Cornelius F. Van Saftrin III/Ghost to Falco

The imaginative mind of Cornelius F. Van Stafrin III would certainly make for an interesting place to visit. It's likely littered with as many eccentricities and curiosities as the experimental noise "songs" that the oddly named artist creates. Made with objects and instruments as disparate as scrap metal and violins,...

By Benjamin Leatherman

December 31, 2009

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The imaginative mind of Cornelius F. Van Stafrin III would certainly make for an interesting place to visit. It's likely littered with as many eccentricities and curiosities as the experimental noise "songs" that the oddly named artist creates. Made with objects and instruments as disparate as scrap metal and violins, his wacked discography of unique sonic surrealism runs the gamut from dirge-like drones and warbling tones to quirky soundscapes that resemble a madcap mix of static and screaming. It's a compelling one-two punch when paired with Portland's Ghost to Falco (Van Stafrin's labelmates on NYC's Oms-b Records and current touring companions). GTF also feature a penchant for quirky instrumentalism and an idiosyncratic sound palette, but in the service of meandering indie rock rather than a cacophony of noise. Let it never be said that the cats down at the Trunk Space don't book unique acts.

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Benjamin Leatherman is a staff writer for Phoenix New Times where he focuses primarily on arts, culture, music, and nightlife. He began writing for New Times in 2003 and joined the staff full-time in 2005. Prior to that, he contributed to magazines such as Tips & Tricks and The Wrestler. Benjamin has earned multiple awards from the Arizona Press Club including an award for sports enterprise reporting in 2009 and an award for statewide arts reporting in 2014. He holds a bachelor’s of arts in journalism from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

Contact: Benjamin Leatherman

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