About Men of the Valley

Men of the Valley is a music project critiquing technofascism and dogmatic tendencies through the lens of cyberfolk, where traditional songwriting collides with the electronic mysticism of analog synthesis. Through the robes, ritualism and symbolic imagery, Men of the Valley adopts the stage-persona of a blind devotee, a personification of historical human tendencies of self-surrender to flawed ideologies, institutions, and systems of power. Men of the Valley uses this personification to explore peaceful avenues of resistance against all-powerful institutional oppression, whether against current-day leaders, kings and queens, corporations, or artificial intelligence.

Drawing from folk traditions of communal identity and protest, Men of the Valley imagines a future where the oldest forms of human expression: song, story, and ritual, persist even as the systems surrounding them grow increasingly alien. Acoustic sensibilities and raw songwriting intertwine with industrial-sounding synthesizers into a new musical genre, dubbed 'cyberfolk', a compositional symbiosis intended to raise more questions than answers.

Outside of stage performances, Men of the Valley seeks to aid artists in defending themselves against tyrannical use of technology/AI in society. Through creation of digital tools, procuring educational resources, and advocacy against unethical use of technology, Men of the Valley hopes to promote solidarity, self-determination, and collective bargaining power between all artists.