Jackson Free Press

When producer Curtis Lehr first began making electronic music in 2009, it was an experiment in limitations, as they (Lehr prefers gender-neutral pronouns) were relegated to a few sample loops on free recording software.

For their latest studio project, "Throatless," scheduled for release Thursday, Nov. 10, they faced limitations of a different kind. This time, however, those limitations helped drive the music down a new creative path, they say.

Since Lehr launched their career as Cleveland, Miss.-based electronic artist Argiflex, they have put out new music almost every year, starting with their debut album, "8367 Solarii," in 2009.

The writing and recording process became easier when they enrolled in the audio-engineering program at Delta State University and gained access to the studios at the Delta Music Institute. Lehr even recorded their fourth full-length album, 2015's "Cybersmog," for a senior project.

In December 2015, Lehr graduated from DSU with bachelor's degrees in both computer-information systems and audio engineering, but graduation also meant that they could no longer use the DMI's top-of-the-line technology to record "Throatless." They knew they wouldn't be able to track quite as many simultaneous effects with their home recording equipment, but what at first looked like a blow to creativity soon became the piece de resistance for Argiflex's live shows.

"At my home studio, I can record 12 tracks at once, and I use 13 inputs of the mixer (live), so I just had to decide which one track to drop," Lehr says. "But then, I thought, 'That would probably give the songs a little bit of variation live, bring a new element that wasn't in the song. I think that might be interesting.'"

Likewise, whereas they could patch all the hardware in at once at the DMI studios to get a more pristine sound, they couldn't do that at home. Instead, Lehr ran a single output through a mixer to use it as a matrix, which allowed them to build effects from the ground up. All of this ultimately contributed to the dirtier, grittier sound that on "Throatless."

"It's more weight-full and heavy, a bit darker of a sound to it," Lehr says. "Part of that is due to the recording systems, but it's mainly due to, I guess, wanting to make a noisier recording. With my live shows, I usually end up throwing in lots and lots of noise elements because I'm really into harsh-noise music, and those techniques are really fun to me. They can just fit into harsh, abrasive techno perfectly and can do things that you wouldn't expect to be happening at a techno show."

Even outside of its creation, "Throatless" is a big departure for Argiflex in many ways. For one, the album is Lehr's first release through Bedlam Tapes, a Germany-based cassette label focused on experimental electronic projects.

With the support of the label, Lehr recently embarked on a 20-date tour that will stop in some of the nation's biggest music cities, including Detroit, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, New York City, Miami, Orlando and New Orleans, all before heading back to Mississippi on Saturday, Nov. 19, for a homecoming show at Big Sleepy's (208 W. Capitol St.), which will raise funds to help midtown venue and record store Offbeat pay licensing fees and recoup costs.

"It makes me feel like it's going to actually sell more than a handful of copies because when I've put stuff out in the past, I haven't done much promotion," Lehr says. "I've just gotten everything together and been like, 'All right, here it is!' ... Working with a label that has good affiliations with people has really gotten it out there a lot more than I could have by myself."

Argiflex's "Throatless" is available on Thursday, Nov. 10. For more information or to purchase a copy, visit argiflex.com or 
bedlamtapes.bandcamp.com.