Polypores - Shpongos

Behind The Sky is proud to present our 14th release, a bubbling and organically unfolding record of modular synth compositions from the prolific Polypores. Continuing our mission to pay homage to the history of modular synthesis while still exploring future sounds, Shpongos evolves from organic systems with a west coast sensibility for experimental yet accessible and delicious electronic sounds.


Fungi is everywhere. Hidden just beneath the surface. Vast networks of interconnected mycelium thrive, pulsing like Nature's own internet. Nourishing and creating soil. Breaking down dead matter so that it can be recycled and used again. Facilitating the transport of vital nutrients and communication of chemical messages between plants and trees. Digesting harmful chemicals that pollute our planet. They can survive in the most extreme conditions, and even live in space. They can create medicine, provide food, and induce visions that some believe may be the key to ultimately understanding human consciousness. Every ecosystem on Earth is reliant on fungi for its survival and wellbeing. We have only just begun to understand it. Everything is connected.

With Shpongos, Stephen James Buckley (aka Polypores) pays tribute to this, using an interconnected ecosystem of his own - namely the modular synthesizer. An ecosystem in which voltage sources and events influence each other, transforming the compositions. The organic interconnectedness of the mycelial wires creates natural, woody tones, freed from the rigidity of structure and rhythm. Melodies evolve upward from the verdant undergrowth evoking the deep, ancient wonder of the fungal kingdom. Textures ferment like beds of soil, teeming with invisible life, things unknown and uncomprehended. These are lullabies from a mycorrhizal network of patch cables and voltages. Music for electric fungus.