
On November 15th, Tycho stopped at the Salt Shed in Chicago, IL. Following the release of their sixth studio album, Infinite Health on August 30th, they began a tour across North America that started September 13th to delight and impress their adoring fans. This concert marked number twenty-five out of twenty-six of the tour for the venerable band, but their performance felt fresh and energetic regardless of the fact they had played in Toronto, Ontario the night before.
It was a festive and fun occasion for many that drew a variety of demographics. Seriously, at one point, I’m watching this wonderful sixty-something year old woman absolutely gettin’ it alongside a couple of twenty-something rave babes. Phenomenal and scintillating, it was an adorable sight to see, and I haven’t even scratched the surface on the amount of fun I had in attending Tycho. Sit back, relax, and Bear Swiftly with me, the Electro Scribe, as I tell you a tale in testament to Tycho.


Doors for this concert opened at 8PM, so I rolled out a bit before 7PM since it’s about an hour drive, if traffic is decent. Thankfully, it was. The Salt Shed is a lovely venue harbored within the remains of an old Morton Salt warehouse. There’s a lot of history in this building, and after one of the walls collapsed several years ago spilling salt into the streets, it sat alone and empty for a short period of time. Then, someone had the brilliant idea to update the warehouse into a music venue while also preserving its historical integrity. We, the people, thank thee.
There are plenty of parking options nearby the Salt Shed. They even have a valet lot, but I elected to save thirty bucks, settle a bit away, and walk. As I neared the venue, I found what I thought was a good parking spot across from a Home Depot. However, after exiting my automobile, I stepped onto a pile of broken glass. Yikes, and Nope!!! That’s never a good sign. Needless to say, I started up my Protege5 and crossed over to the other side of Throop street. Settling across from a Bark Place doggy daycare, I instantly felt better. Lo and behold, what awaited me outside my door? A scooter! I wouldn’t be walking to the venue this night. Maybe afterwards, which would have been only a mere ten minute trek, if that, anyhow.

Quickly, I gathered my affects, tethered the scooter to my account, and rolled out. As I rode, wind in my hair and a smile on my face, memories of the last time I manned a scooter in an urban environment flooded my mind. Denver, August 30th, 2023, with my good buddy Tom. I love you, Tommy Boy! Anyway, back to this day, whaddya say? Okay, I was on my way to the Salt Shed to check in. The scooter got me front and center to the venue in less than five minutes. They say time is money, and I wasn’t wasting either. What did it cost? Scooter says, “Imma need about, $3.50.” Done.
The Salt Shed’s staff have always been a pleasure to deal with, and tonight was no different. After a quick check-in acquiring credentials, I passed through security like an autumnal breeze. Crisp and refreshing. Now on the inside, I made my way into the grandstand to jot down some notes and ready my equipment. My entrance was accompanied by the dulcet tones of Brijean. How can I describe Brijean’s sound? Delightful speakeasy rhythms. They produce a primarily instrumental flavor, which many find very danceable. Excellent, we all love a good get down. They played a few more songs until right around 9PM before giving way to DJ and producer, Pluko.

This was my first taste of Pluko and I found his set to be principally relaxing. There were a few portions that got my body moving, but it was predominantly calm and chill. That’s not to say Pluko doesn’t have an arsenal of bangers at the ready, but the majority who were in attendance didn’t come to rage face and lose their schnikes. As I alluded to before, this crowd was a diverse assembly of age groups, which I love seeing. I hope to be enjoying live music and concerts well into my later years, and it’s a special sight seeing younger and older generations carrying on amicably and joyously with one another in shared spaces. Jerseys, fishnets, and harem pants dancing amongst dress shirts, blouses, and slacks. Fedoras, festival hoods, and ball caps. For tonight, we’ll call that the Tycho effect.




Pluko played until about 10PM which is around the time my boy Maxwell, the Great Stream, let me know he and his lady friend, the one-of-a-kind Sondrita, had entered the building. Etymology, the study of words and their origins, is one of my passions. I can confidently share with you, I’ve found absolutely nothing on record about the name Sondrita. For now, anyhow. Words have definitions, names have meaning, and perhaps over the course of time I’ll be able to define Sondrita. Y’know what? I’m gonna give it a shot right here, right now, before I get back to talking about Tycho.
Sondrita sounds to me like the conjugation of two names, Sondra and Rita. Sondra translates to Defender of the People and Rita is typically the shortened form of Margherita, which is of Italian origin and derives from the Latin word, Margarita, which means Pearl. Since it’s a conjugation of two names, let’s combine the two separate meanings and see what we get. Defender of the People’s Pearl or Pearl Defender of the People. It kind of sounds like a pirate ship or war galley. Let’s shorten it down a bit to just Pearl Defender. Now Sondrita sounds like a superhero! “Mayor, the city is on fire and crime is running rampant! What ever will we do?” Easy, call The Pearl Defender, guardian of the people. What would be her bat signal, a clam opening up to exude a shining disco ball light into the night sky? Anyway, that was a fun little tangent. Let’s return to tonight’s action and I’ll share with you what happened next.
Myself, Max, and Sondrita are chilling by the bar cracking jokes and talking about names and words when my eyes capture a young lady walk by in a black hoodie with a question mark logo on it. Instantly, I recognize her as Tipper fam. I remark in an innocuous fashion, “She’s wearing a Rendezvous hoodie.” She keeps going on her way, and I don’t think anything of it, when thirty seconds later she and her guy join our fray. Turns out, she did hear my comment, and they made the joint decision to come introduce themselves. Good call, well played, stickers for both of these kit-kats.
I love meeting new people, and here I find their names are Jenna (Welsh origin, meaning white shadow or white wave) and Zach (Hebrew origin, meaning remembrance of the Lord), heady Tipperites with a zest for live music and entertainment. I notice she’s also sporting a dynamic pair of Datagrama socks peeking above her slick Doc Martens. Once I mention this, she pauses, looks me in the eye and asks something akin to, “Were you that guy who complimented my pashmina after Jade Cicada at Outset?” Yup, that was me, and her pashmina was another of Datagrama Visuals design. When I see someone killin’ it, I let e’m know, they’re freaking killin’ it! From this brief encounter, I know Zach and Jenna are both killin’ it!!! They made the trek from Indiana for this event, and just so happened to bump into myself and Max, who traveled to Rendezvous, jointly. Well, not bump, more like a walk-by with commentary. We chat for a bit, exchange some information, and they exit the frame towards the right to go and claim a spot for Tycho, who would be taking the stage shortly.
Sondrita elects to use the lavatory while Max and I perform a cool holding maneuver. Max is wearing eye catching tie-dye overalls, and I’m wearing my custom Chakra Clothing Collective glow in the dark tie-dye long sleeve. A young man is walking by us, stops, and approaches. He introduces himself as Evan, he’s from Oregon, and he and his friends love them some tie-dye. He asks if it’s okay if he takes a picture of myself and Max to share with his group. Max and I reply something that sounds like, “Heck yes, fella, go right on ahead. If it makes you happy, friend, then we are happy to oblige your request.” He’s overjoyed, snaps a photo, shakes our hands, and disappears rather quickly. Darn. That’s definitely gotta be a handsome and healthy photo. I wonder if it will make its way through the wild and return to us, one day? No worries, there will be more. God fashioned us photogenic, and if it makes another person happy to capture and peer upon our forms and faces, figures and fashion, then I’ll gladly play my part. Sondrita returns, and we make our way into the crowd to establish a position.

It was a little after ten when Tycho took the stage to the crowd’s delectation. Tycho has performed at several music festivals I’ve attended over the years, and one of my fondest memories of him was a DJ sunrise set at the inaugural Secret Dreams in August 2022. Tycho, aka Scott Hansen, was a solo artist until his second studio album, Dive, released in 2011. During the album tour for Dive, he featured a live band for the first time, creating a hybrid experience between electronic music and live instrumentalism. Though Tycho still plays solo DJ sets, tonight would feature not only Scott’s talents, but also Zac Brown, Billy Kim, and Rory O’Connor performing this newest album.


Shortly after Tycho took the stage, I set off from Max and Sondrita’s company to satisfy my responsibilities. “Pictures, man. I gotta take pictures!” I headed to the topmost balcony and vantage point, making my way through the various levels from the top down collecting shots and a few videos. The crowd and staff are ever so polite as I work, allowing me to step into places for a few moments at a time to capture media. That’s really all the time I need. I try to be as efficient as possible and not linger long or obstruct anyone’s vision or view. For me, show photography is about volume. I might take 300 pictures to get thirty good ones, but I’ll get the job done. I was informed when checking in that my time frame for photos during Tycho was the first three songs. Cool by me, I wanted to enjoy the music anyway! I finished quickly and found my way back to my friends.
Now, let’s talk about Infinite Health, a spirited album that can be described as a return for Tycho to a more electronic-based form and production style. Scott Hansen stated that Infinite Health focuses on, “Breaks, drums, and rhythmic elements.” With that as the cornerstone, instrumentalism follows, as opposed to leading. Furthermore, Hansen had this to say about Infinite Health.
“[It’s] about hope for the future and requiem for the past. I kept thinking back to the high-water mark scene in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, the author sitting at a typewriter looking out his window onto his past, trying to find meaning in the chaos. Infinite Health is about creating a space for reflection, a mantra for spiritual, emotional, and physical healing. Ultimately, all we really have is our health – both physical and mental – and we wish infinite health to our family and friends. So in those ways, infinite health is a salutation and an imperative.”
In my mind, music is its own language besides lyrics, and the crowd received these healing vibrations, eagerly. They swayed and grooved, while others chatted and carried on in conversation. This irked some, though my feelings on the matter are as follows. As you paid for entry, you’re more than welcome to enjoy the concert however you see fit. If something you’re doing is truly bothering me, I’ll move around and find a new spot. I’m fairly relaxed in concert spaces unless someone is incessantly screaming in my ear (Excision at the Rave, Eagles Ballroom, 2017).
Tycho performed until about 11PM before exiting the stage. However, the crowd largely stayed in place. Calls for an encore began to sound, and moments later, Tycho returned to play for another fifteen minutes. Nice! Max preemptively grabbed his jacket from coat check, a smart move, and once the final notes finished, we exited the premises expeditiously. The scooter I rode in on was still where I had parked it, but Max and Sondrita were now joined to me, so we enjoyed a leisurely less than ten-minute walk through the cool night to my car. Our night’s entertainment wasn’t finished, but that’s a story for another time.




Tycho’s performance was nothing short of excellent. Even after two decades of music production, Scott Hansen continues to develop his sound in impressive ways reflective of his journey. If you’re unfamiliar with Tycho and enjoy passionate productions that span genres like dancy EDM, chillwave, and ambient, I highly reccomend you dial up Infinite Health, especially tracks like ‘Phantom’, ‘DX Odyssey’, and ‘Green’. Furthermore, spend some time exploring Tycho’s past catalogue of work, and you’ll find your musical tastebuds satiated and satisfied.
That’s all for this episode. Bear Swiftly, the Electro Scribe, signing off. Sayonara all you Samurai.
Be well, be successful. Bear Swiftly.
–Electro Scribe–