Jefre Cantu-Ledesma

Jefre Cantu-Ledesma is a multi-instrumentalist and an ambient/experimental musician from the United States. He co-founded the drone and ambient label Root Strata.

Biography

Cantu-Ledesma was born and raised in Texas, United States, and studied sculpture and visual arts in San Francisco. Cantu-Ledesma got his start in the band Tarentel. He was one of the founding members and is still a primary figure in the band's line-up. Cantu-Ledesma continued to be involved with many musical projects, including experimental rock band The Alps, the solo project Colopho, and the duo Raum (with Grouper).

His solo debut album, '' Love Is a Stream'', came in 2010 and was released under Type Records. Cantu-Ledesma continued to release many solo and collaborative projects, including ''A Year with 13 Moons'' in 2015, '' On the Echoing Green'' in 2017, ''You Can See Your Own Way Out'' in 2021 with Ilyas Ahmed, and ''Gift Songs'' in 2025.

His label, Root Strata, has an extensive catalog that includes artists such as Tarentel, Grouper, Yellow Swans, Charalambides, Keith Fullerton Whitman, Oneohtrix Point Never, Barn Owl, Starving Weirdos, Gregg Kowalsky, and more.

Discography (by project)

Tarentel

*''Tarentel'' CDEP (Temporary Residence Limited)
*''Travels in Constants vol. 3'' CDEP (Temporary Residence Limited), ltd. to 1000 copies (OOP), and part of the ''Travels in Constants'' CD Subscription Series
*''When We Almost Killed Ourselves'' 8" EP (Temporary Residence Limited), ltd. to 200 copies (OOP)
*''From Bone to Satellite'' CD/2×LP (Temporary Residence Limited), vinyl ltd. to 1000 copies (OOP)
*''Looking for Things, Searching for Things'' 12-inch EP (Resonant), ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*''Two Sides of Myself'' 7-inch (Static Caravan Recordings), ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*split 7-inch w/ Rothko (Jonathon Whiskey), ltd. to 250 copies (OOP)
*split 7-inch w/ Lilienthal (Awkward Silence), ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*''The Order of Things'' CD/2×LP (Neurot Recordings/Static Caravan), vinyl ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*''Fear of Bridges'' CDEP (Three Lobed Recordings), ltd. to 700 copies (OOP)
*''Mort aux Vaches'' CD (Staalplaat), ltd. to 1000 copies (OOP)
*''Ephemera , Singles 99-00'' CD (Temporary Residence Limited)
*''Latency'' 12-inch EP (En/Of), ltd. to 100 copies (OOP)
*''We Move Through Weather'' CD/2×LP (Temporary Residence Limited)
*''Paper White'' CDEP (Temporary Residence Limited)
*''Big Black Square'' CDEP (Temporary Residence Limited)
*''Ghost Weight'' CDEP (Acuarela Discos)
*''Paper White / Big Black Square'' CD (Human Highway)
*''Home Ruckus'' 12-inch EP (Root Strata), ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*''Live Edits: Natoma'' CD (Root Strata), ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*''Ghetto Beats On the Surface of the Sun'' 4×LP (Music Fellowship), ltd. to 500 copies of each LP (OOP)
*''Home Ruckus: Double-Sided Air'' 7-inch (Type Records), ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*''Home Ruckus: Bottled Smoke'' CD-R (Digitalis), ltd. to 100 copies (OOP)
*''Ghetto Beats On the Surface of the Sun'' 2×CD (Temporary Residence Limited)
*''Live Edits: Italy & Switzerland'' CD (Digitalis), ltd. to 500 copies (OOP)
*''You Can't Hide Your Love Forever Vol. 3: Space Junk'' 7-inch (Geographic North), ltd. to 300 copies, part of the ''You Can't Hide Your Love Forever'' 7-inch Subscription Series (OOP)
*''Over Water'' DVD-r collaboration with filmmaker Paul Clipson (Root Strata) - "Latest installment of the ongoing collaboration between San Francisco-based band Tarentel & filmmaker Paul Clipson. Three shorts of Super8 film and music mostly culled from live performances in Italy & Switzerland in 2005." The release was ltd. to 100 copies (OOP)
*''Split 7-inch w/ Seaworthy'' (Sound&Fury, 2009/2010), ltd. to 300 copies (100 colored, 200 black) as part of the ''Passeridae'' 7-inch Subscription Series
*Untitled cassette (Digitalis Limited, late 2009/early 2010)

Jefre Cantu-Ledesma

Primary solo project, primarily ambient/drone music

*''Voice Sutra'' CD-R (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata) – 2005
*''Two Suns'' DVD-r collaboration with Paul Clipson (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata) – 2005
*''Black is the Color of my True Love's Hair'' CD-R (limited to 150 copies, OOP) (Static Caravan) – 2006
*''Floating Weeds'' Cassette (limited to 90 copies, OOP) (Twonicorn) – 2006
*''Constellations of Spring'' DVD-r collaboration with Paul Clipson (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata) – 2006
*''Shining Skull Breath'' CD-R (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Students of Decay) – 2007
*''The Garden of Forking Paths'' CD (Spekk) – 2007
*''The Phantom Harp'' Mini CD-R (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata) – 2007
*''Corridors'' DVD-r collaboration with Paul Clipson (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata) – 2008
*''The Phantom Harp'' DVD-r collaboration with Paul Clipson (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata) – 2008
*''Namu Kie Butsu'' Cassette (as Jefre Sei Getsu Ledesma) (limited to 100 copies, OOP) (NNA Tapes) – 2009
*''Bloodstream Sermon'' Cassette (limited to 150 copies, OOP) (Arbor) – 2010
*''Within Mirrors'' Collection of previous DVD-r collaborations with Paul Clipson plus two previously unreleased pieces on a DVD with menus designed by C. Spencer Yeh and artwork by Ledesma himself (limited to 500 copies, first 80 in a Bonus Edition with Mini CD-R of previously unreleased Jefre Cantu-Ledesma material) (Students of Decay) – 2010
*''Love Is a Stream'' LP/CD (Type Records) – 2010
*''Conversations With Myself'' CD-r (self-released) – 2011
*''Faceless Kiss/Blut Mond'' 7-inch (Emerald Cocoon) – 2012
*''Visiting This World'' LP, art edition (En/Of) – 2012
*''Speaking Corpse'' Cassette (limited to 75 copies, OOP) (Los Discos Enfantasmes) – 2012
*''Devotion'' Digital-Only EP (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Gift of Tongues'' tape (limited to 100 copies) (Last Foundation) – 2013
* ''Music From The Headlands Center For The Arts, Volume One – Another Void ''CD-R (limited to 25 copies) and digital-only edition (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Music From The Headlands Center For The Arts, Volume Two – Disappear'' CD-R (limited to 25 copies) and digital-only edition (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Music From The Headlands Center For The Arts, Volume Three – Wild River'' CD-R (limited to 25 copies) and digital-only edition (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Music From The Headlands Center For The Arts, Volume Four – A World Apart ''CD-R (limited to 25 copies) and digital-only edition (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Music From The Headlands Center For The Arts, Volume Five – The Burnt House'' CD-R (limited to 25 copies) and digital-only edition (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Music From The Headlands Center For The Arts, Volume Six – Archaic Torso'' CD-R (limited to 25 copies) and digital-only edition (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Music From The Headlands Center For The Arts, Volume Seven – Gift Of Tongues'' CD-R (limited to 25 copies) and digital-only edition (Shining Skull) – 2013
* ''Songs of Remembrance'' tape (limited to 100 copies) and digital-only edition (Psychic Troubles Tapes) – 2014
* ''Songs of Forgiveness'' tape (limited to 100 copies) and digital-only edition (Baro Records) – 2014
* ''Eternal Spring'' Digital-only (self-released) – 2014
* ''A Year with 13 Moons'' LP (limited to 1,200 copies) (Mexican Summer) – 2015
* ''In Summer'' tape (Geographic North) – 2016
* '' On the Echoing Green'' LP (Mexican Summer) – 2017
* ''Tracing Back The Radiance'' LP (Mexican Summer) – 2019
* ''Poverty'' (Boomkat) – 2023
* ''Gift Songs'' LP (Mexican Summer) – 2025

Colophon

Ambient solo project
*''Spring'' 10-inch (Limited, OOP) (Dreams by Degrees)
*''Conduction. Convection. Radiation.'' CD 3-way split w/ The Wind-Up Bird and 1 Mile North (Music Fellowship)
*''Travels In Constants (Vol. 18): Love Loops'' CD (Limited, OOP, part of the Travels in Constants CD subscription series (Temporary Residence Limited)

The Holy See

Harsh noise project of Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and Jim Redd
*''Snowing Ash'' CD-R (Limited to 200 copies, OOP) (Root Strata)
*''Blood Honey'' CD-R (Limited to 100 copies, OOP, part of the Arroyo subscription series) (Digitalis)
*''Fucking Physics'' CD-R (Limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Foxglove)

Sea Zombies

Project of Brad Rose (The North Sea, Ajilvsga, Ossining, Digitalis Records) and John Twells (Xela, Type Records) with contributions by Gregg Kowalsky, Jed Bindeman, and Jefre Cantu-Ledesma
*''It Died in Africa'' Cassette (Two hand-numbered limited editions: 100/50 copies, OOP) (Digitalis Limited)

The Alps

Kraut/psych rock band
*''Jewelt Galaxies'' CD-R (Limited to 200 copies, OOP) (Root Strata)
*''Spirit Shambles'' CD-R (Limited to 150 copies, OOP) (Root Strata)
*''Jewelt Galaxies/Spirit Shambles'' CD (Spekk)
*''A Path Through the Sun'' CD-R (Limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata)
*''A Path Through the Moon'' CD-R (Limited to 100 copies, OOP) (Root Strata)
*''III'' CD, LP (Root Strata)
*''Le Voyage'' CD, LP (Type)
*''Easy Action'' LP (Mexican Summer)

Moholy-Nagy

A heavily synthesizer based and largely improvisational group featuring Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, Danny Paul Grody, and Trevor Montgomery

*''Like Mirage'' LP/CD (Temporary Residence Limited) – 2011

Isidore Ducasse

Collaborative project between Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and Trevor Montgomery

*''Isidore Ducasse'' LP (limited to 400 copies, OOP) (Blackest Rainbow) – 2011

Josephine

Collaborative project between Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and Tony Cross

*''You Are Perfect Today'' Cassette (Digitalis Limited) – 2011

Raum

Collaborative project between Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and Liz Harris (Grouper)

*''The Event of Your Leaving'' LP (Glass, House) – 2013
*''Daughter'' LP (Yellow Electric) - 2022

Félicia Atkinson and Jefre Cantu-Ledesma

Collaborative project between Félicia Atkinson and Jefre Cantu-Ledesma
*''Comme Un Seul Narcisse,'' LP (Shelter Press) - 2016
*''Limpid as the Solitudes,'' EP (Shelter Press) - 2018
*''Un Hiver En Plein Été,'' LP (Shelter Press) - 2021

References

External links

Tarentel Official siteRoot Strata, a record label run by Jefre Cantu-Ledesma & Maxwell August CroyLast.FM page for Jefre Cantu-LedesmaDiscogs page for Jefre Cantu-Ledesma

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cantu-Ledesma, Jefre
Living people
Ambient musicians
Year of birth missing (living people)