Artist Biography
Mukqs is the solo moniker of Maxwell Allison, co-founder and resident visual artist of the Chicago-based experimental label Hausu Mountain. He regularly collaborates with the label's other operator, Doug Kaplan, in projects such as the psychedelic group Good Willsmith, gleeful rock band BBsitters Club, and plunderphonic duo Pepper Mill Rondo. For his improvised electronic work as Mukqs, Allison records directly to cassette in real time with no overdubs, using samplers, drum machines, loopers, and other electronics. His collage-like music matches his distinctive visual art aesthetic: dense, surreal, colorful, and heavily influenced by video games and Japanese culture. While mostly issuing music on cassette, one of Mukqs' most accomplished efforts, 11,666,666,666,666,666,666, was released on vinyl in 2017. He recorded two abstract hip-hop albums with rapper Sharkula, Prune City (2019) and Take Caution on the Beach (2021). The frenetic glitch session Stonewasher appeared in 2023.
Hometown
Illinois, United States
Genre
Electronic