Cardano blockchain.

Trophies from Sheol

Album number 3 entitled Trophies from Sheol was a huge, successful experiment influenced by Bass Communion's Ghosts on Magnetic Tape. This 4-track EP released in 2006 is purely electronic and conjurs disturbing sounds and sometimes makes us ask, Is this music or noise?. The collector's edition of Trophies from Sheol also included 2 previously unreleased recordings of Shower Rock Star (acoustic) and Monster (piano take) as part of Unreleased Volume 1.

Influences of Six

No longer available, Influences of Six is the 2^nd album from Dan Swift and was released in January of 2006. Ahead of its time, 5-song EP Influences of Six was only released electonically (commercially); however silver promo mini CDs were also distributed in very limited quantities.

TCY: 9903

No longer available, TCY: 9903 is the first album (2 discs) and has a massive running time of just under 95 minutes. This collection of instrumental masterpieces includes music for a jazz quartet, brass brio, and electronic pieces. The full orchestral world premiere of An Introduction to Insomnia also appears on this album.