Skytree

Skytree is a large, symbiotic musical plant growing out of the slightly-dented head of Evan Snyder. He thus seldom visits the barber for fear of losing inspiration. The botanical curiosity perched upon his brain compels Evan to create a sound that is distinctive, electronic and experimental while maintaining a primary focus upon natural surroundings, ancestral roots, organic geometry and the shear joy of banging about on instruments on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The tendrils of Skytree began to take hold on Evan's scalp as a wee lad.

Growing up as the son of two nomadic parents within the United States' National Park system, Evan was massively influenced by the beauty, serenity, and flawless organization of the natural world (the mountain range of the Grand Tetons, for instance, would later serve as a visual tool for creating dynamic track envelopes in sequencing software). An early love of music was spawned by his father's record collection, which often included folk and rock curiosities, such as Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span, Alan Stivell, Frank Zappa and Robin Williamson of the Incredible String Band.

After stumbling across his big brother's copy of the Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld, however, the role of electronics in music became an instant love. Shortly thereafter, Evan began asking for drum machines instead of toys for Christmas. He also got several irritating "jobs". Eventually, he armed himself with a Boss DR-5 drum machine, cheap GE tape recorder for capturing sounds, old Yamaha keyboard, Tascam 8-track, and a poor imitation of a guitar. So, at 16, he started amateurly throwing together his first tracks. In retrospect, these tunes "were complete crap, but definitely stepping stones to future ventures and a hell of a lot of fun to make". His parents, who often had to contend with distorted tape loops late at night, did not always share this enthusiasm, but still gave him dinner occasionally.

Since then, the Skytree symbiont has created several works for the netlabel Earstroke, contributed to Benbecula Record's Music Volume 3, thrown a few remixes together here and there, and receives airplay on several radio stations, including 89.3 The Current in Minneapolis.
All of this activity has left Evan "slightly confused, but grateful that people somehow enjoy this damp, mossy noise".