Baseline Road album cover. A stoplight and with sign for Baseline Road agaist a blue sky.

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Baseline Road (Curious Automata 2025)by Vic DillahayAsynchronous jamming along the 40th parallel.

“Top notch music.”
Arthur Taylor (AudioSapien)

In late March of 2025, I found myself with a Tuesday off and a strong need to get out and see the world. Baseline Road, which runs along the latitude of 40°N from Boulder to the eastern plains of Colorado, seemed like an excellent quick road trip. So I took a drive, made some notes, and decided to make this musical record of the trip. I programmed the basslines (pun intended) to mimic the road, then added drums to move us along. Then I sketched the landscape and architecture with keys and guitars. A couple of friends joined to play their impressions of sections. Finally, I followed the trail one more time, improvising the journey in sound. The end result is this album, which can be a tale of the road or a soundtrack to your own drive.

Thanks for coming along on this ride and, as always, thanks for listening.

Vic

Tracks

  1. Chautauqua Park (3:54)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06574

    Gregory Canyon Road to BroadwayWe begin in Boulder at its most Boulder-y. Chautauqua is gorgeous, beneath the iconic Flatirons. If you have a few million to drop, it's a lovely place to have a home. For the rest of us, it's great hiking if you don't mind crowds and can find a place to park.
  2. Jiffy (4:28)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06575

    Broadway to 55th StreetThere's a lot in this stretch: shops, dorms, offices, houses. An impressive marker for 40°0'0"N. But for locals, Baseline at Broadway means one thing: the World Famous Dark Horse Tavern. This track takes its name from their peanut butter, bacon, and provolone burger — an institution in itself.
  3. Glen Barn (5:42)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06576

    55th Street to Lakeview DriveThe titular landmarked barn is a relic from the agricultural past. Past it, town gives way to natural areas, hiking trails, and Baseline Reservoir.
  4. New Dry Creek (3:48)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06577

    Lakeview Drive to Bluebird LaneEast of Baseline Reservoir lie a few miles of fields and trails, a bit of a rural diversion before we get to the town of Lafayette.
  5. Courtesy Road (4:12)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay & Richard Ellis US‑DHM‑25‑06578

    Bluebird Lane to Highway 287This stretch, with its shift from rural to suburban sprawl, always puts me in an odd mood. Experimental guitarist Richard Ellis joins us here. He took this improv assignment to the next level: instead of overdubbing he listened once, then played solo to his memory. It's a single perfect take, nailing both this and the transition into the next track.
  6. Public Road (6:14)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay & Richard Ellis US‑DHM‑25‑06579

    287 to County Line RoadHighway 287 becomes the main street of dozens of small towns as it winds north through the Front Range. Richard Ellis tags along for a bit as we make our way past its box stores and former supermarkets and then through Old Town Lafayette. True to its name, it is quiet and historic and, for a few blocks, Baseline follows the Denver loop of the old Lincoln Highway.
  7. New Vistas (4:45)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06580

    County Line Road to Sheridan ParkwayCounty Line Road marks the end of Boulder County and the beginning of Weld. The land gets flatter, the people more conservative, and the mountains smaller on the horizon. For now, we are in the land of subdivisions and golf courses. I used to play Celtic music with a band that rehearsed here, which leaves its mark on this cut.
  8. Sheridan Parkway (5:01)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06581

    Sheridan Parkway to turn onto East 168th AvenueThe cover photo comes from the intersection of Baseline and Sheridan. Here, we're in the I-25 corridor — the main North-South road in Colorado and a sort of dividing line between the suburban foothills and rural plains.
  9. Leaving 7 (2:59)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay & Nicholas J Steffens US‑DHM‑25‑06582

    Start of 168th to Colorado BoulevardAn odd collision of the rural Eastern plains and Boulder. During my drive, I wound up stuck behind a tractor with a Lamborghini behind me. And there is no better way to highlight that dichotomy than with a guest bass solo from the undefinable Kosnoco.
  10. Big Dry Creek (5:57)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06583

    Colorado Boulevard to Highway 85We are definitely on the Eastern plains now, fields and pastures with the occasional farmhouse. It could be Nebraska if it weren't for the distant Rocky Mountains in the rear-view mirror.
  11. Brighton Funk (3:07)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06584

    Highway 85 to Interstate 76I have spent a surprising amount of time in this town. After almost every gig Graphite Addiction played in Denver, we'd come here for late-night burritos at a 24-hour taco joint. It's still a funky town, if you look far enough.
  12. Lochbuie (8:35)
    © 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay US‑DHM‑25‑06585

    Interstate 76 to Watkins RoadWe cross I-76 into more fields. There is little here but what you bring with you, and I find ghosts speak loudest in open spaces. After a while, the road turns to dirt and curves back and forth. Up a hill and we find our journey's end at Watkins Road.

Credits

Personnel

  • Electric guitar, acoustic guitar, baritone guitar, oud, programming: Vic Dillahay
  • Electric guitar on tracks 5 and 6: Richard Ellis
  • Bass solo on track 9: Kosnoco

Technical

  • Produced by: Vic Dillahay
  • Recording, Mixing, Mastering: audiosalvage in Longmont, Colorado
  • Tracking: May 27th, 2025  to November  14th, 2025 at audiosalvage in Longmont, Colorado
  • Mixed: November 21st, 2025  and November  22nd, 2025 at audiosalvage in Longmont, Colorado
  • Mastered: November 23rd, 2025  at audiosalvage in Longmont, Colorado

Packaging and Art

  • Photography, graphic design, and layout: Vic Dillahay

Versions

Technical Data

  • Label: Curious Automata
  • Catalog Number (Bandcamp): 251125A
  • UPC (Bandcamp): 756839548526
  • Format: Digital Download
  • Catalog Number (Digital): 251125B
  • UPC (Digital): 756839548533
  • Catalog Number (CD): 251125C
  • Format: Digital
  • UPC (CD): 756839548540
  • Released: November 25th, 2025
  • Format: CDr
  • Total Tracks: 12
  • Duration: 58:46

Resources

Album Copyright

©: 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay
℗: 2025 Victor Carlton Dillahay