Jackson Free Press

The song starts with a wash of soft white noise. It's like slipping the cover from an old gramophone, blowing the dust off the record, and to your surprise, it plays. Instead of the tinny sound of big-band or swing music, you hear layered sequences of electronic "pings" warping on the gramophone. Even with the melody's occasional distortions and deviations, it's strangely beautiful.

Don't get used to it, though. Argiflex isn't done with you, yet.

Argiflex, the stage name of neo-rave electronic artist Curtis Lehr, 21, isn't about meeting expectations or making music that appeals to everyone. Quite the opposite, in fact. For Lehr, Argiflex is a chance to introduce listeners to something new, from his confrontational tunes to the way he performs.

"People don't really know what to expect when they see the term 'live electronic,' and that seems like a bit of a conundrum or paradox to a lot of people," Lehr says.

"Some people still think I'm just playing pre-recorded tracks and try to get me to play their mixtape. It's just a lot of people trying to make an assessment."

The confusion isn't hard to pinpoint. Most electronic music is the product of a few button-pushes and a mouse-click here or there, but Lehr is committed to creating every sound live with digital hardware.

"It seemed like more fun to me than sitting behind a computer," he says. With hardware, he can physically change the settings of his gear instead of sliding values on a two-dimensional display. "Even though that's totally valid, too, it's just not what I want to do in front of people."

Argiflex has been a quick progression since its debut in 2008. First, Lehr used synthesizer samples from recording software, such as Renoise, to create his first album, 2009's "8367 Solarii." After his second record, 2010's "Regolith," Lehr began to perform with only hardware instruments. He used this method to simultaneously release three EPs in 2013, and in March 2014, he created a split tape, featuring the untitled song mentioned above, with fellow electronic artist Jonathon Hernandez, who releases music as Vexadrem. Both attend Delta State University, where Lehr, a senior, is double majoring in computer information systems and entertainment-industry studies.

Swapping and adding gear increases the scope of his music, but options are limited during live performances. He has to be resourceful.

"It's constricting in a way that ... generates creativity," he says. "You only have a certain amount of sounds that you can deal with, but once you know how to work with them, they can be incredibly expressive."

With only 16 channels, Lehr can deliver about 80 sequences, which he uses to create a variety of subgenres beneath the blanket term "electronic," including acid-techno, break-beat and house music. Not everything in Argiflex's music is easily categorized, though.

Lehr views his music less as individual songs and more as "time-based aural tapestries," he says. Tracks can shift from entrancing and smooth to chaotic and turbulent in an instant. It's an acquired taste, he says, like scotch. Not everyone will enjoy it, and that's OK.

"I feel like I'm already making something that most people aren't going to appreciate, so why not take it to a bit more of a conclusion?" Lehr says. "I don't feel like it's the logical conclusion, but it's getting there."

Argiflex performs at Christmas Bash, 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20, at Cups Espresso Cafe in Fondren (2757 Old Canton Road, 601-362-7422). For more information, visit argiflex.com or find the event on Facebook.