Isness - Isness (2018)

Isness is Montreal-based Catherine Debard, aka YlangYlang, and northeastern experimental stalwart Matt Robidoux - joined on the first half of their debut tape by violinist Jenifer Gelineau (Sunburned Hand of the Man). While Robidoux is in Oakland, CA at the moment and Gelineau in Holyoke, MA, the tape is drawn from a pair of spontaneous sessions, orchestrated when tours and travel brought two or three of the group together.

Recorded across 2017 and 2018, the tape has two distinct but interconnected personalities. The a-side is a series of delicate meditations recorded with the full group in summer 2017, when Debard was briefly living in Hamilton, ON, while the b-side is a more textural excursion featuring just her and Robidoux. Both are durable and complementary listening experiences, registering a surprising range of different impressions depending on mood or space.