Released under my name (Thomas Wincek) on the awesome experimental net-label Stasisfield, is a collection of minimal / electro-acoustic pieces, each based around the sounds of a different instrument. Available for free download here:
http://www.stasisfield.com/releases/year06/sf-6009.html

Read a review here:
http://www.earlabs.org/release/review.asp?reviewID=1218

Thanks!

---Tom

Are located here:

http://myspace.com/alltinycreatures

Thanks!

---Tom

it's true. stay tuned.

A record featuring 2 EmotionalJoystick dub tracks, (one featuring the Emotionaljoystick band doing a live version) will be released by Terminal Dusk on August 14th.

Check out the info here:

http://www.terminaldusk.com/td003

And email me if you are interested in ordering a copy...

There will be a new EmotionalJoystick record coming in the next year. It is currently in the recording stages.

There will be musical contributions from lots of people.

Not decided yet who will release it (if anyone), and when exactly it will be coming out.


I have uploaded a completed song from the album. It features Ben Derickson on drums.



---Tom---

Igloo Magazine, Luca Maini, Contributor (09.05.05) Here it comes... the long awaited sequel to Bellicose Pacific (Zod), it's Emotional Joystick's second album entitled Plays! --a must have for those who loved the fresh melodious hardcore trademark of EJ. This time it's a bit less hardcore and more melancholic, the whole album sounds less raw in favour of a more mature sense of production. Aptly named Plays!, EJ spends a lot of the time playing live keyboards, with much style and effect, steering away from breakcore standards and creating a unique blend. There are some rude tunes, like "Reparation," "I'm Not Elton John" and "Is Dead," but they're smoothened by jazzy solos and warm reggae basslines, giving birth to beautiful music that should appeal to an audience much wider than the usual breakcore niche. As for the last Terminal 11 album, Plays! won't play for much more than a half of an hour, but there's so much detail in it, and such intense feelings hidden in those arrangements, that you won't need a minute more. Let's hope we won't have to wait this long for the third chapter. Plays! is out now on Zod Records. From the Montreal Mirror Emotional Joystick Plays! (Zod) Armed with a Fender Rhodes keyboard, some homemade electronics and a laptop loaded with the experimental music software Super Collider, Thomas Wincek's stated purpose is to introduce a new "I" (as in improvised) into the unfortunate term IDM. Bringing to mind Squarepusher's live sets (without the bass wank), Plays! sees Wincek (aka Emotional Joystick) push his improv sound even further, adding extended dub and jazzy elements to his often chaotic, intricately programmed breakbeats. Tracks like "Bells Bossa" absolutely kill with a sublime mix of shimmering keys and darkly processed rhythms that shift from an almost dancehall funk to four-on-the-floor throbs. Brilliant! 8/10 (Raf Katigbak) From Textura: In the grand tradition of ‘60s Blue Note and other like-minded jazz labels, the album title of Emotional Joystick's PLAYS! heralds virtuosic display on an instrument of choice, in this case Thomas Wincek on Fender Rhodes. Though he's joined by guests on a few pieces, the album is largely a solo affair with the splatter of Wincek's electric piano merged with frenetic drill'n'bass structures. Pairing the fluid feel of live playing with programmed beats doesn't sound like a natural fit yet here it generally succeeds, primarily because he keeps the beat structures loose and spontaneous; though obviously a well-managed illusion, the instruments sound as if they're interacting spontaneously. The band name tellingly hints at the music's tendency to shift between moods and styles, illustrated most pointedly by “Ask Me No Questions” which conflates dub, funk, jazz, and drill'n'bass into a captivating throwdown in only three minutes. Though Wincek favours a fuzzy Rhodes sound reminiscent of Miles's late-‘60s bands, the album itself emphasizes more of a soul-jazz than free blowing style (“Bottle Rocket,” “Can We Rap?”). On the plus side, there's a memorable dubbed-out, reggae-meets-drill'n'bass episode (“Reparation”) plus a single-take, jazz- and blues-flavoured Rhodes solo (“Blues for Ben”) of lounge character that offers respite from the album's otherwise dense attack. Notwithstanding a slightly acidic, soul-funk hidden track, “Sometimes Always” ends the album appealingly with buoyant rhythms and simple yet inviting melodies. Two tracks weaken the album: the piano slithers through hardcore gabba beats in “Is Dead” to annoying effect and, when cartoonish, stop-start structures in “I'm Not Elton John” alternate between pounding beats and voice samples, the joke wears thin fast and the piece ultimately seems a waste of time and energy. Still, PLAYS!' positive moments outnumber the negative. A final note: though the album's stylistic range helps camouflage the potential limitations of the Rhodes-beats combination, Wincek might consider extending the soloing duties beyond piano; the inclusion of vibes at the conclusion of “Bells Bossa” suggests what an enriching difference another instrumental voice could make to the Emotional Joystick sound. Avevamo già apprezzato il notevole "Bellicose Pacific" (introdotto da F.L.A. in questo topic), ancora non si smorza l'eco, ed ecco che ci si ritrova a parlare dell'ennesima fatica targata Emotional Joystick. Fatica che manifesta immediatamente una spiccata propensione verso sonorità pseudo-jazz (il titolo parla chiaro)! Pare che una certa branca dell'elettronica si stia muovendo proprio in questa direzione (l'ultimo Meat Beat Manifesto è uno degli esempi meglio riusciti), dunque non stupisce che anche "Plays!" si orienti verso simili territori. Non fraintendetemi, non sto dicendo che gli Emotional Joystick abbracciano una corrente, non c'è nessuna similitudine con i lavori analoghi di altri personaggi, la loro interpretazione dell'electro-jazz è assolutamente personale e priva di ogni riferimento verso questo o quell'artista. Si sono addirittura persi per strada i residui di tale Aphex Twin, per accostarsi a una visione più completa, che potrebbe far venire in mente Squarepusher in versione live... Jazz dicevamo.... anzi, electro-jazz [anche un po' core], dal sapore notturno e fortemente retrò; brani come "Blues for Ben" potrebbero far storcere il naso agli amanti dell'elettronica più pura, ma non è a loro che questa recensione si vuole rivolgere... Grazie a Frank Zappa fu coniata la definizione di 'musica totale'.... ebbene, se esistesse anche una 'elettronica totale', allora questo album vi si collocherebbe a pieni meriti! Il resto è superfluo...

These samples will stay up until the album (which is having promotion done for it right now) is released... Check them out! ---Tom---

Another new song! check it out, and get ready for the drop... ---Tom---

Is Dead, a song off the upcoming album PLAYS! is up on myspace.com/emotionaljoystick .. . I've also decided to keep up "sometimes always" to serve as... contrast... But they'll both come down in a week or so, when a new song will go up, which will keep happening until the release date... So listen for free (legally) while you can! enjoy... ---Tom---

Check it out... new song off of the upcoming album PLAYS! Like I said, every week or so untill the release date, I'll be putting up a new song, and taking the previous one down... 5n34k pr3v13w! ---Tom---