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Cex (musician)

January 01, 1970

Cex is an American musical project run by Rjyan Claybrook Kidwell and started in 1998 at the age of 16. Although Cex and Kidwell are frequently used interchangeably, Cex occasionally expands to several people at sporadic points, such as particular tours or albums. In the past it has included Kidwell's musical associates, friends, touring partners, or high school bandmates.[1]

Cex
Background information
Birth nameRjyan Claybrook Kidwell
Occupation(s)Musician, composer, remixer, DJ
Years active1998–present
LabelsTigerbeat6, Automation Records, Jade Tree

History edit

The first Cex album, Cells, was a compilation of tracks Kidwell had been working on for several years, and was released in 1998 by his own CD-R label, _underscore, while he was still at Dulaney High School in Timonium, Maryland. The following year, Kidwell met Miguel Depedro (Kid 606) and the two founded Tigerbeat6, a record label which would be among the vanguards of the electronica movement at the time. The next Cex album, Role Model, was one of the label's first releases (2000), and was quickly followed up the next year with Oops, I Did It Again!. Oops not only took its title from the Britney Spears album of the same name, but played around with the title by depicting photos of the aftermath of a murder on the cover art.

All of the Cex releases up to this time were classified as IDM (Intelligent dance music) and had very little vocals or lyrics for the most part. However, Kidwell was not content to stay behind the laptop while on tour, and quickly and openly aspired to become "#1 Entertainer". He started to hone freestyling skills and performing new songs with vocal tracks like "who's the man with no clothes, underwear, fur coat, chilling in the alley?/I'm the man with no clothes, underwear, fur coat/he's brandishing knives!" ("Fur Coat") and "I know you're stressed/'cause there's only one Cex/and your girlfriend's pissed/'cause you ain't him" ("One Cex"). His vocal style was very confrontational and nearly atonal, and contained typically outrageous braggadocio; he frequently would go out of his way to chat to his audience between or in the middle of songs, and was known to strip down to his underwear (or less) from time to time. In 2002, he was offered a coveted tour spot opening for the East Coast leg of the Death and Dismemberment tour with Death Cab for Cutie and old friends from Washington, DC The Dismemberment Plan. Also in 2002 he collaborated with Aaron Funk; a Winnipeg electronic artist known as Venetian Snares to create "stamina" the ninth track on Aaron's '02 album "237 0894". Later that year, Tall, Dark, and Handcuffed, his first album with full vocals, was released.[2] He continued to open for noted bands such as Super Furry Animals and The Roots, as well as musical friends Grand Buffet.

2003 was a pivotal year for Kidwell - after spending his entire life living in or around Baltimore, he packed up and drove out to Oakland, California. Car malfunctions and a week stranded in the western US became the inspiration for his second album of that year, Maryland Mansions. In April, he gained further exposure opening for indie darlings The Postal Service. Before this, however, he released Being Ridden in both vocal and instrumental form. The album cover paid homage to David Bowie, imitating the cover for "Heroes". Also notably, the album was not released by Tigerbeat6, and it seemed to have largely abandoned both the IDM and jokey old-school hip-hop of Tall, Dark, and Handcuffed for rawer sounds and themes. Maryland Mansions pushed those motifs further and was modelled somewhat on the Nine Inch Nails EP Broken, and was released just around the time that Kidwell returned to Baltimore. Two music videos for Maryland Mansions were released early in 2004, and Kidwell moved again, to Chicago a few months later.

Shortly thereafter, he married Roby Newton (from the band Milemarker), and reorganized Cex as a three-piece: Kidwell, Newton, and Cale Parks (from the bands Joan of Arc and Aloha). This configuration released an EP, Know Doubt, in 2005 on a Chicago label called Record Label. This trio, joined by Portland, OR duo Nice Nice and ex-Dismemberment Plan guitarist Jason Caddell, was featured on the next Cex album, 2006's Actual Fucking, made up of tracks named after and written about various American cities (Baltimore, Los Angeles, Denton, etc.).[3] The album is heavy on vocals and was released by Seattle label Automation Records.

In 2007 Kidwell would go on to release an EP entitled Exotical Privates, which involved two different cover images for both CD and an LP. The LP cover was in response to AFI's newly formed electronic project, Blaqk Audio, whose album was named the same as Kidwell's first record, CexCells. The cover features an AFI tattoo on a scrotum. The EP's musical material is made up of a combination of samples from Actual Fucking and Kate Bush. It was released on Automation Records.

Kidwell is said to be working on a newly formed side project by the name of Sandcats as well, described as being "a solo project for two people", his wife and himself. They moved back to Baltimore in 2005.

Kidwell would later work in theater. Kidwell made his acting debut in an adaptation of Philip K. Dick's Ubik in 2012.[4] Kidwell predominantly spent 2013 working in theater productions and DJing at clubs in Baltimore.[5] He performed new music as Cex in 2014 that was described as a "dramatic change in direction".[5]

Discography edit

Albums edit

EPs/Singles/Splits edit

  • Shift-Minus Vol. 1 (1999 · Underscore Records)
  • Get Your Badass On EP (2000 · 555 Recordings)
  • Role Playa (2000 · Tigerbeat6/555 Recordings)
  • Starship Galactica (2001 · 555 Recordings)
  • Oops, I Did It Again! EP (2001 · Tigerbeat6)
  • $ Vol. 2 (2001 · Tigerbeat6)
  • The "Connected" Series#2 (2001 · Klangkrieg)
  • Bad Acne EP (2002 · Tigerbeat6)
  • Shotgun Wedding Vol. 3: Oh, So Now You Fuckers Wanna Dance? (2004 · Violent Turd)
  • Know Doubt (2005 · Record Label)
  • Miami Mansions (2006 · Must Finish)
  • Exotical Privates (2007 · Automation Records)
  • Baltimore Ends with an E split cassette with Mark Brown (2009 • Holy Holy Holy Records)
  • Nonconsenshredemption (2010 • Wtr Clr)
  • Evargreaz (2010 · Automation Records)
  • Megamuse EP (2011 · Tigerbeat6)
  • Secret Monog EP (2011 · Tigerbeat6)
  • Title King split cassette with Jason Urick (2011 · Wtr Clr)
  • Cobweb & Colossus EP (2012 · Tigerbeat6)

References edit

  1. ^ Potts, Diana. "Biography: Cex". Allmusic. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
  2. ^ "Cex: Tall Dark and Handcuffed". Pitchfork Media. 2002.
  3. ^ "Cex: Actual Fucking". Pitchfork Media. 2005.
  4. ^ McCabe, Bret (October 21, 2014). "Annex Theater invites you to a night of humanity at its worst while savoring food at its best--you know, the norm--with "The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover"". Baltimore City Paper. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Maimann, Kevin (July 23, 2014). "Maimann: Bermuda Fest summons Cex". Edmonton Sun. Retrieved July 4, 2017.

External links edit

  • Cex on Discogs
  • Mini-Interview with Cex on Aural States (July 2008)
  • Interview with Cex (2011)

January 01, 1970
musician, this, article, multiple, issues, please, help, improve, discuss, these, issues, talk, page, learn, when, remove, these, template, messages, this, biography, living, person, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, adding, reliable, s. This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification Please help by adding reliable sources Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page especially if potentially libelous Find sources Cex musician news newspapers books scholar JSTOR July 2017 Learn how and when to remove this message This article needs to be updated Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information July 2017 Learn how and when to remove this message Cex is an American musical project run by Rjyan Claybrook Kidwell and started in 1998 at the age of 16 Although Cex and Kidwell are frequently used interchangeably Cex occasionally expands to several people at sporadic points such as particular tours or albums In the past it has included Kidwell s musical associates friends touring partners or high school bandmates 1 CexBackground informationBirth nameRjyan Claybrook KidwellOccupation s Musician composer remixer DJYears active1998 presentLabelsTigerbeat6 Automation Records Jade Tree Contents 1 History 2 Discography 2 1 Albums 2 2 EPs Singles Splits 3 References 4 External linksHistory editThe first Cex album Cells was a compilation of tracks Kidwell had been working on for several years and was released in 1998 by his own CD R label underscore while he was still at Dulaney High School in Timonium Maryland The following year Kidwell met Miguel Depedro Kid 606 and the two founded Tigerbeat6 a record label which would be among the vanguards of the electronica movement at the time The next Cex album Role Model was one of the label s first releases 2000 and was quickly followed up the next year with Oops I Did It Again Oops not only took its title from the Britney Spears album of the same name but played around with the title by depicting photos of the aftermath of a murder on the cover art All of the Cex releases up to this time were classified as IDM Intelligent dance music and had very little vocals or lyrics for the most part However Kidwell was not content to stay behind the laptop while on tour and quickly and openly aspired to become 1 Entertainer He started to hone freestyling skills and performing new songs with vocal tracks like who s the man with no clothes underwear fur coat chilling in the alley I m the man with no clothes underwear fur coat he s brandishing knives Fur Coat and I know you re stressed cause there s only one Cex and your girlfriend s pissed cause you ain t him One Cex His vocal style was very confrontational and nearly atonal and contained typically outrageous braggadocio he frequently would go out of his way to chat to his audience between or in the middle of songs and was known to strip down to his underwear or less from time to time In 2002 he was offered a coveted tour spot opening for the East Coast leg of the Death and Dismemberment tour with Death Cab for Cutie and old friends from Washington DC The Dismemberment Plan Also in 2002 he collaborated with Aaron Funk a Winnipeg electronic artist known as Venetian Snares to create stamina the ninth track on Aaron s 02 album 237 0894 Later that year Tall Dark and Handcuffed his first album with full vocals was released 2 He continued to open for noted bands such as Super Furry Animals and The Roots as well as musical friends Grand Buffet 2003 was a pivotal year for Kidwell after spending his entire life living in or around Baltimore he packed up and drove out to Oakland California Car malfunctions and a week stranded in the western US became the inspiration for his second album of that year Maryland Mansions In April he gained further exposure opening for indie darlings The Postal Service Before this however he released Being Ridden in both vocal and instrumental form The album cover paid homage to David Bowie imitating the cover for Heroes Also notably the album was not released by Tigerbeat6 and it seemed to have largely abandoned both the IDM and jokey old school hip hop of Tall Dark and Handcuffed for rawer sounds and themes Maryland Mansions pushed those motifs further and was modelled somewhat on the Nine Inch Nails EP Broken and was released just around the time that Kidwell returned to Baltimore Two music videos for Maryland Mansions were released early in 2004 and Kidwell moved again to Chicago a few months later Shortly thereafter he married Roby Newton from the band Milemarker and reorganized Cex as a three piece Kidwell Newton and Cale Parks from the bands Joan of Arc and Aloha This configuration released an EP Know Doubt in 2005 on a Chicago label called Record Label This trio joined by Portland OR duo Nice Nice and ex Dismemberment Plan guitarist Jason Caddell was featured on the next Cex album 2006 s Actual Fucking made up of tracks named after and written about various American cities Baltimore Los Angeles Denton etc 3 The album is heavy on vocals and was released by Seattle label Automation Records In 2007 Kidwell would go on to release an EP entitled Exotical Privates which involved two different cover images for both CD and an LP The LP cover was in response to AFI s newly formed electronic project Blaqk Audio whose album was named the same as Kidwell s first record CexCells The cover features an AFI tattoo on a scrotum The EP s musical material is made up of a combination of samples from Actual Fucking and Kate Bush It was released on Automation Records Kidwell is said to be working on a newly formed side project by the name of Sandcats as well described as being a solo project for two people his wife and himself They moved back to Baltimore in 2005 Kidwell would later work in theater Kidwell made his acting debut in an adaptation of Philip K Dick s Ubik in 2012 4 Kidwell predominantly spent 2013 working in theater productions and DJing at clubs in Baltimore 5 He performed new music as Cex in 2014 that was described as a dramatic change in direction 5 Discography editAlbums edit Cells 1998 Underscore Records Role Model 2000 Tigerbeat6 Oops I Did It Again 2001 Tigerbeat6 Tall Dark amp Handcuffed 2002 Tigerbeat6 Being Ridden 2003 Temporary Residence BR Instrumentals 2003 Temporary Residence Maryland Mansions 2003 Jade Tree Records Actual Fucking 2006 Automation Records Sketchi 2007 Temporary Residence Dannibal 2007 Must Finish Wildfirewildfire Records Bataille Royale 2009 Must Finish Tigerbeat6 Konx Om Cex Vol 1 2010 Must Finish Tiny Creature 2011 Tigerbeat6 Presumed Dead 2012 Automation Records Masokismi 2012 Wtr Clr Prosperity as Rjyan Kidwell 2013 Nibbana Tigerbeat6 Shamaneater 2014 Automation Records EPs Singles Splits edit Shift Minus Vol 1 1999 Underscore Records Get Your Badass On EP 2000 555 Recordings Role Playa 2000 Tigerbeat6 555 Recordings Starship Galactica 2001 555 Recordings Oops I Did It Again EP 2001 Tigerbeat6 Vol 2 2001 Tigerbeat6 The Connected Series 2 2001 Klangkrieg Bad Acne EP 2002 Tigerbeat6 Shotgun Wedding Vol 3 Oh So Now You Fuckers Wanna Dance 2004 Violent Turd Know Doubt 2005 Record Label Miami Mansions 2006 Must Finish Exotical Privates 2007 Automation Records Baltimore Ends with an E split cassette with Mark Brown 2009 Holy Holy Holy Records Nonconsenshredemption 2010 Wtr Clr Evargreaz 2010 Automation Records Megamuse EP 2011 Tigerbeat6 Secret Monog EP 2011 Tigerbeat6 Title King split cassette with Jason Urick 2011 Wtr Clr Cobweb amp Colossus EP 2012 Tigerbeat6 References edit Potts Diana Biography Cex Allmusic Retrieved 26 April 2010 Cex Tall Dark and Handcuffed Pitchfork Media 2002 Cex Actual Fucking Pitchfork Media 2005 McCabe Bret October 21 2014 Annex Theater invites you to a night of humanity at its worst while savoring food at its best you know the norm with The Cook the Thief His Wife and Her Lover Baltimore City Paper Retrieved July 4 2017 a b Maimann Kevin July 23 2014 Maimann Bermuda Fest summons Cex Edmonton Sun Retrieved July 4 2017 External links editOfficial website Cex on Discogs Interview with Cex 2003 Mini Interview with Cex on Aural States July 2008 Interview with Cex 2011 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Cex musician amp oldid 1104848930, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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