CHRIS ZABRISKIE

(I do not own the rights to any images used.)

On the Song Soup Menu today we have none other than Producer and Composer, Chris Zabriskie!

Chris Zabriskie; Producer, Composer, Visual Designer and Performer.

Born in the State of Washington, Chris Zabriskie currently resides in Brooklyn, New York. The genre of his music is described in an anonymous IMDb Writer’s biography of Chris as “ambient, electronic, piano soundscapes”. Chris’s Music is experimental and instrumental, fitting into the drone genre as well. In 2001, Chris was part of a “musical noise rock duo” called “Struggleburger”, but went solo after other members did not turn up at a show. In addition to his own music, he has also had his music used for films, video games, even designing and performing live video visuals for any artists who might want them for their own events. Via Chris’s Website (chriszabriskie.com), his songs are published by “You’ve Been a Wonderful Laugh Track (ASCAP)”, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. This means that the music he creates can be used for free in all kinds of projects, as long as credit is given. Other creators looking for licensing that allows others to use their music with some rights reserved of their choosing, can look into the Creative Commons licensing options.

What is Creative Commons? Creative Commons was formed on January 15, 2001, thanks to a Stanford Law Professor named Lawrence Lessig and others who were inspired by web publisher Eric Eldred. They did not agree with a new copyright legislation announced in 1998, titled the “Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act”. This act extended the term years for all copyrighted work in the United States for an additional 20 years. This would mean limited to no usage of works for the public domain, until the term years were concluded which were at that time extended by a lot compared to the previous years already gone by on all works copy-written. Explained best directly from the Creative Commons website article about the story of Creative Commons (creativecommons.org), “limited copyright terms ensure that copyrighted works eventually move into the public domain and thus join the pool of knowledge and creativity from which we can all freely draw to create new works”. Creative Commons would then be born for just that, to give several licensing options for creators of all kinds to choose from and allow them to have their own terms. This gives many usage freedoms to those who would like to use their work, while still respecting the creators' terms on their licensing. Creative Commons expands the range of works available for the public to use, build upon, and share. There are 6 different licensing options to choose from, CC BY being the most open. Chris uses this license, and it allows for the person using his works to redistribute, make changes to and use for commercial activities, as long as credit is given directly and indication of changes made are shown. Creative Commons has given many opportunities for Chris to be promoted, his work being used by clients such as Adidas, Cartoon Network, The Wall Street Journal, and more. A Team Open (project that shares stories of Creative Commons licenses) article written by Meryl Moran on Chris gave me access to some interesting facts, such as Chris getting the Creative Commons attribution logo tattooed on his wrist in 2014. That’s pretty sick. Chris told Moran he owes Creative Commons his entire career, his music also being “…used in over 10,000 videos on YouTube”. In the same article he goes on saying how he never thought the kind of music he makes would go viral, and that “Literally every job (he’s) taken, music (he’s) licensed or scored, is because people were searching for CC.” Creative Commons is for the people and creators, in doing my research I have learned so much and am inspired by those who choose to license under such an amazing organization. Video Games, Visuals, and more… Aside from being a producer of his own music, Chris has had his music used in various video games, even creating a whole soundtrack for a game called Neptune Flux in 2017. Below you will find a list of all games Chris’s music is in, as well as the music credited (this list can also be found on the MobyGames website): -Deadnaut (2014) // CGI Snake -Home is Where One Starts… (2015) // (Music by) -Her Story (2015) // (Music by) -Asphyxia (2015) // (Music) -Neptune Flux (2017) // Music from Neptune Flux (Original Game Soundtrack) -C:|raft (2017) // (Rewound Music from Chris) -Return (2018) // (Music by) -39 Days to Mars (2018) // (Music by) -Telling L!es (2019) // Everybody’s Got Problems That Aren’t Mine -Rover Mechanic Simulator (2020) // The Temperature of the Air on the Bow of the Kaleetan -Red Embrace: Mezzanine (2021) // Cylinder 9 Chris’s music was also a part of the Academy Award Nominated film for “best documentary short subject” in 2014, Facing Fear by Jason Cohen, released in 2013. Within the film is his album I am a man who will fight for your honor, and the song Oxygen Garden. According to the anonymously written biography of Chris on IMDb as referenced earlier on, he has “(produced) and (edited) a series of critically acclaimed music videos with filmmaker Brent Chesanek for indie rock musician John Vanderslice”. Chris’s Music has been used within many short films and movies over the years, including the documentary short For Robin (2022), a reflection from a group of performers on the legacy of Robin Williams, where they share the influence Robin had on their own personal and creative journeys. Chris has been involved in many filmography areas that you can see referenced on IMDb’s website. Besides producing and editing, Chris creates and performs live visuals for many events, such as those listed below: -Record label and live electronic event organizers Circuit Church’s Twitch livestream (April 30th, 2020). -Record label New York Modular Society’s 2 year anniversary show (September 3rd, 2021). - A bar called Honey’s (Brooklyn, New York) anniversary party (March 8th, 2022). -Yoga Instructor Angelina Fiorini’s, Angie's Sunday Service (July 3rd, 2022), which Chris stated was his first live performance in “nearly a decade”. Chris’s most recent release, Angie's Sunday Service (album)- was composed for Fiorini’s Yoga Sunday Service, where every Sunday she holds what she describes as a “fun, juicy and healing (yoga) class”. The Discography of Chris Zabriskie Listed by name, date, and number of tracks, we have the lovely Discography of Chris himself! -The Black Hole (2006), 10 Tracks. - O Great Queen Elizabeth, What Do You Have Waiting for Me? (2008), 9 Tracks. -This Silent Bloody Night (2008), 10 Tracks. -The Dark Glow of the Mountains (2009), 5 Tracks. -I Am a Man Who Will Fight for Your Honor (2009), 7 Tracks. -Preludes (2009), 23 tracks. -Vendaface (2010), 5 Tracks. -Stunt Island (2011), 4 Tracks. -Divider (2011), 6 Tracks. -Undercover Vampire Policeman (2012), 7 Tracks. -Reappear (2012), 7 Tracks. -Cylinders (2014), 7 Tracks. -Direct to Video (2015), 7 Tracks. -Thoughtless (2015), 5 Tracks. -Music from Neptune Flux (The Official SoundTrack) (2016), 7 Tracks. -It’s a Wonderful Jaws (2018), 5 Tracks. -I Made This While You Were Asleep (2020), 6 Tracks. -Abandon Babylon (2021), 6 Tracks. -Soft Rock Champion (2022), 7 Tracks. -Angie’s Sunday Service (2022), 14 Tracks.

-Short Songs 010923-030923 (2023), 60 Tracks.

Concluding Statements from the Chef: Chris Zabriskie was a blast to write about and is such an interesting man from the research I got to do on him! The first time I ever heard his music was in 2021 when coming across a game called Her Story, which I played on an IPad one summer night. After finishing the game I left on the title screen for a while so I could continuously listen to the song playing, which I had later searched up and discovered was Chris’s song; The 49th Street Galleria from his album Undercover Vampire Policeman. Since then, I have had the honor of being able to listen to that song along with the rest of Chris’s creations- every album being its own individual feeling and experience for me. The 49th Street Galleria will always be nostalgic for me and honestly my favorite song of his for that reason as well, aside from how epic the song is of course. Chris Zabriskie is amazingly cool and I am so glad I came across his music, allowing me to dive deeper into the talent he is and having another one of my favorite musicians on the Song Soup Menu. Please check Chris’s music out, available on all streaming services! Visit chriszabriskie.com to discover more about Chris and his music, and follow him on his instagram @chriszabriskie. I hope you enjoyed what was on the menu today!

-Chef Gracie