Mikronesia

**Mikronesia** is the experimental electronic project of Portland-based musician Michael Johnson, known for blending hazy ambient textures with glitchy, fragmented beats. Since emerging in the mid-2010s, Mikronesia has carved out a niche with releases like *Dissolve* (2020) and *In a River the Color of Lead* (2018), which channel a lo-fi, decaying aesthetic through warped synths and field recordings. Tracks like *Torn Ivory* and *Tissue Paper Ghosts* often feel tactile and ghostly, as if Johnson is stitching together memories from broken cassette tapes or corroded hard drives. His 2016 live recording *Noresidency* captures the project’s improvisational rawness, pairing hypnotic loops with sudden bursts of noise.

Though shrouded in mystery, Mikronesia’s work leans into themes of impermanence and entropy, mirrored in his preference for physical media like limited-run vinyl and cassettes. Fans of acts like Grouper or The Caretaker might vibe with his knack for turning decay into something strangely beautiful. Johnson occasionally surfaces for low-key shows in DIY spaces or galleries, but he mostly lets the music—crumbling, evocative, and achingly human—speak for itself.

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