Rebecca Valeriano-Flores, Ph.D.

Music

I’ve been playing guitar, songwriting, singing, recording, touring, and teaching for 16 years, with brief stints booking local shows and U.S. tours. My primary band is called Negative Scanner and my previous band was called Tyler Jon Tyler. I’ve played in a variety of genres including punk, post-punk, hardcore, indie pop, power pop, and experimental. I have also volunteered as a music instructor for organizations that support youth from marginalized groups. As a show promoter in the DIY music scene, I hosted workshops and experimented with tools for promotion and activism.

Discography

Full-Length Albums

• Negative Scanner, Nose Picker (Trouble in Mind Records, 2018)

• Negative Scanner (Trouble in Mind Records, 2015)

• Tyler Jon Tyler (Slow Fizz Records, 2010)

Singles and Cassettes

• Negative Scanner, Ambitious People (Trouble in Mind Records, 2014)

• Negative Scanner, Pastel Blue, Clinical White (Tall Pat Records, 2014)

• Tyler Jon Tyler, Loyal Caskets (Slow Fizz Records, 2012)

• Tyler Jon Tyler, Separate Issue (Rococo Records, 2010)

• Tyler Jon Tyler, New England Street (Trouble in Mind Records, 2009)

• Negative Scanner cassette (Eye Vybe Records, 2016)

• Negative Scanner, Live on WHPK’s Pure Hype cassette (Maximum Pelt Records, 2013)

Compilation Appearances

• Negative Scanner, “History Lesson (Demo),” Bughouse I cassette (Not Normal Tapes, 2015)

• Negative Scanner, “R.I.P. (Live at Young Camelot),” Dark Circles Winter Compilation 2015 cassette (Dark Circles Records, 2015)

• Negative Scanner, “L.A. Galaxy (Demo),” Pelt Tones, Volume One cassette (Maximum Pelt Records, 2014)

• Tyler Jon Tyler, “Separate Issue (Live),” Live at the Empty Bottle vinyl (Shimby Presents, 2012)

Selected Press and Reviews

• The best Chicago albums of the 2010s by Reader staff and contributors, Chicago Reader (January 30, 2020)

• Photos from Empty Bottle’s Music Frozen Dancing by James Richards IV, Brooklyn Vegan (February 25, 2019)

• Chicago postpunks Negative Scanner don’t have to stay DIY anymore—they just like it too much to stop interview with Kevin Warwick, Chicago Reader (July 25, 2018)

• Wiry Chicago punks Negative Scanner sound as furious as ever on their blistering new album Nose Picker, by Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader (July 20, 2018)

• Album of the Day: Negative Scanner “Nose Picker” by Luke Ottenhof, Bandcamp Daily (July 19, 2018)

• Sleaford Mods played Brooklyn with Negative Scanner photo gallery and review by Harriet Roberts, Brooklyn Vegan (March 31, 2017)

• Protomartyr on tour: photos from Chicago show with Amanda X and Negative Scanner by James Richards IV, Brooklyn Vegan (January 29, 2016)

• Negative Scanner 7.1 album review by Sam Lefebvre, Pitchfork (July 13, 2015)

• Premiere: Negative Scanner Converts Brutal Post-Punk into the Highest Resolution by Bryn Lovitt, Noisey (July 6, 2015)

• In Rotation: Rebecca Valeriano-Flores of Negative Scanner on time traveling with the Fall by Kevin Warwick, Chicago Reader (December 30, 2013)

• Shot by the Band: Negative Scanner and The Wet Share a Van in Impose Magazine (2013)

• What’s old is new for Tyler Jon Tyler by Jessica Hopper, Chicago Tribune (February 4, 2011)

• Tyler Jon Tyler in Local Release Roundup by Miles Ramer, Chicago Reader (November 25, 2010)

Video and Live Sets

Live Sets

• Negative Scanner Live at Rough Trade NYC (October 25, 2014)

• Negative Scanner Live at Young Camelot (April 19, 2014)

• Negative Scanner Live at Empty Bottle (May 16, 2013)

• Tyler Jon Tyler Live on WFMU’s Cherry Blossom Clinic (April 30, 2011)

• Tyler Jon Tyler Live at the Empty Bottle (June 29, 2011)

Selected Video

• Negative Scanner, “First Blood” choreography by Savannah Dunn (2018)

• Negative Scanner Live on PressureDrop.tv in San Francisco (April 18, 2016)

• Negative Scanner, “Fan vs. Wild” music video (2013)

• Tyler Jon Tyler, “Loyal Caskets” music video (2012)

Et cetera

• “The Silence of Memory” reading with live score by Theo Katsaounis, American Dreams Records (2022)

• Microimprovisations with Camila Nebbia and Elena Perales at Konvent Art Residency (2021)

• Konvent Art Residency (2021)

• Sustain Chicago Music Grantee (2021)

• Fresh Take, Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic)

• Solo Vocal Performance, Dizzy Invert Festival: Celebrating the work of radical queer, butch, non-binary femme, and women (April 19, 2019)

• Solo Vocal Performance, Red Bull Music Festival presents Drone Activity (November 9, 2018)

• ACRE Art Residency (2017)

• Vocals, Trailers (2016) and Elevator Games (2017), benefit shows for Fed Up Fest: Chicago’s Queer and Trans Punk Fest

• Guitar, WIRE’s Pink Flag Guitar Orchestra, Drill Festival at Metro Chicago (June 13, 2015)

• Guitar, Transmission: A Tribute to Joy Division at Lincoln Hall, a benefit show for Girls Rock! Chicago (June 23, 2013)

• Guest Vocalist, Double Nickels on the Dime: A Tribute to the Minutemen at Lincoln Hall, a benefit show for Girls Rock! Chicago (February 20, 2011)

Instruction

Experience

• Volunteer Workshop Instructor (youth camp), Volunteer Guitar Instructor and Band Coach (adult camp), Girls Rock! Chicago (2009-2019)

• Volunteer Guitar Instructor, Chicago Public Library—Humboldt Park Branch, YouMedia (2017-19)

• Guitar Instructor, Chicago Public Library—Wicker Park Branch (2018)

Workshops and Lessons

• Beginner Guitar Instruction (Single Sessions, 3-Day Intensive, and 4-Week Program)

• Songwriting, Song Analysis, and Active Listening

• Performing Live

• Vocals

• Gear Technology (Instruments, Amplifiers, and Live Sound)

• Sound and Recording Technology

• Guitar Effects Pedals

• History of Women in Music (Early Women Guitar Players, 1920-60; Women in Music History & Zine Workshop)