"Songs in the Key of Love" is Bend musician Pete Kartsounes' first singer-songwriter album in four years.

You don’t have to live in Central Oregon for very long to know the name Pete Kartsounes. A prolific songwriter, insatiable studio rat and expert gig-getter, he is one of the busiest musicians in the region, both under his given name and as his electronic groove-looping alter ego, DJPK.

On Friday night, Kartsounes will celebrate the release of his first singer-songwriter album in four years — a concept record of well-crafted pop songs called “Songs in the Key of Love” — with a show at The Commons Cafe in downtown Bend. Recently, we caught up with him and asked him a few questions about his creative process and his new album. Below is that exchange, edited for space and clarity.

GO!: You make a lot of electronic music under the name DJPK, but this is your first singer-songwriter album since 2020. How do you decide which direction to go, musically, at any given time?

Pete Kartsounes: I’m sitting on many albums’ worth of unrecorded material. I knew last summer that I would take the winter to focus on a new album. It wasn’t until a few days before the scheduled starting time of Nov. 22 that I decided to go with a concept album of songs written over the past 15 years. I went through about 50 songs and picked the 11 showcased on this album that fit the formula I was aiming for.

GO!: How would you describe the concept behind “Songs in the Key of Love”?

PK: The concept was to make as pretty an album as I could. I’ve recorded songs inspired by love over the years, but this album was solely about not just my love stories, but all of our love stories. We’ve all been in love. Love is the most common thing people write about. I wanted to pay tribute to love on this album. I didn’t want it to be a “pity me” storybook. I didn’t want it to be a breakup album. I want this album to be about love that’s found and love that’s longed for.

GO!: You’ve described the making of this album as a “deep dive recording session.” What does that look like?

PK: When I go into a project I go in deep. I turn off the world around me and don’t come out of my mindset or studio for weeks on end. I spent 72 consecutive days from November to February working on this album in my home studio: picking songs, keys of songs, tempos, arrangements and all-around tonal quality of the album.

Then there’s the whole engineering, mixing and listening process. Endless days of hiking along the river or taking drives listening to the mixes and making changes along the way.

Adding and subtracting and figuring out what textures the songs deserve in terms of instrumentation. It’s a deep process until I feel that everything is sound and in place for my mastering engineer, David Glasser of Airshow Mastering in Boulder, Colorado.

Read about DJPK’s 2022 album “Revelation”

David’s a Grammy winner and one of the very best at what he does. Mastering happens at the end of a recording to give the music a final touch, spreading it out and making it radio ready. If I hear good things from David on the mixes I give to him, I know I’m doing this self-produced, self-engineered, self-performed album justice. That’s when I’m OK with sending this muse out to the world.

GO!: Tell me about the custom-built Fender Telecaster and recently restored 1960 Gibson Falcon Tube Amp you used to make this album.

PK: When I started the album’s first song, I was wondering what direction to take the tonal ambience of these songs. I’ve never recorded with both that guitar and amp, nor have I even played through the two together. Once I added some rhythm texture to the first song I knew this was not only a beautiful match made in tonal heaven, but a sound that differs from any of my other albums. I immediately knew this was a big key to having an album that stands out among all my other recordings.

As an avid composer, I want all my albums to have a sound and life of their own. The next one is already written and will have its own instruments and sound. For this album, I played all the parts — a first for me. Usually, I have my amazing and talented friends spicing up my songs. This one I wanted to just be present with myself at the wheel in my own studio. I couldn’t be happier with how it all turned out!

GO!: What did you learn from making this record? About love … or music … or both?

PK: I learn more about love and music every day of my life. It’s a vast sea and an endless starry sky. We’ve all been in love. We all have it. We’ve all lost it. We need more of it and that’s one of the main reasons I made this album. To spread more love!

If You Go

What: Pete Kartsounes, with Dean Mueller

When: 7 p.m.

Where: The Commons Cafe & Taproom, 875 NW Brooks Street, Bend

Cost: $20

Contact: bendticket.com.