tweaker a.k.a. Chris Vrenna The Attraction to All Things Uncertain It all started with the painting on the cover of the album. From the serpentine, shadowy slither of the opening track, "Linoleum," through complex soundscapes that float slowly into a kind of light, not the light of day, but the filtered glint that leaks through yellowed windows. Grammy® Award-winning artist, producer, and remix virtuoso Chris Vrenna takes us on a journey through The Attraction to All Things Uncertain. A little background. Chris Vrenna has been a prominent figure in alternative music since he began hammering drums and programming beats with Nine Inch Nails. After leaving the band he soon became one of the hottest studio wizards in the business. His credits are vast: David Bowie, Smashing Pumpkins, Marilyn Manson, Green Day, The Wallflowers, Hole, Rob Zombie as well as Xzibit featuring Dr.Dre and Snoop Dogg. In a recent one-month period alone, he provided U2 with their "Elevation (Tomb Raider Mix)” for the summer blockbuster Tomb Raider, and provided remixes for Nelly Furtado, Weezer and Poe. In addition, he produced the recent album for Cold, whose CD is nearing gold status. Even coffee, Vrenna's admitted drug of choice, isn't enough to fuel this furious pace. Every now and then, he's gotta get out, take a walk, and prowl the art galleries of L.A. “I'm an art enthusiast,” he admits. “So one day I went into this gallery and saw this painting of a sad little guy staring at an empty typewriter, with a cup of coffee on the table. His hands are folded. He's got these big glasses on. It practically brought me to tears. The expression on his face, and the feelings that the painting evoked were just amazing. I went back to that gallery every week for six months and just stared at that painting. Then, finally, a dear friend bought it for me - they said they couldn't let anyone else own it.” The painting, created by Joe Sorren, now hangs in Vrenna's living room. Previously, it hung on his studio wall, an apparition whose silent, eloquent presence he used to inspire this latest project -- an inspiration so direct and demanding that Vrenna even borrowed from the painting's title, Elliott's Attraction to All Things Uncertain, for his album. In moments grabbed between freelance projects, or in long late-night stretches with only Elliott as his witness, Vrenna assembled a compelling sequence of pieces, bristling with electronic effects, swampy slide guitar, and stadium-sized slammin’ beats that alternate with moments of intimate introspection. Each note plays a role in Vrenna’s grand plan to tell the story of Elliott, a kind of lost Everyman, whose life, if everything works out, will lead not to triumph, but to a kind of resolution born from resignation and acceptance. To help guide the story along, Vrenna recruited three guest vocalists to add words at four critical junctures. Each received musical material, a reproduction of the painting, a summary of the plot, and instructions on what Vrenna hoped they would contribute. The results surpassed his expectations. On “Linoleum,” the opening track and single featured on the EP, David Sylvian's haunting baritone brings us quickly to the heart of Elliott's fearful confusion. A woman's voice asks “Why?,” which only emphasizes his uncertainties. Will Oldham’s (of Palace Music and Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy) contribution to the album on “Happy Child” is the turning point of Elliot’s story. As the music shifts from a murky tread into a breathless suspension on “The Drive-bye,” it’s the only part of the album where no drums or percussion pulse. It then falls to Craig Wedren of Shudder to Think to deliver the two final vocal tracks. His voice stretches like a bird emerging from its egg on “Take Me Alive” and soars over a chorus of massed harmonies, unchained yet not quite free on “After All,” singing “I do not fear this after all/Not quite so fearless after all.” The 50-minute EP of “Linoleum,” the first single from tweaker, features remixes of the David Sylvian track from Josh Wink, Wamdue Project, King Britt, Teargas & Plate Glass and Paul Leary of the Butthole Surfers, along with rare non-LP tracks. The 12" vinyl contains remixes from Josh Wink, Wamdue Project and King Britt. Recorded under the name tweaker, which Vrenna adopted when he began work on this project three years ago, The Attraction to All Things Uncertain will be at long last released this fall. And that's just the beginning: Look for American McGee's Alice, featuring his music for the popular PC game based on the darker side of Alice in Wonderland, later this year. This collaboration between Vrenna and game designer American McGee is a match made in virtual heaven. As the genius behind Doom and Quake, McGee possesses a dark and brilliant vision that perfectly complements Vrenna's sonic imagination. For Alice, Vrenna concocted a haunting score played mainly on toy instruments and sweetened with female choir, strings, and effects. It is not a game for the faint of heart, but then, neither is the music of Chris Vrenna. Have the courage to enter the world of Alice and The Attraction to All Things Uncertain -- you're guaranteed to come back safely, and with a decidedly different view of the world around you. Both albums will be out on Six Degrees Records.

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