Bio

Acid42 is Lionel Valdellon, based in Northern California, fusing Philippine and Asian influences with Western beats and structures. His jazzy, ethnic electronic music has graced everything from ballet productions and theater, to indie film, TV soap operas, and commercial jingles. He has performed live around the globe from the World Expo 2005 in Japan, to the Philippines, the USA, Brunei and Malaysia.

Artist History

ACID42 started out as a drummer for a pop band in 1994, upgraded into a keyboardist for an acid jazz/’80s cover band in 1995 and got fed up by 1997, when he decided to finally create and play the electronic music he truly enjoyed. He started [CLONE](http://reclone.tripod.com), a trio of colleagues who performed songs with keyboards, samplers and vocals.

ACID42 as a solo artist started in 1999, while putting together sound clips for websites using Acid Pro software. Which led to learning other software, and a never-ending educational process of learning about sound and music production. The first solo gig however only happened in 2002 with the purchase of a laptop and Reason software. These days, Acid42 simply creates music to be released online.

Frequently Asked Questions

**WHY THE NAME?**
Acid for Acid Jazz — the record label and genre of urbanized jazz. Plus, I am prone to acid attacks. Finally 42 was my class number in grade four. Also, Acid42 was my first email address on yahoo.

**WHY NOT SUBMIT THIS STUFF TO RECORD COMPANIES?**
I did. Way back in 1997-98, I was told over and over again that there was no market for this music. At the time, the music was on the fringe of public taste, and so I produced and released it online, to the fringe.

**WHAT’S YOUR VIEW ON THE ENTIRE DIGITAL MUSIC DEBATE?**
The Net also allows indie musicians like myself to distribute and showcase original stuff. Why would I be against it?

**HOW DO YOU PLAY LIVE?**
I bring a laptop and maybe a keyboard, plug in, and play. It’s a combination of pressing the “play” button plus doing live keyboard parts on top of it, and also remixing the tune on the fly by shuffling around each song’s section. It’s in-between what a DJ does and what a band does, because I look like a DJ when I play solo, but what I’m doing is as real as a rock-n-roll jam session, I can go on as long as I want, twist and improvise as much as I want, distort and destroy the music as much as I want. It’s all live.

**DO YOU DEEJAY?**
No. And I have no desire to. DJs play other people’s music. I play my own music, and remix it on the spot. Plus I believe my music is on par with what’s out there. So why waste my time using other people’s music to express myself? I have my own talents and my own sonic palette.

More Trivia

MUSIC STYLE: downtempo, world, ambient, house, breakbeats

INFLUENCES: 808 State, Bjork, Moloko, Jazzanova, The Orb, Orbital, Wagon Christ, Grace Nono, Beats Antique, Transglobal Underground