Friday 4 June 2021, 7.30pm
Ashley Paul / voice, alto saxophone, guitar, percussion
Yoni Silver / bass clarinet, clarinet, guitar
Otto Willberg / double bass
Delighted to present a belated release show for Ashley Paul's new album, 'Ray', which came out on Slip at the end of last year; a lifting, delighting suite of yearning winds, loose beats, and cocooning, humid bass coming together and falling apart as songs.
The LP airs Paul's new trio, alongside bass clarinettist Yoni Silver and bassist Otto Willberg, who fatten out and shine light on her singularly intimate, multi-instrumental with mystery and grace. 2018's 'Lost In Shadows' wrote into the bewildering ecstasy of recent motherhood with a tingling resolve. On 'Ray' - recorded remotely during lockdown - Paul's deliciously hesitant songcraft is an outpouring and an anchor in freshly tumultuous times.
"Paul’s art remains uncompromisingly singular, thanks to her non-compartmentalizing, genre-b(l)ending, intuitive musical vision. She has always guarded her inner space, where the music happens, while generously drawing us into the eerie sphere of self-intimacy." – The Quietus, on 'Ray'
Ashley Paul is an American performer and composer based in London. She uses an array of instruments including saxophone, clarinet, voice, guitar, bells and percussion, mixing disparate elements to create a colorful palate of sound that works its way into her intuitive songs; free forming, introverted melodies. This blend manifests beautiful and simple musical forms against acoustic experimentation.
Ashley has performed or recorded with Phill Niblock, Rashad Becker, Nik Colk Void, Loren Connors, Heatsick, Aki Onda, C. Spencer Yeh, Anthony Coleman, Bass Clef, Joe Maneri, Joe Morris, Seijiro Murayama, Greg Kelley, Bill Nace and Eli Keszler appearing on such labels as Important, PAN, ESP-DISK’ and Tzadik. She received a Masters of Music from New England Conservatory in 2007.
Ben Pritchard's music settles at a fragile point between song and experiment; at once destructive and delicate. Using prepared acoustic guitar, percussion and voice, his live performances draw on a raw spontaneity found in his recordings.
Debut solo album "A Drawn Out Line" to be released March 31, 2015 on Wagtail Records.
