The Black Lodge is a monthly intimate gathering and ritual organized around exploring, sharing, and experimenting with diverse forms of elektronic musik and other esoterik arts.
We (virtually) sat down with Kosmik and Simonowsky of The Black Lodge to talk about music in the time of pandemic.
O: Ok, for all the folks who don’t know yet, who are you and what do you create?
K: I disk jockey and produce as Kosmik and am the founder and primary force behind The Black Lodge.
S: DJ and occasional music production under Simonowsky, resident at The Black Lodge
Kosmik, Los Angeles 2020
O: Nice, and nice to talk to you guys again. What have you been working on? What project are you most excited about right now?
K: With Black Lodge, I am very proud of our recent four benefit tape comps which included over 50 passionate artists and friends who got involved to help raise funds for various non-profit organizations and movements which are close to our heart – Movement For Black Lives, CARECEN-LA (Central American Resource Center), First Nations Development Institute Covid Relief Fund, and finally the Lebanese Food Bank thanks to our friends Nick Klein and Miguel Enrique.
Through these efforts we raised over $2300 for these groups and put out some of the sickest music at the same time. We also recently released our 4th vinyl release by Italian dynamic duo Experiment Zero (Dona aka Dj Plant Texture & Mike Tansella Jr.) and our first digital release by Mu-gafrom Chile.
Next up we are releasing two more tapes – one by Sons of Traders and another from a new mysterious project called Rocca Firme. Another various artist vinyl EP is also in the works.
Personally, I’ve also released a couple tracks for a benefit comp to help with protesters out in Belarus (https://radiokapital.bandcamp.com/releases)
and one here locally in LA put out by L.A.U.R.A. called Psychological Operations (https://laurarecs.bandcamp.com/album/psychological-operations). I am also continuing my bi-monthly Black Lodge Radio show on sutrofm.net which often features guests from all over the world.
O: That’s sick. And what have you been working on, Simonowsky?
Simonowsky, Los Angeles 2019
S: Lately I’ve been finishing up some drone/ambient demos, then I have some field recordings from when I was camping in Utah to mess with.
O: Nice, can’t wait to hear what you make with that. Speaking of hearing more, where can we find your projects online to hear more?
K: Other than the links above, you can find my work at:
https://blacklodge.bandcamp.com/
https://soundcloud.com/theblacklodgela
S:
https://soundcloud.com/ssimonowsky
O: Nice. This interview is about creativity in the time of pandemic. So how has the crazy new world affected the way you create? The Black Lodge had monthly meet-upsbefore the lockdowns started, right?
K: Obviously our monthly gatherings have stopped since our last event in Feb 2020, and who knows when and if they will start again. But besides that, things are similar since much of what we do is also done through the interwebs. Sadly, most in person collaborations with other artists are dead for the time being L. But we still out here in the spirit of resistance against mainstream fakeness that has taken over our world.
S: Yeah, it’s difficult not having the ability to put on shows and engage with the community in that way but filling that void with the comps we've put out over the summer made up for it. But, it’s nice to bedroom DJ and be reminded why I started doing all this in the first place
O: Yeah, that’s cool when your world changes but your passion stays the same. What do you guys do when you’re not making music? Want to share anything about your private life? Secret identities?
K: I am a teacher at university in California, married, and have a five-year-old daughter. We’re all stuck at home so it’s been difficult in many ways, but we are grateful to still be able to work and having this extra time together.
S: I make my living in construction operations/logistics outside of my various extracurriculars.
O: Solid secret identities, both of you. Is there anything you wish more people knew about you?
K: I like to keep pretty low profile so there’s a lot people don’t know. I’ve been involved in this scene and movement on various levels since the early 90’s, and like then, we strive to keep BL focused on the music, real artistic/spiritual expression, and true passion and skill. The rest is doo-doo.
S: I make a really good bacon egg sandwich.
O: That sounds delicious, tbh. Ok, last question – what’s your favorite number?
K: 3 – cause it's the magic number!!!
S: 32
O: Nice. Thanks for taking the time, we’ll talk again soon. Maybe next time in person.
