Itâs been one year since the passing of Hardy Fox, primary songwriter and co-founder of The Residents. This story is about one of his most important musical tools, the ARP Odyssey synthesizer. The Residents are a mysterious collective of sonic and visual experimenters whose albums, performances, and video projects began twisting minds in the early 1970s. Working anonymously for nearly half a century, as originators of performance art and pioneers of music video their visual aesthetic is revered and has long been one of the main ingredients of their success. Art exhibits feature The Residentsâ album covers as well as other works created by their design department, Pornographix. Their early music videos are in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art. And the cover artwork of their Eskimo album is as important and iconic an example of a surrealist image as Salvador Daliâs melting clocks. With so many novel concepts, itâs easy to see how their music couldâve been overshadowed. Specifically, their musical innovations in analog synthesis have been marginalized. I'd like to help change that perception.
I grew up in a musical household, and my older brothers introduced me to The Beatles and punk by age 12. But three years later everything changed when they dragged me to see The Residents perform live. It was haunting and strange, and I have not been the same since. I came home with t-shirts and records in a tote labeled âA BAG OF STUFF FROM THE RESIDENTS." Among the items was the 7-inch single, "Satisfaction" b/w "Loser Weed." These two sides of music blew my mind more than anything I'd ever heard. I had so many questions. âWho are these people? Why does it sound like this?" And more importantly, âWhat instruments produce these musical sounds?" As I learned later, the sounds often originated from the ARP Odyssey. Marketed in 1972 as the answer to Bob Moogâs Minimoog, the Odyssey went a few steps further, with duophonic capabilities, empowering musicians to move beyond the monophonic limitations of the Minimoog. Ultimately, it isnât the technological innovations that were most crucial, but the fearless spirit of childlike discovery that is required to pull magic out of these soldered circuits. The Odyssey was used by everyone from Elton John to Devo (the whip-cracking sound in âWhip Itâ). But the Odyssey found its greatest use in the self-taught hands of Hardy Fox. This little synth helped define the sound of one of the most important groups in experimental music, and influenced generations of songwriters, artists, composers, and storytellers.
Artists in unrelated genres find inspiration in The Residents
âI was instantly transported to a very weird and delightful parallel dimension! I had never heard anything like it. I was hooked!" My friend David J [Tape Op #106] from Bauhaus recently shared this story of hearing their first album in 1977. "I would seek out any Residents information and records that I could get my hands on. Their influence seeped into Bauhaus for sure."
"The Residents taught me how regimented pop music was," Penn Jillette, half of the magical duo âPenn & Teller" (and Residentsâ collaborator) recently explained. "The Residents were really crazy. Wow, that sound! And then, it became normal to me, and I was a better person, and proud."
âEvery sound The Residents made sounded 'wrong,' and was delightful for that reason," Andy Partridge [Tape Op #19], principal songwriter of XTC, recently told me. "It could be the squelching, bubbling synth, somewhere perfectly in tune in a song from a parallel universe. The Residents gave me so much sonic shaving foam to sculpt; early XTC would not have sounded quite the same without them." (Partridge sang on a Residents album track in 1979.)
I had a long conversation with Pete Shelley after a Buzzcocks show in 2014. We were talking about our favorite bands and I asked him if I could flip through his iTunes music collection on his phone. I was shocked to see that this pioneer of pop-punk had every Residents album in his collection.
Hardy and I met under mysterious circumstances, but the details are unimportant. I consider myself a fan, but also a colleague. I was always respectful and a bit cautious in our exchanges, so it took a few years of acquaintance before I felt comfortable to ask about the gear. That's when he drew back the curtain. âI was an ARP Guy," said Hardy. âI bought it around 1974. Before the ARP was released, I took lessons on a big Moog that belonged to Beaver & Krause. I was taught by Patrick Gleeson. Later I had a similar one in my studio that belonged to the Mothers of Invention's Don Preston. I could never afford such a beast. They were always a bit intimidating."
It was fascinating to learn about how he worked. I asked which Residents albums had featured the ARP Odyssey. âIt was used on The Third Reich and Roll, Fingerprince, Duck Stab, Eskimo, Commercial Album, and Mark of the Mole." These are the most defining albums in The Residents catalog, from the classic era of the group. Could one synth be at the center of all these albums? And if so, what happened to it? He still had it! âI also used the Odyssey on Disfigured Night [1997] and The Bunny Boy [2008]," he disclosed. Particularly on Bunny Boy, I was indulging in a nostalgia streak."
On Hardyâs site he posted more history: âAfter some serious lobbying on my part, I convinced Cryptic Corporation [the Residentsâ management company] to part with about $1,200 (mid-'70's dollars at that) to purchase an all-in-one device, the ARP Odyssey. 'Loser Weed' was the first experiment with the device. I last recorded with it in 2008."
After that, it went into storage. I cautiously asked Hardy if he would be willing to part with it. I nervously awaited his response. Finally he said, âI was just wiping dust off the device and I can see that the little sliders are stuck. So it will need a bit of work by someone to get those sliding again. But you need to let me know since I have to ship it today. I leave town tomorrow. I can drop it at FedEx." A few days later, on June 8, 2018, I opened a shipping box containing The Residentsâ ARP Odyssey synthesizer. A month later, it was restored to its full Residential glory. I could never have imagined that, 29 years after listening to "Loser Weed" as a 15-year-old, the synthesizer that made those improbable sounds would now be in my possession.
âIt will be the centerpiece of my studio," I wrote to Hardy in July. "Those Residents albums are one of the main reasons Iâm making music today, and that box of circuits has a lot of personal meaning. So thank you, once again, sincerely."
âHappy you like my synth. Um. Happy you like UR synth," he replied. "Glad it has a good home."
Ego w/ the Odyssey
I couldnât understand why he would part with something so important. This ARP Odyssey is part of The Residentsâ soul. There was still music to be made on it. At minimum, this device belonged in a museum. (The Residents had recently sold their Ultimate Box Set to the Museum of Modern Art for $100,000.) It is music history. But the transfer of ownership made sense when Hardy made a public announcement on September 22: âGot sick, making my pass out of this world, but it is âallâ okay. I have something in my brain that will last to a brief end. I am 73. Brains go down. But maybe here is my brain functioning as I'm almost a dead person just a bit of go yet. Doctors have put me on drugs, LOL, for right now. Anyway. Probably the last of seeing me. Thanks for checking in. Love you all."
I was devastated by the news, as were many friends and fans around the world. I had previously felt the sharp bolt of sadness at the loss of other musical heroes like Joe Strummer, George Harrison, and David Bowie. But this time it was different. It was a hero that had become a friend. Someone who, perhaps reluctantly, had let me into his secret world and shared something of significant value. I wrote to Hardy: "Your ARP Odyssey keyboard is so beautiful! Itâs fully restored and plays great. I am very proud to have a tiny bit of your musical soul with me in the studio. I also read your note today thatâs been floating around the internet. I do not need to say sorry or be morose. I just want you to know youâve left a permanent mark on me and many, many others. Youâve made the world a bit more strange & beautiful. Thank you for everything. I love you very much!!" He did not reply. The reason was obvious. A month later, Hardy passed away from brain cancer.
Restoring the History
I hired one of the best to restore Hardy Fox's ARP Odyssey synthesizer. Nick Montoya, who was head of Moog Musicâs Vintage Modular production team and also who restores synths for Martin Gore of Depeche Mode. The Residentsâ ARP was in good hands: âMost all Odysseys need their keyboard rebuilt with new rubber key bushings. The bushings are designed to pad and quiet mechanical parts of the keyboard action and create a softer feeling keyboard. Rubber has come a long way over the last 40 years, but almost always the original rubber bushings become brittle and completely break off, leaving those keys unleveled with the rest of the keyboard. Their choice to use plastic on plastic sliders, as opposed to Moogâs rotary potentiometers, only further hindered how well the instruments hold up. Using sliders allowed for dirt, dust and oxidation to creep their way inside of the instrumentâs parameter controls. A very tedious process of opening, cleaning, and re-greasing the controls is almost always necessary for controls that are imperative to the signal path of the instrument."
I sat with my synth â um, HIS synth â and cried a little. It still belongs to Hardy and The Residents as far as Iâm concerned. I am its guardian. As a composer for television, the main blueprints for writing in my formative years came from The Beatles, Raymond Scott, and The Residents. The Beatles taught me how to construct melody, harmony, and songs, and The Residents taught how to deconstruct and destroy them. The Residents also taught how to write music in new ways, by showing that you donât have to adhere to any of the rules of music. (I asked Hardy if any of The Beatles were aware of The Residents. âSupposedly Harry Nilsson showed Lennon the cover of Meet The Residents," he replied. âAnd I saw [Andy] Warhol and Yoko [Ono] at our show in New York.")
Hardy Foxâs ARP Odyssey now lives in my Oddio Inc. studio in Los Angeles. It has found its way into episodes of Spongebob Squarepants and will continue to be featured in my music. Every time I look up from my desk, I see my framed âBag of stuff from The Residents" as a reminder to always tap that childlike spirit which is necessary to innovate and create original art. My responsibility as a musician is to do my best to muster The Residentsâ spirit of innovation in everything I do. Today, The Residents continue to be an incredible creative force. Since Hardyâs passing, there have been new releases, rereleases, and live show announcements. While we owe much to Hardy and his ARP Odyssey, The Residents â as a concept â are much bigger than him and a single keyboard. The Residents will continue to produce music and art for the next 1,000 years. I asked Hardy if he would be okay with me talking about his sending me his synth. His reply? âWrite all the articles you want, I have no problem with life being different. I donât like repetition."
Thank you, Hardy Fox. Long live The Residents!
Special thanks to Jeff Winner, Irwin Chusid, Pea Hicks, Roderick Cumming, and Larry Crane
Ego Plum is a music composer known for his work on Nickelodeonâs Spongebob Squarepants, Harvey Beaks, Making Fiends, Welcome to The Wayne, and the upcoming Nick Jr. series Santiago of the Seas. He recently co-composed the music for the movie Aliens, Clowns, & Geeks with Danny Elfman, and will be announcing his involvement in a new animated Netflix series soon.
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