John Maus (born February 23, 1980) is an American musician, composer, singer, and songwriter known for his baritone singing style and his use of vintage synthesizer sounds and medieval music church modes, a combination that often draws comparisons to 1980s goth-pop. His early lo-fi music recordings anticipated and inspired the late 2000s hypnagogic pop movement. On stage, he is characterized for his intense displays of emotion while performing. He is also a former teacher of philosophy at the University of Hawaiʻi, where he later earned his PhD in political science.
Maus' early influences included Nirvana, a-ha, Syd Barrett, Jim Morrison, and composers of the medieval music, Renaissance music, and Baroque music eras. In 1998, he left his hometown of Austin, Minnesota to study experimental music at the California Institute of the Arts. When he befriended and first worked alongside classmate Ariel Pink, he took a greater interest in pop music. He produced most of the music from his first two albums Songs (2006) and Love Is Real (2007) on cassette tape with an early 1990s sound bank. The albums generally drew negative reviews upon release, and it was not until the success of his third, We Must Become the Pitiless Censors of Ourselves (2011), that he became more widely accepted as an outsider music artist. Following a five-year absence from public appearances and releasing new music, he returned with the albums Screen Memories in 2017, and Addendum in 2018. His sixth studio album, Later Than You Think, was released in September 2025.
Writings about Maus frequently link his music to his academic vocations, although Maus himself denies composing with an aesthetic or political theory in mind. He says that on some of his songs, his intention is to investigate "forgotten" electronic palettes, harmonies that were historically associated with "the divine", and lyrics that follow certain social idioms to their "absurd conclusions". His dissertation, "Communication and Control" (2014), discusses the influence of technology on social control.
Lees meer...23 februari 1980 was een zaterdag onder het sterrenbeeld ♓. Het was de 53e dag van het jaar. President van de Verenigde Staten was Jimmy Carter.
Als je op deze dag bent geboren, ben je 46 jaar oud. Je laatste verjaardag was op maandag 23 februari 2026, 97 dagen geleden. Je volgende verjaardag is op dinsdag 23 februari 2027, in 267 dagen. Je hebt 16.899 dagen geleefd, of ongeveer 405.589 uur, of ongeveer 24.335.353 minuten, of ongeveer 1.460.121.180 seconden.
Date: 23 February 1980
By RICHARD BURT Special to The New York Times
Richard Special
Carter Administation imposes ceiling on number of Soviet diplomats stationed in US; move is linked to Afghanistan crisis; Soviet Government reportedly will not be allowed to increase numbers of diplomatic and support staff beyond present 320; move will not affect number of Russians at UN (M)
Date: 23 February 1980
Special to The New York Times
UNESCO releases report recommending that journalists be allowed free access to all news sources, both official and unofficial; study was made by 16-member commission led by Sean McBride, former Irish Foreign Minister, who presents report of UNESCO's Director General Amadou Mahtar M'Bow; report includes condemnation of censorship and dissent by commission's Soviet representative Sergei A Losev; dissent by American representative Elie Abel (M)
Date: 23 February 1980
By DEIRDRE CARMODY
Deirdre CARMODY
North American Newspaper Alliance will discontinue operations Feb 29; will be replaced by new service, Independent News Alliance, which will be more closely geared to current newspaper market; United Features Syndicate, parent company, announces that agency's affiliate, Women's News Service, will also be discontinued; executive editor Sidney Goldberg comments (S)
Date: 23 February 1980
By FRANK J. PRIAL Special to The New York Times
Frank PRIAL
Staff of Le Monde will meet to choose new editor to replace retiring Jacques Fauvet in '82; popular candidates listed as Jacques Amalric, Jacques Decornoy, Andre Fontaine and Claude Julien; their portraits; history of publication since founding by late Charles DeGaulle in '44 discussed; logo (M)
Date: 24 February 1980
USSR, in display of military power, sends 900 military men and civilians into West Berlin for wreath-laying ceremonies (S)
Date: 24 February 1980
By Desmond Smith
Desmond Smith
Desmond Smith article on Roone Arledge and how ABC-TV news programs have become increasingly popular since he became president of ABC News in '77; Arledge has paid as much as $500,000 for interviews with newsworthy people and is responsible for network's numerous news specials; some executives say that his 'razzle-dazzle' approach has lowered TV news standards; Arledge, who is also president of ABC Sports, earns about $700,000 a year; ABC News anchorman Frank Reynolds and special reporter Barbara Walters comment; illustrations (L)
Date: 24 February 1980
Marc Onigman article on television coverage; cartoon (M)
Date: 24 February 1980
By JOHN H. ALLAN
John ALLAN
John H Allan assesses investment merits of NYS bonds in light of current bond market conditions; table shows rising interest rates of state's bonds (L)