News
20 August 2026 – Geologist Turns Moonlight Into Music on The Sirens
By Editorial Team - August 20, 2026
Summary
Animal Collective's Geologist announces new album The Sirens on Outside Time, modulating modular synthesizers using real-time celestial moonlight sensors.
Key Facts
- Animal Collective member Geologist (Brian Weitz) announces solo album 'The Sirens' out 16 October.
- Created at Joshua Tree observatory using telescopes to convert moonlight into synthesizer voltage.
- Lead preview track 'The Opening' showcases analog, organic modular ambient sounds.
- Entities: Geologist, Brian Weitz, Animal Collective, The Sirens, Outside Time, Kyle Simon, Farrington Observatory, The Opening
- Tags: geologist, animal-collective, the-sirens, brian-weitz, modular-synth, ambient, experimental-electronic
Animal Collective's Geologist has announced The Sirens for 16 October through Outside Time, and its creation is considerably stranger than the average album origin story.
Brian Weitz and visual artist Kyle Simon developed the project at Farrington Observatory in Joshua Tree, using a telescope equipped with optical sensors and light-sensitive photodiodes.
Celestial light was translated into electrical signals capable of modulating a modular synthesizer in real time. Preview track “The Opening” provides the first glimpse.
At a time when experimental music is often discussed primarily through software and AI, literally incorporating captured moonlight into an electronic instrument feels wonderfully physical and peculiar.