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Lee Tesche

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Lee Tesche
OriginAtlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • multi-instrumentalist
  • filmmaker
  • graphic designer
  • sound designer
Instruments
  • Guitar
  • bass guitar
  • percussion
  • synthesizer
  • saxophone
  • electronics
Years active2000s–present
Member of

Lee Tesche is an American musician, multi-instrumentalist, filmmaker, curator and sound designer from Atlanta, Georgia. He is best known as a founding member and guitarist of the post-punk band Algiers, and has also been a member of Lyonnais, Nun Gun, and Dead Pioneers.[1][2]

Tesche has also worked as a video director and graphic designer. He curated the Atlanta installment of Burn to Shine, the documentary film series created by filmmaker Christoph Green and Fugazi drummer Brendan Canty, and has directed or co-directed music videos for Algiers, Lyonnais and Dead Pioneers.[3][4][5] Through Nun Gun, he collaborated with Mark Stewart of The Pop Group.[6][7]

Career

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Algiers

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Tesche is a founding member of Algiers, an Atlanta-rooted post-punk band whose music has been described as combining gospel, punk, post-punk, industrial music and political critique.[8][9] According to AllMusic, the band formed in Atlanta when guitarist Tesche and bassist Ryan Mahan, both active in the city's underground rock and noise scenes, began working with vocalist and guitarist Franklin James Fisher.[8] Interview described Algiers as having started as a three-piece in Atlanta before expanding across multiple cities, with Tesche remaining in Atlanta while other members were based in London and New York.[10]

Algiers released its self-titled debut album through Matador Records in 2015. Reviewing the album for Pitchfork, Stuart Berman noted that Fisher, Tesche and Mahan assembled the record through transatlantic collaboration, with Tesche and Mahan then based in London.[11] Coverage of the band has noted Tesche's role as guitarist and multi-instrumentalist, with AllMusic listing his credits across Algiers releases as including guitar, prepared guitar, prepared piano, percussion, synthesizer, saxophone, electronics, programming, vocals, photography and design.[2]

In 2020, Tesche appeared with Algiers vocalist Franklin James Fisher on World Cafe to discuss the band's album There Is No Year.[12] WNYC's Soundcheck has described Algiers' instrumentation as including Tesche on guitar, prepared guitar, harmonium, saxophone and prepared piano.[13]

Lyonnais

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Tesche has also been a member of Lyonnais, an Atlanta experimental rock and post-punk group.[14] AllMusic lists Tesche among Lyonnais' group members, alongside Farbod Kokabi, Farzad Moghaddam and TJ Blake.[14] In 2016, Immersive Atlanta described Tesche as Lyonnais' guitarist and noted that his work with Algiers had brought him international attention.[15]

Lyonnais released Want for Wish for Nowhere in 2011 and Anatomy of the Image in 2016.[16] The video for Lyonnais' "A Sign From On High / Modern Calvary" was directed by Tesche and Sam Campbell.[5]

Nun Gun

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Tesche and Algiers bandmate Ryan Mahan formed Nun Gun with visual artist Brad Feuerhelm.[6][17] The project released Mondo Decay, a multimedia work pairing Feuerhelm's photography with an original soundtrack, in 2021.[6]

Through Nun Gun, Tesche collaborated with Mark Stewart of The Pop Group. Stereogum described Nun Gun as a collaborative project between Tesche, Mahan and Feuerhelm, and noted that the track "Stealth Empire" featured vocals from Stewart.[7] The Quietus also described the release as a video collaboration with Stewart, connected to Nun Gun's Mondo Decay project.[6]

Dead Pioneers

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Tesche is the bassist for Dead Pioneers, a Denver punk band led by visual and performance artist Gregg Deal.[18][19] Deal told PopMatters that he met Tesche during an artist residency in Florida, where the two worked on the first iteration of the Dead Pioneers song "Bad Indian".[19] The collaboration later developed into a larger set of songs and recording sessions for the band.[19]

Tesche has also directed music videos for the band, including "Mythical Cowboys", "Never Alone" featuring The Interrupters, and "The Worst Among Us" featuring Jason Williamson of Sleaford Mods.[20][21][22]

Film, video and design work

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Tesche has worked as a filmmaker, video director, curator and visual collaborator. The Atlantic Center for the Arts described him as a multi-instrumentalist, sound designer and filmmaker whose work includes experimental tape-based music and contributions to television and film.[1] In 2015, The Line of Best Fit reported that Tesche directed the video for Algiers' "Black Eunuch".[4]

Tesche curated the Atlanta installment of Burn to Shine, the documentary film series created by filmmaker Christoph Green and Fugazi drummer Brendan Canty.[3][23] Burn to Shine 6: Atlanta was filmed in 2007 and featured performances by artists including Shannon Wright, Deerhunter, Black Lips, Mastodon, The Coathangers, The Mighty Hannibal, and others.[24] In a 2009 interview with Creative Loafing, Canty credited Tesche's local organizing role in making the Atlanta installment happen.[25]

Selected discography

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With Algiers

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With Lyonnais

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  • Want for Wish for Nowhere (2011)[16]
  • Anatomy of the Image (2016)[16]

With Nun Gun

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  • Mondo Decay (2021)[6]
  • Stealth Empire (In Dub) (2021)[6]

With Dead Pioneers

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  • Po$t American (2025, Hassle Records)[18]
  • Wagon Burner (2026, Hassle Records)[19]

Selected videography

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Year Title Artist / project Credit
2012 "A Sign From On High / Modern Calvary" Lyonnais Director, with Sam Campbell[5]
2012 "Blood" Algiers Director[4]
2015 "Irony. Utility. Pretext." Algiers Director[4]
2015 "Black Eunuch" Algiers Director[4]
2016 Burn to Shine 6: Atlanta Burn to Shine Curator[3][23][25]
2023 "Irreversible Damage" Algiers Director[4]
2023 "I Can't Stand It!" Algiers Director[4]
2025 "Mythical Cowboys" Dead Pioneers Director[20]
2026 "Never Alone" Dead Pioneers featuring The Interrupters Director[21]
2026 "The Worst Among Us" Dead Pioneers featuring Jason Williamson Director[22]

References

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  1. 1 2 "Associate Artists working with Gregg Deal" (PDF). Atlantic Center for the Arts. p. 8. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Lee Tesche Songs, Albums, Discography & Reviews". AllMusic. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Castro, Guillermo (April 8, 2016). "Burn To Shine: How Lee Tesche Helped Capture a Magic Moment in Atlanta Music History". Immersive Atlanta. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Day, Laurence (May 22, 2015). "Algiers lift the lid on "Black Eunuch" visuals". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 Doyle, Jon (May 31, 2012). "Lyonnais – Want For Wish For Nowhere". Various Small Flames. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Lee & Ryan Algiers As Nun Gun Unveil Video With Mark Stewart". The Quietus. February 2, 2021. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  7. 1 2 Rettig, James (February 2, 2021). "Nun Gun – "Stealth Empire" (Feat. Mark Stewart)". Stereogum. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  8. 1 2 Jurek, Thom. "Algiers Biography, Discography, Albums & Expert Reviews". AllMusic. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  9. ↑ Hsu, Ross (September 15, 2015). "INTERVIEW: Algiers guitarist Lee Tesche on their experimental, revolutionary sound". The Daily Free Press. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Algiers". Interview. June 26, 2017. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  11. 1 2 Berman, Stuart (June 1, 2015). "Algiers: Algiers Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Why Algiers Went Personal Instead Of Political In 2020". NPR Illinois. October 28, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Algiers' Postpunk Soul Music for Disrupting". WNYC Studios. January 27, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  14. 1 2 "Lyonnais Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More". AllMusic. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  15. ↑ Castro, Guillermo (March 3, 2016). "Lyonnais – "Vienna Circles"". Immersive Atlanta. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  16. 1 2 3 Rockwell, Russell (April 21, 2016). "REVIEW: Lyonnais – Anatomy of the Image". Immersive Atlanta. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  17. ↑ S., Ilya (March 23, 2021). "Track-by-Track // Nun Gun – Mondo Decay". I Heart Noise. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  18. 1 2 "Dead Pioneers – PO$T AMERICAN (Hassle Records)". God Is In The TV. April 19, 2025. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  19. 1 2 3 4 Stout, Brian (June 23, 2026). "Punching Nazi Teeth with Gregg Deal of Dead Pioneers". PopMatters. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  20. 1 2 "Dead Pioneers - Mythical Cowboys (Official Music Video)". Hassle Records. Retrieved June 30, 2026 – via YouTube.
  21. 1 2 "Dead Pioneers - Never Alone (feat. The Interrupters) (Official Music Video)". Hassle Records. Retrieved June 30, 2026 – via YouTube.
  22. 1 2 Ulitski, Rob (May 29, 2026). "Dead Pioneers 'The Worst Among Us' by Lee Tesche". Promo News. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  23. 1 2 "Burn To Shine Archives". Christoph Green. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Deerhunter, Mastodon, Black Lips, Coathangers Appear in New Film Burn to Shine 6: Atlanta". Pitchfork. March 2, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
  25. 1 2 "Brendan Canty talks about Burn to Shine Atlanta". Creative Loafing. July 28, 2009. Retrieved June 30, 2026.
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