Doug McKechnie

Career An early Moog synthesizer, with a sequencer unit. This model would be similar to the one played by McKechnie. McKechnie began using the Moog modular Series III in 1968 and was one of the first musicians to use the instrument. He received access to the instrument through Bruce Hatch, who ended up working with McKechnie at the San Francisco Radical Laboratories He also performed live shows with the band in 1969. Due to his connection with the band, McKechnie was a performer at the 1969 Altamont Free Concert. On his set, he played a single oscillator sweep, from 55–20,000 Hz. and the first ever concert at the Berkeley Art Museum. Four years after starting playing the synthesizer, McKechnie was forced to stop playing it after Hatch sold it to Tangerine Dream in 1972.

In around 1980, McKechnie and Paul de Benedictis formed a group called New Logic. The duo released an album on cassette, Inside Your Head (1984), under the moniker; it features musical collaborations and solo work between de Benedictis and McKechnie recorded during the early 1980s. His work has been compared to that of Wendy Carlos, who was a contemporary of McKechnie's.

Discography

Studio albums

Inside Your Head (1984) – with Paul de Benedictis (as New Logic) San Francisco Moog: 1968–72 Vol. 1 (2020) – VG+ Records San Francisco Moog: 1968–72 Vol. 2 (2020) – VG+ Records

Visual albums

A Day in the Life of the Golden Gate Bridge (2012) – with the San Francisco Synthesizer Ensemble

Compilations

The Complete San Francisco Moog: 1968–72 (2023) – VG+ Records

Soundtracks

Vidium/Moog (1970) Light (1973) Spaceborne (1977) Women – for America, for the World (1986)