Jessica Rylan

Jessica Rylan is an electronic musician, noise singer/songwriter, and synthesizer designer from Boston. I first came across her work through the beautiful 2005 picture disc album New Secret by her noise project Can't. It would be easy to say that her work is based on power electronics and noise, but there's more to her music than that. Jessica is one of the only musicians I know of that can mix the industrial with the personal and make it work. If you listen close enough, you'll come across acoustic guitar ballads, piano lullabies, and a cappella confessionals laced through the home-made machines and stuttering feedback. It's rare to find emotion in most music of this kind, but Jessica does: the sound of a real girl beneath the noise.

Aside from New Secret, other favorites of mine include her 2004 cassette/book release, Juliette, Who Broke My Heart (this tape seriously rules!), Lush Life, her self-titled Can't LP on Ultra Eczema, Private Time (Part 2) on Weird Forest, and Key Cutter, her collaboration on Load Records with Vampire Belt as Vampire Can't.

Jessica releases many of her albums on her own IRFP label, which can be found here.

Also be sure to check out Flower Electronics, where you can find information on her synthesizers and instruments.

Jessica will be playing at the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival in September.

Here are her favorite albums, along with her comments about them.

"I really like first records/first recordings. Even in some cases, where the first record is clearly not "the best", it's still my favorite one. But I also like later recordings some times. Anyway here are a few."

FIRST ALBUMS/RECORDINGS

Severed Survival - AUTOPSY

All-time favorite - I got a copy accidentally in high school and the band's own name was mis-spelled on the cassette. Between that, the out of tune bass, and the blurt of defeat "Ok - I'll do it!", how could I not fall in love?

The Smiths - THE SMITHS

I listened to this 1000 times alone in my room when I first went off to college.

Lickety Split - JANE LECROY

Regolith Records, 1993 - she was a huge influence on me.

Demo '87 - BREAKDOWN
Space Our Sex Out - DRIVER UFO
S/T - L.A. DRUGS
Trophy - BLOODYMINDED
Uncool, Unclean, Unleashed It's... - THE MURDERERS
Demo CD-R For Clarinettis Qoonotations - ALAS ALAK ALASKA!

Jocelyn gave it to me at a show in 2008 - it sounds nothing like the cd, more like PJ Harvey 4 track demos - totally stripped down and intimate, and captivatingly angry.

Downtown Battle Mountain - DANCE GAVIN DANCE

SECOND LP's

On Fire - GALAXIE 500
South Of Heaven - SLAYER
White Light/White Heat - THE VELVET UNDERGROUND

I used to check this out of the public library over and over when I was 13 - in retrospect, I don't think that was a good idea on my parents' part!

Drugs Are Nice - SUCKDOG

I've never actually listened to this - even though a nice person gave me a copy. I just like to imagine it.

Words And Music By... - NAOMI ELIZABETH

SECOND THROUGH FOURTH

Macy's Day Bird - DIANE CLUCK
Black With Green Leaves - DIANE CLUCK
Oh Vanille / Ova Nil - DIANE CLUCK