Life Inside the Deal Box
by Scott Hollis, Sirius XM archivist
An enigma to some, a tunesmith of some note to others, and an unknown quantity to most, Douglas Chay, has pursued the twisted and precarious path of the independent musician. Constructor of varied musical strategies, purveyor of lost rhymes, Douglas defies an easy pigeonhole. Visual artist, musician, singer, songwriter, sound engineer, and self-contained rhythm machine, Chay has fulfilled many a function in his quest for expression.
Arising from the unlikely state of Delaware, Douglas received his earliest musical training as a child while seated at the piano bench. Moving to the even less likely state of South Carolina while in his teens, Chay decided on a more direct approach towards furthering his musical pursuits. Acquiring a manual entitled Guitar Chords Made Easy for Everyone the Photo-Chart Way, he promptly proceeded to teach himself how to play the instrument. Following his own muse, he began to develop his skills in the fine art of songwriting, emerging some time later with his first batch of original music.
Seeking to share his twisted vision with the world, and taking the do-it-yourself aesthetic to heart, Douglas proceeded to document his creativity with the assistance of his trusty Fostex X-15 four-track cassette recorder and later, an 8-track ADAT. Recording in his bedroom and bathroom and acting as a self-contained musical unit, Chay played and sang every note all by his lonesome. His instrumental arsenal includes guitars, bass, piano and keyboards, woodwinds, various and sundry percussion instruments, and a Korean stringed instrument called a gayageum.
These initial recordings were self-released by Douglas in cassette form as The Deal Box. Although the original pressing was minuscule, the tape received heavy airplay from college and alternative radio stations throughout the US and Canada, including CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company), CJIV (British Columbia, before it turned religious), KPFK (Los Angeles), WERU (Maine), KUCA (Arkansas), WFMU (New Jersey), WBER (New York), WXDU (North Carolina) and WUSC (South Carolina), where he was a DJ. He performed live at various venues in Columbia, SC such as Rockafellas' and Greenstreets, opening for a diverse array of artists including Flaming Lips, American Music Club, The Connells, Sugarsmack, Bedlam Hour, Lay Quiet Awhile and Danielle Howle.
His work appeared on several compilation albums, including Another Pesky Compilation Album (1988), 3 Minute Revolution, (RPM Records, 1996) and Phantom Radio (Genghis, 1998). He covered Klaatu's "Anus of Uranus" on their band-sanctioned tribute CD Around the Universe in 80 Minutes (Bullseye of Canada, 1999), and contributed a feedback-drenched version of "Give a Little Love" on The Bay City Rollers tribute CD, Men In Plaid (Bullseye of Canada, 2004).
Chay readily admits to drawing inspiration from some obvious yet varied influences. Shades of The Beatles, T. Rex, The Velvet Underground, Sly & the Family Stone, David Bowie, and early Yoko Ono can all be heard running through his work. However, the music of his forebears is filtered through Douglas' own distinctive world view and sonic approach. The result is a creation uniquely his own. Simple without being simplistic, accessible without bein sycophantic, and clever without feeling smug, his music achieves a happy balance between the new and the familiar.
For subject matter, Chay turns a skewed eye to the world around him. His songs are characterized by a melodic yet fuzz-drenched sound, celebrating household objects and exploring themes of alienation and surrealism. His lyrics often depict vivid and dreamlike narratives, blending the mundane with the bizarre. His music is suffused with bewilderment, apprehension, and angst, but it is put forth with much humor and élan and a quirky charm. And in the end, no matter what you read here, the music speaks for itself.
