In a nutshell:

I'm a Renaissance man (wikipedia) and artist, a type of Polymath if you prefer more modern terms. The more varied and challenging something is the more it interests me. I believe we are only limited by our self-imposed limits. In fact, I don't just believe that's true, I know it's true.

I'm emotional, empathic, intelligent and sensitive. I get angry really quick, especially over injustice, and I'm ruthless when focussed, but I forgive even more quickly and am incapable of holding a grudge for long. I also strongly associate with the Two Spirit concepts and values although I think the literature out there does miss the point more often than not. In any case it goes some way to explaining certain things about me without needing a forty page discursive essay :)

I approach the world through art. I believe one of the most important tasks for us all is to empower and enbeauty the world. Form and function, science and technology, everything can be art and is more wholesome, more soulfully satisfying when it awakens that inner connection that is the essence of art.

Musician:

I began playing guitar at the age of fifteen. Although there was some experimentation with piano and various wind instruments prior to this it wasn't until discovering metal that I truly discovered a passion for music.

I turned a background absent of music (none of my family or friends had any interest in it) into a huge advantage: I had no notions of established practice thus my compositions were different and daring from the start. One of my first works included an involved 15/16 time signature section that my contemporaries dismissed as 'wrong' since they could not play it.

Although largely self-taught, my earliest teacher was an eccentric blues and jazz guitarist who lived in a caravan. His skill combined with his dyslexia meant I had to learn by ear and learn fast; that also became a huge advantage in later years.

Like most young musicians I spent many years simply thrashing out and having fun and of course it is in recent years that I have refined and continue to perfect techniques that I learned almost instictively at the start. Every day brings something new and I look forward to each discovery with energy and enthusiasm.

Lecturing:

Amongst my many jobs I am an hourly paid lecturer at the University of Salford. I teach mainly at Degree and HND level but also on occasion at Masters level. Some of the subjects I teach throughout the year include:

• Multi-Track Production (Recording and Audio Mastering)
• Music Technology Systems (MIDI and electronic music)
• Soundscapes and Synthesis (Masters level)
• Digital Video, Video Production and Broadcast Mastering

Electronics:

When I was still in school I built my first guitar amplifier, a 100watt mosfet affair using a large array of reclaimed car loudspeakers. Some years on I ended up doing freelance repairs for my local guitar shop. I got a reputation for fixing difficult repairs and badly damaged or old equipment and soon I was working for a major residential studio in the Snowdonia mountains maintaining a wide variety of rare and boutique analogue and tube equipment.

I also went on to design and build a range of guitar fx pedals. They were completely original designs offering unique features that netted me high praise and much positive feedback from customers. However, building them by hand took too much time and I didn't have the capital or time to invest properly in the project. One day It'd be good to work with someone who can bring my designs back to life.

And when I can spare the time you can catch me:

• Traveling: Going new places Rocks! It's a big wide world to discover. Especially the cold bits...
• Rocking out: At a festival, gig or club. In that order. And failing that, anywhere goes.
• Snowboarding: I'm not all that good but this has to be one of the greatest pastimes ever invented!
• Martial arts: Taekwondo is an awesome mind chilling hobby, now if only I could find the time to train.
• Mucking with computers: Dabbling in a bit of high level programming and of course web dev.
• Driving: In the countryside. Fast. Sideways. In the rain.
• Also: Swimming, Reading, Drawing and Painting, Dancing, Carpentry, Gaming and so much more but time is, alas, too short.