gonima is an alias of Evan Magoni (he/him), a Montreal-based audiovisual artist exploring glitch aesthetics, complex rhythms, bright melodies, and ambient atmospheres. He employs pointillist audio editing, live playing, and generative musical processes to create detailed digital textures, ethereal tonality, and collage-like musical arrangements with an emotive core.
The gonima project started in 2011 in Philadelphia. Releases have found homes on Satellite Era in Chicago; Sunset Waves in Austin, Texas; Bullflat3.8 in Kyoto, Japan; Montreal labels ygrade and Ancient Robot; and in Munich, Germany on Slam City Jams.
Musical interests: deep listening, melodic tension and release, glitch sound design, drones, syncopation, gestural movement, sound collage.
Emergent Systems (2023) is an audiovisual performance based on the album Escapism. The performance explores collective behaviours that arise from the relationships between forms and sounds, composer and tools, feelings and environments. Abstract computer-generated visuals featuring audio-reactive shapes and textures are generated in real time in response to Escapism's melodic ambient/IDM/glitch sound palette.
The performance begins by showing a single horizontal line, which morphs as quiet atonal fluttering sounds transform it into a dancing waveform. As tonality gradually appears, the sounds and music shift continuously into increasingly energetic and complex shapes.
Contact
Booking & all inquiries→ evan@magoni.info
Music
Soundcloud · Bandcamp · Spotify · Apple Music · Tidal
Social
Instagram · TwitterPress photos
Google DrivePress
“With a sound that lands somewhere in between the gnarled IDM of early Warp Records and the peaceful ambient of Dntel, Evan Magoni (aka gonima) is a lowkey hero of contemporary glitch music.”
“Producer gonima's mix of ambient textures and glitchy IDM percussion is warm, melodic, and inviting.”
“There's this one artist from Montreal, gonima, who I did a remix for recently. He makes this really high definition IDM, and it sounds nothing like any other IDM. I had never listened to anything like it before and I was like, oh my god, I literally just want all my beats to sound like this.”
“Homeostasis d’Evan Magoni – sous le pseudonyme Gonima - fit remonter la tension avec finesse et subtilité. Cette œuvre sonore se déploya telle une peinture florale pointilliste avec parcimonie et une profondeur multidimensionnelle. Cette tension émotionnelle et chaotique sous contrôle se retrouve aussi chez Autechre, Boards of Canada, Loscil, Aphex Twin, Marc Leclerc (Akufen). Voilà 15 minutes et 40 secondes de beauté saccadée, syncopée, éthérée. Gonima a réussi un bel exercice de genre pour laisser la place à l’apothéose.”
“Des jeux rythmiques microtemporels génératifs sont appliqués sur des nappes spectrales mélancoliques, s’inscrivant dans une relation dialogique entre la figure et le fond. L’agogique de l’écriture est dynamique, précise et cristalline, soutenue par une réalisation sonore sensible et techniquement irréprochable.”
“Complex digital arrangements, combining syncopated drum breaks, glitched impressions and momentary glimpses of lulling whispers.”
“A delectable electronic mixture that merges ambient strands with sizzling beatwork from IDM of yesteryear.”
“A unique blend of breakcore drenched in lush ambiance on our pick of the EP ‘Flashcore’. The track is filled to the brim with alluring moments, from the emotive melodic sequences of the warm pads, to all the motile percussion and glitch sounds in between”
“[...] juxtaposant d’une manière personnelle et sublime un amalgame de sonorités des plus étonnantes.”
“Quelque peu intemporel et empreint de rêverie, cet opus de dix titres vous comblera de bonheur. À mi-chemin entre l’unité et la variété, gonima nous fait rapidement comprendre qu’il a plus d’un tour dans son sac et que ce qu’il nous offre est tout à fait cohérent. L’artiste, très habile pour structurer l’instructurable, se distingue par ses techniques de collage particulièrement raffinées.”
Discography
- 2023
- gonima. Escapism. CD/Digital album. Satellite Era, Chicago.
- gonima. Inevitable State. Digital single. Satellite Era, Chicago.
- gonima. Monostable. Digital single. Satellite Era, Chicago.
- gonima. Esquence. Digital track on compilation. Causal Chain, Montreal.
- 2022
- gonima. Strands. Digital EP/cassette. Sunset Waves, Texas.
- gonima. Euphoria. Track on vinyl LP compilation. Mirae Arts, California.
- 2021
- N'Dorok. lace0-entrancing. Digital track, collaboration; self-released.
- gonima. Luminescence. Digital track on compilation. Satellite Era, Chicago.
- 2020
- gonima. Flashcore. Digital track on compilation. Satellite Era, Chicago.
- brtrnd. 32me (gonima remix). Digital track, brtrnd self-released.
- gonima. Convergence. Digital track on compilation. Bio Future Laboratory, Ukraine.
- 2019
- gonima. Nine Objects Through Open Window. CD/Digital album. Bullflat3.8, Japan.
- 2018
- gonima. Fragmented Environments. Digital album. ygrade, Montreal.
- gonima. afttrail0 ~flashcubes. Music video, digital single. ygrade, Montreal.
- gonima. a space that is ours. Music video, digital single. ygrade, Montreal.
- 2017
- gonima. Collusion. Digital track on compilation. Power Puerto Rico compilation, Montreal.
- gonima. Time Slip (excerpt). Digital single. Self-released, Montreal.
- gonima. Scale. Digital single. Self-released, Montreal.
- 2016
- gonima. Out Of Sides. Digital EP. Ancient Robot, Montreal.
- gonima. Grids 12" record. Slam City Jams, Munich.
- gonima. h. Digital single. Self-released, Montreal.
- 2015
- gonima. Nimago. Digital mixtape, self-released.
- gonima. Nigoma. Digital EP, self-released.
- N'Dorok. ashlar2:incandesced. Digital track, collaboration; self-released.
- N'Dorok. tendrils8*borrower. Digital track, collaboration; self-released.
- 2014
- gonima. 五月. Digital single, self-released.
- gonima. “ ”. Digital single, self-released.
Selected Performances
- 2024
- Electrochoc: Bénédicte, gonima; premiere of Immaterial, Unbounded (9'40, multichannel) au Studio multimédia, Conservatoire de musique de Montréal
- Upscale Recordings showcase: Hudson Lee & Frequent, O-Prime Delta, gonima at Metronome, Burlington VT
- laced, gonima, Corey Mastrangelo (US), Bas Relief at Casa Del Popolo, Montreal
- Static Cell #1: SXXN, Propulse, Nixtrove, gonima at La Sotterenea, Montreal
- 2023
- Akousma Festival 19: Premiere of gonima – Homeostasis (15'40, multichannel) with Aho Ssan, Olivia Block, Elias Merino, Bénédicte, Nicola Giannini at Usine C, Montreal
- Clark (Warp, UK; Sus Dog tour), gonima ["Emergent Systems" AV] at Newspeak, Montreal
- Causal Chain – Évoque compilation launch w/ Bénedicte, gonima ["Emergent Systems" AV premiere], Laced & LCL Stream, Nixtrove, Xozgk at La Sala Rossa, Montreal
- Soundxploit.sh presents: Derek Larson, gonima, Rony, Monastik at La Sotterenea, Montreal
- 2022
- Kohlenstoff Records Double Album launch: GRkŹĠŁ & Dominic Jasmin; with gonima and Myfanwy at Le Chateau, Montreal
- operaa & gonima collaborative live set; with Kore, Online Threat at World Creation Studio, Montreal
- Private show hosted by susy.technology with SOFTMATTER, Teo Zamudio, Valeda, Bénédicte at World Creation Studio, Montreal
- 2019
- Zona 009 with Artemis (Kore), Neon Tundra, Special Devivery at Zona, Montreal
- 2018
- ygrade Releasecubes® 01 (gonima "Fragmented Environments" release) with YlangYlang, Kazuki Koga, Neo Edo at La Plante, Montreal
- ygrade Partycubes® 5 with buffalo MRI, Eyeshy at La Plante, Montreal
- 2017
- MUTEK Montreal with Clip, Forage, JMII, Flandez, Sau Poler
- 2016
- gonima "Out of Sides" release with Fade Runner, Fengir, CMD, Bas Relief at La Plante, Montreal
- Mich Cota "Sapphic" release with Mich Cota, Sarah Davachi at Poisson Noir, Montreal