Gerry Read’s “8Head Guide to Thanksgiving” is the Raving and Turkey Day Crossover You Didn’t Know You Needed

Since his appearance in the electronic scene in 2010, butcher-turned-producer Gerry Read has been steadily growing a reputation for his humor, hot takes and crafty lo-fi beats. Now, the British artist has prepared a visual feature exclusively for EDM.com, pulling from his time in both the food and music industries to craft a menu and playlist specially concocted for Thanksgiving. 

The recipes and music come paired with original art from Read’s longtime collaborator, illustrator and artist Kristofferson San Pablo, who incorporated Read’s signature 8head figures throughout. Each meal was inspired by comparisons between the aftermath of a rave and the food leftover from a big Thanksgiving dinner. Meanwhile, the corresponding playlist is three hours of pure fun, weaving between trip-hop, techno and ambient sounds.

We’ll let Gerry take it from here.

“The 8Head Guide to Thanksgiving Leftovers” 
Words and food by Gerry Read & JG
Artwork by Kristofferson

Thanksgiving leftovers have the potential to be absolutely shit and often exceed this expectation with ease. Similar to being persuaded to attend the afters of an already heavy night, being led up the garden path under the guise of a delicious meal and receiving a turkey curry is the equivalent of being told there’s a mound of pudding at the afters and turning up to a bag of dusty bush weed with someone in the corner slaughtering Bob Dylan numbers on a ukulele. It’s an existential level of let down.

Then you have the 8 Head Cuban Sandwich, which is the equivalent of being invited to a low key nightcap and turning up to an all you can eat class A buffet with Kim-Ye doing B2B with a Bowie hologram. The 8 Head Cuban Sandwich utilizes and enhances Thanksgiving leftovers, in a similar fashion to DJ Koze enhancing wonky outsider house efforts into radio friendly gems. The turkey, the ham, the cheese, the pickles, the mustard; as you DJs out there would say, it’s “the perfect blend.”

8 Head Cuban Sandwich:

• Thick white bread
• American Mustard
• Thinly sliced dill pickles
• Leftover turkey
• Leftover ham
• Leerdammer cheese slices
• Butter 

Method:

1. Pre-heat a sandwich press (or griddle pan/skillet) to medium-hot.
2. Spread a generous amount of mustard on both sides on the bread.
3. Start layering the turkey and ham with a slice of cheese between each layer. We go for two layers of meat, but if you’re weak and pathetic just opt for one.
4. Add your sliced pickles on top of the last layer of meat and top it with a slice of cheese.
5. Melt a large knob of butter in your sandwich press, making sure the top and bottom are covered. Place the sandwich in the press and apply pressure for 2 minutes or so, or until the bread is a crisp golden brown on both sides and the cheese looks melted and entwined with the layers of meat. If using a pan use something heavy to apply pressure to the sandwich, maybe a Gesaffelstein album.
6. Eat it bro, lmao.

There’s nothing like Thanksgiving without a jolly old debate, is there? Your uncle is nipple deep in Trump vs Biden with Dad, just like those two moustache-sporting techno goons outside the bathroom debating Tresor vs. Berghain: “Berghain is just a tourist spot now. It’s for lame students who don’t take off the little pink sticker from their phone camera for a month! Tresor is for the heads.” 

You then look ahead and seven pills (or pork pies) later, one of your crew has passed out with something obscene sketched onto their boat race. This is typical of both scenarios, isn’t it? My aunt drew a dog with three dicks on my cousin’s forehead after a Sunday lunch once. 

Now for the entertainment. Do we go with the gorgeous, palatable and inoffensive Tycho‘s debut album or ruin everyone’s life with Basictonalvocabulary? Romance or Psychological Horror? Bob Ross or Bob Twin Peaks? This should be carefully thought out to avoid Grandpa spilling the gravy or somebody getting vomit in their moustache. And those awkward conversations you’ve endured with your cousin are like bumping into your ex at the afters: How are you? How’s the job? What is your job again? You both discover it’s going absolutely nowhere so you both give up. You’re so familiar with each other that it’s completely normal and socially acceptable to ignore each other in the same room for the next five hours.

On that note, let’s move on to our second leftover.

8 Head Turbo Tacos are leftovers on speed. They are as unpredictable as they are delicious. With a likeness to Autechre live sets, no two turbo tacos are the same. A taco shell is like a blank project file, salsa is your auto filter, leftover turkey is your compressor, and coriander is your beat repeat (enjoyed by some, hated by others). How you choose to construct your taco is very much an insight into your personality and maybe even a glimpse into your childhood. The foundations of the turbo taco are built on your staple Thanksgiving leftovers. Though the possibilities are endless, the only limit to your creativity is your own imagination. Rumors have been circulating on the IDM grapevine that Aphex Twin fills his tacos with chewing gum and mangos. Chomping down on a turbo taco is like attending the afters and inadvertently joining an acid fueled commune. The below recipe is a mere guide to the turbo taco; you can add whatever colors/flavors reflect your incredibly unique personality. Think of it this way: You’ve been asked to do a remix, and this recipe is the stems.

8 Head Turbo Tacos: 

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• Taco shells
• Chopped leftover Turkey (and ham if you partake in the swine) Salsa
• 200g Diced plum tomatoes
• 1/2 Diced onion
• 4 Diced Chillies (Add more if you can handle it
• 1 Handful of chopped coriander
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• Sprinkle of kosher salt 

Method:

1. Mix the salsa ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
2. Add oil to a nonstick pan over a medium heat and gently fry the chopped turkey, stirring continuously.
3. Heat taco shells in either the oven or the microwave.
4. Add the turkey to your taco shells and top with the salsa.
5. Serve and enjoy! 

It’s over. You order your Uber, give your cousin a kiss because you’re not going to see them until next year or whatever excuse you need. Oh, and ask the Uber driver to stick this playlist on to remind you how you can get better at dealing with this whole situation next time: 8head’s Thanksgiving playlist.

Ciao for now.

FOLLOW GERRY READ: 

Facebook: facebook.com/gerryreadmusic
Twitter: twitter.com/gerryreadmusic
Instagram: instagram.com/gerry.read
Spotify: spoti.fi/35ZcmBM