Out 19 November via the Downwards label is the new collaboration between Astrud Steehouder, Alex Tucker and Luke J Murray. The trio – all residents of North East London – united under the Nonexistent umbrella for a self-titled debut.

Astrud Steehouder (Opal X, Paper Dollhouse), Alex Tucker (Microcorps, Grumbling Fur) and Luke J Murray (Grimescapes, Iceman Junglist Kru, Stonecirclesampler) have recorded 9 tracks which Downwards Records label head Regis (Karl O’Connor) describes as “a great electronic record that’s rooted in the soil of these isles, a record with a true sense of place, purpose and time.”

You can listen to the first track, “Untitled 9. (Cold Walls)”, right below.

Long-standing friends Steehouder and Tucker planned to collaborate for many years, and in 2020 they finally found the time to start sharing files with the aim of making long form drone pieces. As the project progressed they enlisted Manchester producer Luke J Murray in to the fold. As a result you will hear a blend of Steehouder’s extended Prophet 8 improvisations, Tucker’s modular processed cello, voice and tapes and Luke J Murray’s sampled electronics.

About the Nonexistent members

Astrud Steehouder is a musician, performer and producer utilizing both electronic and acoustic compositions. She works predominantly with synthesisers, electronics and guitar and is best known for her work as Paper Dollhouse with Nina Bosnic. She has released music with Night School, Finders Keepers, The Tapeworm and her own MoonDome imprint. Since moving on from Paper Dollhouse, Steehouder is currently working under her heavy electronics alias Opal X.

Alex Tucker is a multidisciplinary artist working across music and visual art. Tucker’s multiple projects include solo work as Alexander Tucker, avant pop duo Grumbling Fur with Daniel O’Sullivan, radiophonics tape works as Imbogodom with Daniel Beban and most recently his solo electronics project Microcorps for Alter. Tucker had collaborated alongside Charlemange Palestine, Neil Campbell, Mark Titchner, Gazelle Twin, Simon Fisher Turner and Nik Void, releasing works with Thrill Jockey, Important, VHF and ATP recordings.

Luke J Murray is a Manchester producer based in London, his projects as one half of Iceman Junglist Kru and Grimescapes have seen him release for both The Tapeworm and Manchester’s YOUTH label. He records solo as Stonecirclesampler (via Industrial Coast), creating gauzy drones and submerged audio, hovering at the edges of mutant jungle, garage and experimental zones.

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Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil.

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To be released on 16 April via Luke Younger’s Alter Records is “XMIT “, the debut album by Microcorps aka Alex Tucker. Out now the project’s newest video for the – excellent – album track “UVU”.

Tucker explains this about the new video which you can watch below: “I wanted to make something that reflected the cold realm of the current Microcorps world, using black and white digital landscapes alongside footage I shot in Walthamstow Wetlands Nature Reserve. In the film I created these liminal transitions between the synthetic and human to reflect the track’s use of machine-led systems and processed acoustic instruments.”

The new 8-track album features collaborations with Gazelle Twin, Nik Void, Simon Fisher Turner and Astrud Steehouder.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil.

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