David Dineen-Porter

"Already a successful stand-up comic and comedy writer,... Dineen-Porter also proves himself a fine actor." - Torontoist

"David Dineen-Porter: Hmm, maybe I was wrong about Adomian: Toronto’s Dineen-Porter was actually the most alt performer of the
evening, providing a truly original and hilarious PowerPoint presentation on … well, I’m not sure. The future of language? Jessica Alba’s capacity for multiple sets of lips? If it sounds surreal, it was, but in the best possible way." - National post

"David Dineen-Porter: Hmm, maybe I was wrong about Adomian: Toronto’s Dineen-Porter was actually the most alt performer of the
evening, providing a truly original and hilarious PowerPoint presentation on … well, I’m not sure. The future of language? Jessica Alba’s capacity for multiple sets of lips? If it sounds surreal, it was, but in the best possible way." - National post

"David Dineen-Porter [is] one of the funniest and smartest comedians we have." - blogTO

"Runner-up for the Pete Holmes prize: David Dineen-Porter, who did a full 10 minutes of complete gibberish at the Alternative Show." - National Post

"You loved him in L'Brondelle's Universe. He slayed you with his Bizarre Business Meeting.Visionary Times left you bloodied and broken from laughter attacks. Now, David Dineen-Porter is lending his absurd sense of humour to ChartAttack.com. He's taken over hosting duties for
the interview series Conversations. Dineen-Porter makes "conversation" with great musicians like Ben Folds Five and Matt and Kim. Pretty straightforward. Except a conversation with DDP is never straightforward, insofar as what you or I may imagine a conversation to be. Watch DDP grill Ben Folds on his favourite cubes to eat and our future supreme autocrat, the Holocon Law Giver. Watch now!" - Toronto Standard

"You loved him in L'Brondelle's Universe. He slayed you with his Bizarre Business Meeting.Visionary Times left you bloodied and broken from laughter attacks. Now, David Dineen-Porter is lending his absurd sense of humour to ChartAttack.com. He's taken over hosting duties for
the interview series Conversations. Dineen-Porter makes "conversation" with great musicians like Ben Folds Five and Matt and Kim. Pretty straightforward. Except a conversation with DDP is never straightforward, insofar as what you or I may imagine a conversation to be. Watch DDP grill Ben Folds on his favourite cubes to eat and our future supreme autocrat, the Holocon Law Giver. Watch now!" - Toronto Standard

Musicians get wired with old gadgets

DANIEL WERB

Special to The Globe and Mail

While Canadian music's best and brightest gathered for the Junos last weekend, another kind of artist was working far from the spotlight, searching for a different buzz -- the kind you get with a soldering iron and copper. Circuit bending, the art of rewiring old electronic machinery in order to create unreliable instruments, is gaining a following in Canada.

Chris Von Szombathy, an artist and multi-instrumentalist independently releasing his three-CD electronic album, Audio Ahdeo Awdio, on Saturday, has been destroying and creating electronics for the better part of a decade. A strange mix of low-fi synth and complex, harmony-laden songwriting, his project wouldn't have been possible, claims Von Szombathy, without his homemade "Doombox."

A breadbox-sized metal case containing parts from a toy steering wheel (complete with horn and siren), a battery-powered oscillator, and a Playskool keyboard, the Doombox, he says, "was made out of a love of constructive destruction." While Von Szombathy admits that "it's too unreliable to play The Well-Tempered Clavier on," the instrument's unpredictability and the strange tones it emits form the nucleus of Audio Ahdeo Awdio.

For Toronto's David Dineen-Porter, a comedy writer, part-time accountant and electronic musician, circuit bending was a fascination from an early age. "I loved Commodore 64 music when I was a kid. A lot of it sucked, but the good stuff was . . ." Dineen-Porter's voice trails off wistfully. "It was maybe some of the best music of the 20th century." He later went on-line and discovered a whole network of like-minded people, mostly living in Sweden and Germany. "So I said to myself, 'If that guy got his printer to play Beethoven, what can I do with a Commodore 64?' " His current projects include making a drum machine out of a dozen vibrators and rewiring old Nintendo games to make playable synthesizers.

Dineen-Porter is surprised at the outsider status of circuit benders and bemoans Toronto's lack of venues for such experimentation. The situation of circuit benders, he claims, is like that of synthesizer aficionados in the 1960s.

"They had a debate in the late sixties about whether synthesizers could ever have a place in 'real' music. Most people said that it could never happen. Then Walter/Wendy Carlos released the all-synth Switched on Bach, which became one of the best-selling classical albums of all time. And that ended the debate."

While both Von Szombathy and Dineen-Porter are pessimistic about their work appealing to the music industry, they also believe it's just a matter of time before circuit benders reach the mainstream. "Pop is just an approach towards the audience," says Dineen-Porter. "You can please a crowd with pretty much anything if you apply it properly."

So don't be frightened if at next year's Junos, you're treated to the sights and sounds of a dozen mangled vibrators rattling around the stage. It could be the buzz everyone is looking for. - The Globe and Mail

Musicians get wired with old gadgets

DANIEL WERB

Special to The Globe and Mail

While Canadian music's best and brightest gathered for the Junos last weekend, another kind of artist was working far from the spotlight, searching for a different buzz -- the kind you get with a soldering iron and copper. Circuit bending, the art of rewiring old electronic machinery in order to create unreliable instruments, is gaining a following in Canada.

Chris Von Szombathy, an artist and multi-instrumentalist independently releasing his three-CD electronic album, Audio Ahdeo Awdio, on Saturday, has been destroying and creating electronics for the better part of a decade. A strange mix of low-fi synth and complex, harmony-laden songwriting, his project wouldn't have been possible, claims Von Szombathy, without his homemade "Doombox."

A breadbox-sized metal case containing parts from a toy steering wheel (complete with horn and siren), a battery-powered oscillator, and a Playskool keyboard, the Doombox, he says, "was made out of a love of constructive destruction." While Von Szombathy admits that "it's too unreliable to play The Well-Tempered Clavier on," the instrument's unpredictability and the strange tones it emits form the nucleus of Audio Ahdeo Awdio.

For Toronto's David Dineen-Porter, a comedy writer, part-time accountant and electronic musician, circuit bending was a fascination from an early age. "I loved Commodore 64 music when I was a kid. A lot of it sucked, but the good stuff was . . ." Dineen-Porter's voice trails off wistfully. "It was maybe some of the best music of the 20th century." He later went on-line and discovered a whole network of like-minded people, mostly living in Sweden and Germany. "So I said to myself, 'If that guy got his printer to play Beethoven, what can I do with a Commodore 64?' " His current projects include making a drum machine out of a dozen vibrators and rewiring old Nintendo games to make playable synthesizers.

Dineen-Porter is surprised at the outsider status of circuit benders and bemoans Toronto's lack of venues for such experimentation. The situation of circuit benders, he claims, is like that of synthesizer aficionados in the 1960s.

"They had a debate in the late sixties about whether synthesizers could ever have a place in 'real' music. Most people said that it could never happen. Then Walter/Wendy Carlos released the all-synth Switched on Bach, which became one of the best-selling classical albums of all time. And that ended the debate."

While both Von Szombathy and Dineen-Porter are pessimistic about their work appealing to the music industry, they also believe it's just a matter of time before circuit benders reach the mainstream. "Pop is just an approach towards the audience," says Dineen-Porter. "You can please a crowd with pretty much anything if you apply it properly."

So don't be frightened if at next year's Junos, you're treated to the sights and sounds of a dozen mangled vibrators rattling around the stage. It could be the buzz everyone is looking for. - The Globe and Mail

February 23, 2007

(Excerpt:)

However, the acts that really stood out were the ones that included not only amazing performances (the festival was full of them) but also had a certain 'je ne sais quoi' (I am SO cliché) that made them stand out from the crowd. Two hail from Toronto, while the other comes from a small town just north of Brampton, called Orangeville.


PDF Format


Armed with an acoustic guitar and various other electronic instruments, PDF Format (aka comedian David Dineen-Porter) single-handedly kept the entire room laughing throughout his set, enthralling the audience with his natural charisma and quirky use of technology. He began with a heartfelt cover of “Tomorrow” (from the Annie soundtrack) before moving on to some rather endearing original works. The rapt crowd (myself included) then tried to figure out what nature of instruments Dineen-Porter was using. It wasn't easy.

Utilizing my amazing journalistic skills (via email) I was able to discover PDF’s curious weapons of choice (when making music). He has managed to modify a Commodore 64 (remember those?!) a Gameboy, and an old school Nintendo, never mind a couple of circuit-bent Casio keyboards.

Talk about a unique approach to making music!

Check out four cool songs of his here, and be sure to peep a few of his comedic performances by clicking on “David Left Twin Comedy”.

Well, that sums up some of the highlights from my experience at the Brampton Indie Arts festival! Thanks to all of the amazing artists I met there, and who were actually nice to me. I am really excited to see what 2008 holds for the BIAF, and I hope you can check out my show featuring nothing but BIAF artists on April 2nd!

- Laura MacDougall
View the review in its entirety at www.breakthruradio.com, in the Reviews section.
- breakthruradio.com New York

February 23, 2007

(Excerpt:)

However, the acts that really stood out were the ones that included not only amazing performances (the festival was full of them) but also had a certain 'je ne sais quoi' (I am SO cliché) that made them stand out from the crowd. Two hail from Toronto, while the other comes from a small town just north of Brampton, called Orangeville.


PDF Format


Armed with an acoustic guitar and various other electronic instruments, PDF Format (aka comedian David Dineen-Porter) single-handedly kept the entire room laughing throughout his set, enthralling the audience with his natural charisma and quirky use of technology. He began with a heartfelt cover of “Tomorrow” (from the Annie soundtrack) before moving on to some rather endearing original works. The rapt crowd (myself included) then tried to figure out what nature of instruments Dineen-Porter was using. It wasn't easy.

Utilizing my amazing journalistic skills (via email) I was able to discover PDF’s curious weapons of choice (when making music). He has managed to modify a Commodore 64 (remember those?!) a Gameboy, and an old school Nintendo, never mind a couple of circuit-bent Casio keyboards.

Talk about a unique approach to making music!

Check out four cool songs of his here, and be sure to peep a few of his comedic performances by clicking on “David Left Twin Comedy”.

Well, that sums up some of the highlights from my experience at the Brampton Indie Arts festival! Thanks to all of the amazing artists I met there, and who were actually nice to me. I am really excited to see what 2008 holds for the BIAF, and I hope you can check out my show featuring nothing but BIAF artists on April 2nd!

- Laura MacDougall
View the review in its entirety at www.breakthruradio.com, in the Reviews section.
- breakthruradio.com New York

it hasn't been published yet, but the excerpt sent to by on myspace by the enthusiastic journalist was this...

"...Bizarre comic-musician PDF Format ended an amusing set dancing with an unsuspecting woman..."

And I can't tell if that sounds good or bad.. but it's there.

- Exclaim.ca

it hasn't been published yet, but the excerpt sent to by on myspace by the enthusiastic journalist was this...

"...Bizarre comic-musician PDF Format ended an amusing set dancing with an unsuspecting woman..."

And I can't tell if that sounds good or bad.. but it's there.

- Exclaim.ca

PDF Format: Fecal Alcohol Syndrome 2006 Independent

PDF Format’s EP release titled Fecal Alcohol Syndrome is a battleground of crunchy 8-bit sound explosions, reminiscent of SNES and selective Game Boy titles such as Mega Man, Super Mario Brothers and Bubble Bobble. The experience is like being dragged into a room in the middle of a video game orgy with electronic beats and twisting sounds, an endless barrage of fireballs and perfectly timed 1ups.

“Genevieve’s Song” is a shining example of superbly mastered data rock (although an early version of the song with lyrics was much more intriguing). Things I wished to have more of in the songs were lyrics or the incorporation of some human voice. Something we do get is a hidden track (a hidden gem): a cover “Tomorrow” from Annie – a song that has been on loop in my CD player for days now.

PDF Format is David Porter, a local Torontonian who, in addition to playing one-man shows as PDF Format, also performs stand-up comedy in Toronto venues. His EP is available on MySpace as a free download and will soon be followed up by a full-length album.

By: Dapper

http://www.myspace.com/pdfmusic


Artist comment: They missed my voice, so i sing more now :) - Torontoindie.com

I don’t know what to say about David Dineen-Porter’s project ‘PDF Format’… I’m stumped. Live, it was the most fun I’ve ever had at a show. I laughed until I (almost) peed. I laughed until it hurt. I laughed until I wheezed. I think it was supposed to be funny. Underneath DDP’s blippy game boy melodies and biting off the wall comedy is a truly beautiful voice, an incredibly talented musician, and what I sincerely believe is the work of a genius. Unlike anything else, PDF Format is an experience to be seen to be believed.
Sounds Like: Nintendo + Broadway + funny + mystery ingredient = yay
For Fans Of: Commodore 64, Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo Gameboy DMG-01, Atari 2600 - No Shame

Fuelled by indie bands culled from his successful Two Way Monologues concert series, hard-working local booker Dan Wolovick is expanding his racket to include resuscitated label Hi-Hat Recordings. The label’s new plan is to release handmade CD-Rs, saving proper releases for bestsellers.

At the packed launch party, Guelph youngsters Burn Planetarium got stuck with an early time slot. Their infectious indie rock (in the vein of Spy Machine 16 and Born Ruffians) and charismatic stage presence should guarantee them a bright future. Next up, local esoteric oldsters Luxury Bob proved a bit of a miss, pairing tongue-in-cheek tango-pop with a subdued live show.

PDF Format brought the energy back when he played two hilarious selections from one of his 8-bit rock operas. His too-short half-set was followed by a solo performance by Hi-Hat founder (and 90s throwback) Spookey Ruben, who’s still got vocal skills that would make Brian Wilson blush.

Jordan Bimm - Now Magazine

Dr. DDP - thanks trillions for all your PeeDeeEffness … twas a great great night . . . rrrrrrrroar !

spooXXXey

(yes, a myspace comment, but it was from Spookey RUBIN!) - myspace

Dr. DDP - thanks trillions for all your PeeDeeEffness … twas a great great night . . . rrrrrrrroar !

spooXXXey

(yes, a myspace comment, but it was from Spookey RUBIN!) - myspace

http://www.torontoindie.com/?p=245

just follow this link. It's a long interview.

- Torontoindie.com

http://www.torontoindie.com/?p=245

just follow this link. It's a long interview.

- Torontoindie.com

PDF Format was featured on influential MP3 blog http://www.saidthegramaphone.com


"PDF Format is Toronto artist David Dineen-Porter in one of his many disguises, manifestations, approximations. Though this one may be his most honest to date. As PDF Format, he is the conductor of a vast symphony of thousands of little glitchy bits: a hundred-and-fifty laser bursts, eight-hundred jumps, bomb bursts, one-ups, door opens, gun loads, enacting reflector shields, passing levels, losing hearts, and landing dying on spikes. If there were ever an instance of a band created to play one song, this could be a perfect instance for that (the most self-loathing-beautiful love song made from the most time-wasting-beautiful bits). If he didn't make a bunch of other great songs too.

PDF Format - "We Shall Eat Krill"

For the first EP, Fecal Alcohol Syndrome, and for the other few songs released after that, they were entirely video game-y, this is the first song where PDF Format has stepped beyond that, taken a chance on just playing this song how it should sound, and it's marvelous. It's like combining three songs; the verse song, the chorus song, and the bridge song. One with flashing eyes and dark strings attached, one with stompy pop boots and gold and honey sun, and one with eerie reggae and careless energy. This song is the sign of great things to come.

Dan-"
- saidthegramaphone.com