Born to Synthesize: Matmos

MATMOS IS KNOWN for glitch-pop albums that are heavy on concept and loaded with musique concrete samples of real-world things: cut hair, body fat, a cow's uterus.

The electronica duo's latest record is called "Supreme Balloon" (Matador) so you might guess the entire work is made up of inflatable-rubber samples and chopped up Diana Ross LPs. Nope. It's a lovely all-synthesizer record, with the only other restriction being that the duo couldn't use microphones.

"It's such a dumb, simple concept that we tried to avoid calling it conceptual, though I suppose technically it is," said Martin Schmidt from the Baltimore home he shares with his musical and romantic partner, Drew Daniel.

The twosome takes turns shepherding its albums, and this one was Schmidt's li'l lamb.

"He's always been a great synthesizer player," Daniel said, "and I think we both felt after 'The Rose Has Teeth' [2006] that we were boxing ourselves in as 'Oh, those guys who make sort of shuffly dance music out of really ridiculous, gross things: semen, blood, burning flesh.' So, we wanted something that was kind of a palate cleanser, something that was a deliberately reactionary swing in the opposite direction. ... We were definitely trying for something celestial and positive — which couldn't be more out of sync with the recent headlines and the overall apocalyptic feeling right now."

"Supreme Balloon" recalls the epic '70s space-synth records by Cluster and early Tangerine Dream, though its retro vibes are updated by Matmos' ability to interpolate weird sounds and structures into catchy compositions that tease with tiny, twisted hooks.

Matmos is headlining a crowded bill Saturday that's part of the Sonic Circuits Festival, but since the couple moved from San Francisco last summer when Daniel became an English professor at Johns Hopkins, at least their commute will be minimal — unlike the duo's electronic-instrument collection, which is anything but, despite Schmidt's best effort's.

"I'm the housekeeper," Schmidt said. "I'm like, 'We don't need that, honey. ... We have enough synthesizers. For god's sake, we could make a million albums with the synthesizers we have.' Really, I'm just conservative and he's a flowering, creative liberal."

» Velvet Lounge, 915 U St. NW; with Andrea Parkins, Mattin, Haptic and 12 other acts; Sat., 3 p.m., $10; 202-462-3213. (U St.-Cardozo)