Silk Satin Suede, aka Max Duncan is a New Zealand based artist balancing the beauty with the darkness in music, performance art, film, and fashion; fusing them together in his emotive avant-garde style.
Silk Satin Suede has collaborated with a brilliantly talented and diverse catalog of artists over the years, such as composer and multi-instrumentalist, Andrew Denison; pianist and percussionist, AJ Hickling; film director, James Grimley; and dancer, Tessa Brown.
2014 - 2017
A leap into the unknown landed Max into the world of design, studying Fashion Design at Massey University in Wellington. During these four years he developed his craft in fabric and the principles of his creative process. He completed his Bachelor of Design with First Class Honours and a new-found vigour for performance art.
2018
Boundaries are broken and new doors open. Max performs his multimedia performance art show 'Curtains of a Candle' to a sold out BATS Theatre in Wellington. Author Michael Munro acknowledged this work as:
“A fantastic piece of creative work of Russian type depth, which philosophically dramatises the one compelling aspect of our entire existence - our relationship with Death... This performance, for me, is so amazingly counter balanced and profound... There was not one performing-arts discipline in this presentation that fell below a high professional standard... Max has shown a creative clout that can produce much more heart snatching performances in the future - ones that will shock and inspire all of us in an insightful way."
Over the same year, Max explored music and song writing with his experiments blossoming into a collection of songs founding the name, Silk Satin Suede.
2019
Max releases his debut 'EP' while living in London and travelling the UK and Europe.
2020
'HER' is filmed in multiple locations across Wales with a tight-knit team of collaborators and awarded "Best Music Video" at the Liverpool Film Festival (UK) and Allshorts Film Festival (NZ), while also being officially selected for a number of other festivals around the world.
2021 - 2023
Max forms the dynamic duo Genre Fluid with Nelson-based live looping artist, Bosho; creating a two hour live music and theatre show weaving high-energy rock funk anthems with improvised acts.
Their engaging theatrical street performances found them early local success, becoming well recognised for their creative musicality in live looping, improvisation, theatrics, humour, and their ability to adapt to all environments, making them an act well-loved by all ages.
Between 2021 - 2023, Genre Fluid performed 100+ shows at festivals and venues across New Zealand, including two nationwide tours and opening for legendary Kiwi artists such as Julia Deans, Mako Road, The Narcs, and Albi & The Wolves.
Their debut album 'The Groova Meista' was independently released in two parts in autumn 2023.
Present
Max is currently developing his new multimedia project, Antique Angel. The Boosted Crowdfunding Campaign for this project was successful in raising NZD $20,000 for the development of the studio album and short film. Subscribe to The Silk Diary for updates and follow the SSS social pages.
Max is also the lead vocalist in newly formed group, Fitter Happier, performing Radiohead's ground-breaking album, OK Computer, start to finish.
In March 2024, Genre Fluid were selected by Arts On Tour New Zealand as one of six acts to tour the country from top to bottom, performing 20 improvised shows of psychedelic jazz in 30 days.
For booking or collaboration enquiries, please email max@moosonhooson.com
