Trevor Mathison’s live debut in Norway, a new trans-Atlantic musical partnership, and a rare chance to hear Circuit des Yeux perform solo. Extending his exhibition From Signal to Decay: Volume 6 at Atelier Nord into the live arena, British sound artist Trevor Mathison (Black Audio Film Collective, Hallucinator, Dubmorphology) performs a solo set drawing on his extensive explorations of the hidden acoustics and colonial traces of urban spaces.
Haley Fohr, also known as Circuit des Yeux is a Chicago based vocalist, composer and singer songwriter known for her enormous vocal range, distinctive guitar style and the deeply existential fictions woven into her songs.
This special evening starts with Mathison solo, followed by a common set in which Fohr’s improvised vocals melt with Mathison’s soundscapes, adding an emotional dimension to his atmospheres and drones.
Afterwards she will play a set of her own solo material. Previewing work in progress for her next album, she will present a stark performance, utilising moving images and acoustic sound to create a delicate conversation pertaining to secrets and persona.
Mathison proved he is a master of deep, dark sonorities and textures that ripple through your clothes and your limbs. The sound world we had just experienced in his installation at Atelier Nord was blown up to even bigger proportions over the MUNCH sound system. The heavy bass pressure of Jamaican and London dub sound systems put me into a trance. There is something ghostly about his music – a haunted aura – and at the same time, it makes me feel more grounded, connected to the earth. Very special...
Although it might have seemed like an unexpected pairing, Circuit des Yeux had a genuine understanding and empathy for Mathison’s project and gave us an excellent, soul searching, haunted solo set. Over the last few years, she has always looked beyond the art of songwriting, using non-tonal material, tape hiss, noise, and initiatingcollaborations across musical genres, from jazz and folk to classical ensembles. So,she’s open to many other possibilities than composing songs. Although she reminded us that she is excellent at that too. A fascinating evening.