"I've been doing solo music projects for a while, as a labor of love, but I always wanted to do something to tie in my experience working as a programmer; I was going through a new hardcore binge, and then came across Vein's song 'doomtech' and then it clicked."
That's what musician M.A. Mendoza tells me the impetus behind his doomtech solo project. The Los Angeles-based artist gives further props to Vein for the inspiration: "It was the perfect name for the concept I had in my head, pairing heavy music, software, and my own thoughts/anxieties about the tech industry as someone working within tech."
As heard on doomtech's new Promo 2020 below, Mendoza's songwriting and production approach is a unique one, and he's even come up with its own genre tag:
"'Sonic Internet Garbage' is how I like to describe the music.
"I start with my favorite newer metal and hardcore bands like Code Orange, Dying Wish, Knocked Loose, No Right, Incendiary, Vamachara, Vein, Venom Prison; then throw in some established bands like Hatebreed, Lamb of God, System of a Down; then, of course, some death metal for good measure: Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, Dying Fetus; and pepper in some drum programming and noisey sampling.
"Somewhere in there you might find the doomtech sound, along with what's left of my sanity."
Mendoza told me a bit about some of his lyrical thought process for the new songs. "In 'Megalomaniac (Tech Bro Blues)' I try to push back on the whole Tech CEO cult of personality, and even throwing in some news items from the excesses in tech culture; on other songs, like 'scrollAddict,' the focus is more on personal experiences, and seeing ourselves through the lenses and screens we carry around in our pockets 24/7."
The process behind the doomtech project is clearly a labor of love for Mendoza. "Starting with the logo and versioning of releases, I try to put a lot of thought into making this feel like a software project with a musical component to it. Most of the tools I use are Free and Libre Open Source Software (FLOSS); these are free of cost and completely open software tools, which anyone can access on the web and contribute to. You can even get their source code online and mess with it."
Tech stack:
Ubuntu Studio (Operating System).
Audacity (Audio Recording/Editing).
Hydrogen Drum Machine (Drum Programming).
GIMP (Image Editor and Processor).
How about putting together a proper band to bring the doomtech material to a live audience? "I have given it some thought, and as everything with this project, the first iteration is digitized; I started playing around with some live streams on Instagram and Twitch, just me with a guitar and a computer.
"Eventually, I might consider a solo performance on stage, similar to what Godflesh does but without the bass player (no shade to bass players, I am one too). I guess the open question is if hardcore/metal fans would be up for it."
doomtech on social media: Bandcamp | Instagram | Twitch
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Tagged: doomtech
