Vanishing Twin further their exploration of decidedly experimental territories with new album, ‘Afternoon X’, out now on Fire Records.
Initially formed by the singer and multi-instrumentalist, Cathy Lucas, in 2015, following a series of line-up changes, Vanishing Twin is now the tightly honed, London based collective of Lucas, the drummer Valentina Magaletti (Holy Tongue, Tomaga, Moin) and bassist Susumu Mukai (Zongamin). Harnessing the diverse backgrounds and touchstones of its members – Lucas’ left-field song-craft, Magaletti’s singular approaches to experimental percussion, and Mukai’s long history in the production of electronic music -over nearly a dozen releases since 2016, the band has refined a hypnotic sound at the juncture of minimalism, kosmische, post-punk, and dream-laden, psychedelic pop.
‘Afternoon X’ encounters Vanishing Twin in the throes of a marked creative shift during which each member took on less defined roles and a more collaborative approach, more like the work of three co-producers than a band. Recorded over the course of late 2022 and early 2023, the album is the product of a series of marathon recording sessions by various configurations of Lucas, Magaletti, and Mukai. The resulting hours of material was then reworked and developed, allowing for chance moments of highly responsive creativity and the incorporation practices drawn from experimental music-improvisation, non-hierarchical processes, musique concrète / sound collage, and the use of non-instrumental sound sources and field-recording – to form the root of each of the album’s eight tracks.
Crafted from a playful balance of humour and rigour, with each member embracing the role of the multi-instrumentalist and process over outcome, ‘Afternoon X’ furthers of trajectory of exploration that has defined Vanishing Twin’s recent releases. Pursuing creative openness and an expanded palette of references and sources, Magaletti’s metronomic, cycling patterns and the pulse of Mukai’s bass lines remain at the core of their sound, but these rooted rhythms now form the groundwork for the pursuit of greater tonal, textural, and structural range.
These eight fluttering abstractions, culled, collaged, and built upon from a vast constellation of instruments, samples, and unclaimed sources. Lucas employs her voice as an instrument and a generator of raw sound, weaving surreal imagery and uncanny juxtapositions amongst the dance and propellant drive. From infectious grooves of the album’s title track and the constrained minimalism of ‘Subito’, to the ambitious heights of pieces like ‘The Down Below’ and ‘Lazy Garden’, which unfurl a form psychedelic avant-gardism on the scope and scale of David Axelrod and Scott Walker.
Vanishing Twin embark upon a new multifaceted journey that collectively culminates as the bands most forward-thinking and groundbreaking release to date.
‘Afternoon X’ is out now. Available in Limited Edition White Vinyl + Risograph Print Booklet (Rough Trade Exclusive), Limited Edition White Vinyl (Rough Trade Exclusive), Black Vinyl + Risograph Print Booklet, Black Vinyl & CD.
