Always Digging The Same Hole

Description

Founded in 1997 by Cyril Secq and Yvan Ros as a guitar/drums duo, Astrid subsequently expanded and settled around the violin player Vanina Andreani (1998), followed by the clarinet player Guillaume Wickel (2005). The core of the group is based in Nantes, France. Astrid's instrumental and expansive music has been inspired by improvised music, folk, post-rock and jazz, as well as by classical and contemporary composers, from Ravel to Arvo Part. Their work has been released across a number of albums on various labels, including Gizeh Records, Monotype Records and Rune Grammofon. Collaboration with other musicians informed Astrid's joint release with Rachel Grimes, Through the Sparkle (2017), and Cyril Secq has released duo albums with Sylvain Chauveau and Orla Wren. Astrid's album Always Digging The Same Hole includes five pieces, each of which patiently and delicately charts its course through different dynamics and moods. The album foregrounds the group's live performance, close listening and interplay, resulting in atmospheres which are hauntingly suspended and poetically suggestive. Band member Guillaume Wickel sadly died in 2022, and Always Digging The Same Hole is dedicated to him. "The fact that their music hasn't reached more ears is yet another mind-boggling event. ... A release heavy with emotive, sullen atmospheres and tempo shifts that echo the likes of Chris Abrahams and The Necks " - Sun-13 review. "An immersive experience that evokes deep emotions and invites listeners to get lost in an exceptional sound world." - Solenopole review. Vanina Andreani : Violin, piano Yvan Ros : Drums, percussions, harmonium, metallophone Cyril Secq : Guitars, piano, Juno, harmonium, percussions, metallophone Guillaume Wickel : Clarinets, percussions