cmntx records

11/21/2025

OUT NOW: Infrasound x Darian Donovan Thomas: Book of Sorrows

“The music you are about to hear stems from a collaboration between ten InfraSound musicians and composer Darian Donovan Thomas. Workshopped over two months in Fall 2023, and further developed from 2023-2025, Book of Sorrows is a musical spellbook in response to the need for a safe space to process q***r trauma, sadness, and sorrow musically. During our workshops, Darian and InfraSound worked through different modes of expressing sorrow, and how deeply it is rooted in q***r identity. Oftentimes as q***r musicians, we seek validation through external means (for example praise from our peers, accolades, and recognition). Validation, more often than not, forms our sense of “q***r joy” and belonging. Institutions meanwhile fetishize this joy in order to assimilate our bodies into a heteronormative societal framework. While q***r people are praised for being joyful and vibrant, we also are often silenced or ostracized for expressing anything that fits outside of this rigid frame. In order to fully embrace q***rness in all of its multifaceted beauty, we must also support and celebrate the dark and difficult parts of ourselves that we tend to keep hidden. To be fully embraced as a q***r person is to be seen. We hope this music will give an opportunity for audiences to peek into our internal selves, to bask in its sorrow, pain, and beauty, and to break free from society’s expectations of us.” - Yoshi Weinberg

Shara Lunon, voice
Luke Paulino, voice
Stefanie Proulx, flutes
Yoshi Weinberg, flutes, pedal harp
Kristina Teuschler, bass clarinet
Giancarlo Latta, violin
Dudley Raine IV, viola
Sam Zagnit, double bass
J Clancy, percussion
Daniel Schreiner, piano
Darian Donovan Thomas, voice, electronics, piano

Music and Texts by Darian Donovan Thomas
Produced by Darian Donovan Thomas and Alex Ring Gray
Engineered by Michael Hammond
Recorded at Figure 8 Recording – Brooklyn, NY
Except for Vocals on “Inner Child”, and Electronics, engineered by Alex Ring Gray
Recorded at Dunvagen Music – New York, NY
Mixed by Alex Ring Gray and Darian Donovan Thomas
Mastered by Dan Langa
Photos by Matt Josephson

11/14/2025

OUT TODAY: “Sorrow Texts” by .donovan.thomas and , the second single from the forthcoming album “Book of Sorrows”.

“Sorrow Texts” is a guided improvisation for the ensemble, based on and featuring Thomas’s poetry. At times, the composer radically processes the ensemble with FX pedals, pushing an already intense piece to new heights.

During workshops, Darian and InfraSound worked through different modes of expressing sorrow, and how deeply it is rooted in q***r identity. “While q***r people are praised for being joyful and vibrant, we also are often silenced or ostracized for expressing anything that fits outside of this rigid frame. In order to fully embrace q***rness in all of its multifaceted beauty, we must also support and celebrate the dark and difficult parts of ourselves that we tend to keep hidden. To be fully embraced as a q***r person is to be seen. We hope this music will give an opportunity for audiences to peek into our internal selves, to bask in its sorrow, pain, and beauty, and to break free from society’s expectations of us.”

——

“So this is the part of the piece where we speak

Today the sky was crying
Feel like my hands are screaming while sinking in the ocean - distracted
by how pretty the light is
under the water

This pervasive memory of sorrow
What was I sad about?

… am I supposed to remind you?

Lightning.
I guess I’ve trained my mouth to stay shut when I’m shocked.
I guess I’m used to drowning.”

——

Book of Sorrows releases everywhere November 21.

11/07/2025

OUT TODAY: Yes, and…, a 10-track album featuring 10 individual percussionists playing the music of the Ypsilanti, MI-based composer, performer, and educator, Alexis C. Lamb

Lamb’s album is a nod to the psyche of a percussionist. “To start, percussionists are the quintessential ‘yes, and’ performers. Save for logistical impossibilities, I have rarely heard a percussionist say ‘no’ to exploring new sounds and instrument combinations,” she says. “In the spirit of “yes, and,” it was imperative to me that this ten-track album include recordings from ten different performers. Not only was this to highlight the incredible work of my friends and colleagues and to take some of the spotlight off of myself. In a world that often appears cutthroat and competitive, especially with building a profession in the arts, I wanted this project to demonstrate the power of community and collaboration.”

The community on Yes, and… flows deep with performances by:
David Degge -
Paige Madden -
Andy P. Smith -
Louis Raymond-Kolker -
Malcolm Taylor -
Britton-René Collins -
Raychel Taylor -
Alexis C. Lamb -
Alyssa “Al” Resh -
Gavin Ryan -

Lamb’s album demonstrates a willingness to be open, exploratory, inclusive, collaborative, and playful. It relies on a sense of flow and emphasizes the process over the product. It does not make saying “no” any easier.

10/29/2025

Out today – ‘Tihai’ by Alexis C. Lamb featuring Paige Madden – the latest single the Ypsilanti, MI-based composer, performer, and educator’s full release ‘Yes, and…’ due out on cmntx records November 7, 2025.

“Tihai” was commissioned by Andrew Ferdig with a direction to create delicate textures that also connected to his study of Indian classical music. “This piece is written in the form of a tihai, which is a rhythmic variation traditionally part of classical Indian music and takes three repetitions to return back to the downbeat of the beat cycle,” Lamb notes. “This piece utilizes a 13-beat tihai over a 19-beat cycle. Each new repetition of the tihai adds another family of instruments but is continuously juxtaposed over the beat cycle performed on tuned metal pipes. The electronics serve as a drone to accompany the tihai, similar to a tanpura instrument in Indian classical music.”

‘Tihai’ is out everywhere today

Yes, and… is due out November 7 via cmntx records

Photo Credit Epongue Ekille

10/10/2025

OUT NOW: the first single from InfraSound and Darian Donovan Thomas .donovan.thomas forthcoming album, Book of Sorrows: “Inner Child”

“Inner Child” centers around Thomas singing a short, intimate mantra to himself (“where have you been all my life? I forgot to be searching”) over a slowly evolving melodic loop performed by InfraSound’s rhythm section (pianist and percussionist ). Other ensemble members interject with fragmented solos that have been carefully collaged and electronically processed by the composer.

Book of Sorrows releases November 21. CD and digital pre-order available on InfraSound’s Bandcamp. “Inner Child” streaming everywhere now.

Listening party at Holy Trinity Church on October 21. Tickets available on Zeffy (link in Infrasound bio).

Produced and mixed by .donovan.thomas and
Ensemble and field recordings recorded at by
Vocals recorded at Dunvagen Music by
Mastered by

Album cover photographed by
Art direction by and .donovan.thomas

10/06/2025

Annie Blythe & Brendon Randall-Myers – ‘Only in the Dark’
~ for your GRAMMY consideration ~

10/03/2025

ANNOUNCING: ‘BOOK OF SORROWS’, a collaborative effort between composer-performer Darian Donovan Thomas (.donovan.thomas ) and chamber ensemble InfraSound ( ). Out digitally and on CD November 21.

“‘Book of Sorrows’ was created in response to the need for a safe space to process q***r trauma, sadness, and sorrow. We hope this music will give an opportunity for audiences to peek into our internal selves, to bask in its sorrow, pain, and beauty, and to break free from society’s expectations of us.”

InfraSound will present a pre-release listening party and performance on October 21 (one month before release!) at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Manhattan. Tickets available in bio.

InfraSound Ensemble:
Shara Lunon, voice
Luke Paulino, voice
Stefanie Proulx, flutes
Yoshi Weinberg, flutes, pedal harp
Kristina Teuschler, bass clarinet
Giancarlo Latta, violin
Dudley Raine IV, viola
Sam Zagnit, double bass
J Clancy, percussion
Daniel Schreiner, piano

Produced and Mixed by Darian Donovan Thomas and Alex Ring Gray
Mastered by Dan Langa
Recorded at Figure 8 Recording by Michael Hammond

Album Cover / Photography by Matt Josephson
Poster by

This project was supported in part by Chamber Music America’s 2023 Ensemble Forward Grant, funded through the generosity of the New York Community Trust, as well as individual donations to InfraSound annual fundraising campaigns.

09/10/2025

08/01/2025

🕯️ OUT NOW 🕯️
DESCENT — the new EP from HARLA

A sonic memoir of a soul falling from grace—
by force, by choice, and by fate.
Inspired by Persephone, addiction, fame, and the divine unraveling of a life lived on stage,
Descent follows a modern fallen angel through six haunting chapters:
💔 Seeds — betrayal cracks open heaven
💄 Hi Harla — performance as power
👁 Chanson Fatale — desire becomes destruction
🪆 Doll — vulnerability in captivity
⚰️ Leave the Stage — surrender to the spiral
🌤 Apotheosis — the final ascent
Gothic rock meets baroque pop.
Confession becomes ritual.
Harla has descended.

get it today on Bandcamp and stream everywhere 


Credits
Written by Lauren Bowen and Evan O. Adams

Vocals: Lauren Bowen
Guitars: Evan O. Adams
Bass: Evan O. Adams (1, 2, 3) and Anthony Agostini (4, 5)
Drums: Ben Febré (1, 2) and Steven McArdle (3, 4, 5)
Violins: Zachary Mezzo (4)

Produced by Evan O. Adams
Engineer (Vocals, Violin): Alex Ring Gray
Engineer (Instrumentals): Dan Langa
Mixed by Dan Langa
Mastered by Alex Ring Gray
Album Art by Sabrina Slavin

07/11/2025

OUT TODAY // Only in the Dark // from Annie Blythe () & Brendon Randall-Myers (.randallmyers)

‘Only in the Dark’ is an eight-movement work for cello and electronics grown from a collaboration instigated by cellist and composer Annie Blythe as a way to sustain herself through and heal from a particularly dark depression. Along with composer and guitarist Brendon Randall-Myers, the collective work is motivated by the duo’s respective sensory sensitivities, a desire to honor and affirm connections with their bodies and emotions, and by a desire for creative community.

The emotional impetus for the album is intense, but the meditative treatment of the musical material seeks moments of equilibrium, calm, and beauty within and beyond these intense emotional states. In that process, colors and moods shift slowly, like watching the light change on a landscape during a sunrise. Throughout the project the prolonged distortion of an idea transforms into something beautiful. No gesture or phrase stays the same throughout signaling the inevitability of change and how the music reflects an inherent flow.

‘Only in the Dark’ was recorded and mixed by three-time Grammy-nominated audio engineer and producer Mike Tierney () and was made possible by a grant from the American Composers Forum, with funds provided by the Jerome Foundation, and by a grant from the Café Royal Cultural Foundation.

~ Vinyl, CD, sensory kits, and digital downloads are available on Bandcamp. Only in the Dark is streaming everywhere ~

06/13/2025

OUT TODAY ~ Cellist and composer Annie Blythe (), along with composer and guitarist Brendon Randall-Myers (.randallmyers) release the second single from their upcoming collaborative LP, Only in the Dark ~ ‘Within an invisible light’ is out everywhere today

‘Within an invisible light,’ is the opening movement of the album – an impactful opening piece which blooms out of the rich, lower register of the cello. A balance is struck early in the piece between open chords ringing out with great strength and fragile harmonics which illuminate like flashes of embers. Blythe’s virtuosic performance pushes the piece forward through the heart of the piece, and towards the vivid clouds of reverb which end the piece.

A music video by Phong Tran () accompanies the piece and is available as part of the limited edition ‘sensory kit’ – enjoy this preview of the full video. The sensory kit is curated and designed by Blythe and contains tactile and otherwise sensuous items that correspond to individual movements and sonic trajectories within the work and that can enhance, modulate, or de-escalate the listener’s experience according to their own particular neurological preferences and curiosities. The kit includes commissioned items such as an eye mask designed by Keia Kato, earplugs, animated visuals by Phong Tran, poetry by Juniper Gabrielle Kramer, custom perfume by Olfactory NYC, a telescoping kaleidoscope by Mark Tickle, and mask fabrication and artwork by Blythe. Sensory kits are available for pre-order on Bandcamp.

Vinyl, CD, an digital downloads are available for pre-order on Bandcamp and on the cmntx website ~ Only in the Dark is out everywhere on July 11

~ ‘Within an invisible light’ is out everywhere today ~

06/06/2025

Brooklyn-based composer and multi-instrumentalist Theo Haber () returns today with ‘While we wait’, his second full-length album on cmntx records.

Following his narrative-driven debut in 2023, Haber pivots toward a more intuitive, atmospheric approach, crafting soundscapes that emerge from improvisation, spatial resonance, and the quiet tension of everyday thresholds.

Written and recorded in a shared living room turned music sanctuary, While We Wait captures the spirit of spontaneous creation. Haber’s compositions often began in liminal moments—just before leaving the house, when a casual strum or synth line would evolve into a full piece. This organic process is central to the album’s emotional immediacy. “I always find myself drawn intensely to my instruments during those few moments of transition,” Haber reflects. “This record emerged out of winter stasis and the freedom to explore.”

While ‘The Man From There’, Haber’s debut on cmntx records, unfolded as a conceptual suite set in a fictional restaurant, While we wait trades linear narrative for emotional vignettes. Each track serves as a tableau—a fleeting mood, a sonic sketch of stillness or movement. The transition from “Take Your Time” into “Tiers” marks a personal highlight for Haber “It came together in a flow state as a synth improvisation that I ornamented with field recordings.”

While we wait is out everywhere today ~ available on Bandcamp and streaming

Album art by Adrianna Furlong
photo by Shaleah Feinstein