Cory Peak has to be one of Iowa’s most adventurous artists. Probably best known as the bassist for the grindcore/emoviolence powerhouse that is Closet Witch, Peak recently produced beats and did animation for the Iowa hip-hop project Negus Lamé. On top of all of that, Peak has been at work producing electronic music collected now on Computer Image.
Electronic music has a dense network of subgenres and microgenres, which typically can be parsed out quickly on full-length albums, even if there is some crossover or dabbling amongst those subgenres. Computer Image seems to balk at that idea. Whether threatening to blow out eardrums with fast grindcore or laying down smooth hip-hop beats, Peak clearly loves to explore the world of sound, and each track on this album is a new opportunity to stroll down some new electric avenue.
“Carvenchi’s Prayer” opens the project with lush vocal harmonies sporting a touch of distortion. As the chords build and progress, a calm, nearly spiritual effect takes hold. Albeit too fast paced for ambient music, this track elicits the same kind of meditative effect. When the slowly building distortion drops out, the effect is elegiac. A four on the floor house beat kicks in on “Spending Time With You,” propelling the listener into a chipmunk-tuned vocal sample as the house beat builds and stutters. We go from our heads in the clouds to our feet and hearts pumping on the dance floor in short order.
Yet these two tracks, at a combined total of around six and a half minutes, are the longest tracks on Computer Image. Each new sound exploration that follows is brief enough to catch our attention with their contrasts, but also short enough to not overstay their welcome. “Caught In Space” careens forward with high BPM breakbeats and spaced out synth pads. “Revelia” keeps the party going with Detroit-house beats while a yacht rock inspired organ delivers a sense of calm before wonky breakdowns and pitch bent guitar sounds disrupt any daiquiri sipping.
“Rise Of Mentauris” evokes a danceable dungeon-synth-meets-chiptune vibe that hypnotizes before the jerky breakcore inspired “Hardwired To The Face” turns things around again. This track is probably the closest to an electronic version of a Closet Witch song on Computer Image. A soulful “Interlude” welcomes in a series of soul-touched samples over what could be a hip-hop beat on “Mar4” that calls to mind Graduation-era Kanye West production.
The next two tracks offer danceable psych-jazz before the album reverts back into a twisted chiptune breakcore offering with “Never Dreamed.” Computer Image closes with “Glown,” which brings back the heavy vocal chords from the beginning over a bass funk riff reminiscent of Bowser’s castle on the SNES.
Despite what may seem like a torrential downpour of conflicting ideas, Cory Peak manages to keep Computer Image from whiplashing the listener into oblivion by thoroughly creative and intelligent composition and pacing. This album is never a slog or too chaotic to enjoy. In fact, it may be just the kind of forward thinking we all could benefit from. Explore, create and do it like no one is watching.
This article was originally published in Little Village’s April 2025 issue.
