the album was arranged and recorded in hone's modest home studio, and at lo-fi studios in loma linda, ca, with martin arreteche serving as producer and engineer, and hone co-producing. the band will be releasing master machine via their own imprint, the brown noise, in partnership with los angeles-based chupee records.

master machine is a delicately layered and carefully crafted record built upon soulful vocals, open-tuned guitars, skyward-reaching synths, subtle string flourishes, and a tightly wound rhythm section. the intimacy of the recordings may appeal to introspective types, however the album is not all a navel-gazing affair. master machine is filled with anthemic progressions and charging melodies that would feel at home in both a bedroom or stadium setting.

while the album is rooted in the d.i.y. ethic of the indie scene, it is obvious that the band members are serious students of popular music's back catalog and have taken inspiration from a variety of music genres including rock, pop, electronic music, and even film scores to craft their detailed compositions. the textured sonics are centered by pedrosa's distinguished vocals, which effectively balance the difficult task of serving as a focal point upon the often atypical song structures and chord progressions, while still maintaining enough subtly to allow the instrumentation to ebb and flow organically. pedrosa's lyrics revel in human dynamics and relationships, and although they are cryptic, and even surrealistic at times, it is readily apparent that human universals such as love, hope, despair, betrayal are deeply examined, as is the existential minutia we all must face.

overall, master machine's tone is optimistic and outward-looking, as showcased in songs he album's introduction, "handinhand," a sincere embracement of innocence and true love (at least, for those that still believe in such things) that is built upon an understated arpeggiated piano melody, delicate open-stringed acoustic guitars, and emotive string accents. "adrift (lessons in time)," is a track fitting to its namesake, with it's floating synth lead and chiming guitar centered around a bouncing rhythm section and off-kilter time signature which envelop lyrics that hint at fraying relationships and treachery in the midst. the album's two mid-tempo pieces, "team torment," and "serpentile," use a driving rhythm section and effected guitars and synth highlights to emphasize the lyrics' clear condemnation of a forthcoming betrayal and the subsequent destruction that it may bring, albeit from varying viewpoints. the album's final piece and title-track, "master machine," is a hopeful glance from the present to the future, slowing building from two acoustic guitar countermelodies, subtle synth flourishes, tasteful percussion work that eventually cascades into the aural equivalent of a journey into the sunset.

following the release of master machine, the band plans to release a second collection of material in the spring of 2010, which the band members says will present a darker, more aggressive side of theendisthebeginning. the yet-to-be-titled album will consist of five new tracks, including several tracks that have found their way into the band's recent live setlists, such as the tenatively-titled "blueswallow," "weapons," and "tropics." the band also plans to release a split ep and embark on their first west coast tour in early 2010.