Aural Fix: Morgan Delt

Morgan Delt, whose given name is Morgan, added the surname Delt as his moniker to pay homage to one of his father’s favorite movies, a 1966 British comedy, Morgan—A Suitable Case for Treatment, about a “working-class artist obsessed with Karl Marx and gorillas.” By day, Delt is a graphic designer, creating websites for Hollywood films. But when the sun goes down over California’s Topanga Canyon, the mid-30s USC film graduate jams on vintage guitars, drums, piano, and synthesizers in his home studio. He usually records his songs onto a computer and filters them through a four-track player, resulting in layers of droning guitars and mountains of fuzz. Breathing new life into the sounds of the late ‘60s, Delt notes influences from West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band, Curt Boettcher, Love, The Ventures, Stereolab, Sun Ra, and Faust among many others.

Preferring the hermit life of working alone in his studio to going out and working with others, Delt has been recording at home since the days of his adolescence. He never really got serious about writing songs until a few years ago when he figured out exactly what he wanted to do and for it all to come together into something that made sense to him. Over the years Delt listened to, absorbed, and altered psychedelic, shoegaze, and tropicalia with his own modern touch, resulting in his own brand of psych-pop.

After peaking the interest of Chicago-based label Trouble in Mind, with his self-released cassette EP Psychic Death Hole from 2013, the Midwest record slinger released Delt’s self-titled album in January of last year. With its mysterious vocals, well-layered cascading guitars, and hypnotic rhythms, you won’t need to visit your neighborhood dispensary to enhance these tunes—but it certainly wouldn’t hurt. Recently snagged by Sub Pop, we can anticipate new tunes sometime this year, but for now check out his self-titled debut to momentarily escape reality. But beware—each track magically worms its way into your brain and takes hold. »

– Wendy Worzalla