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CMU Approved
Approved: Cuts
By Andy Malt | Published on Tuesday 9 October 2018
Composer and filmmaker Anthony Tombling Jr is set to release his debut album as Cuts on 30 Nov. Titled ‘A Gradual Decline’, the record reflects on the fragile state of the planet by including field recordings of things such as ice collapsing from glaciers – events that are all the more alarming in a week when the UN warned that drastic action is needed to limit the effects of climate change.
“We are living in the age of the Anthropocene and it feels like everything is in decline”, says Tombling. “We’re in a moment where extinction is regular. I wanted this record to reflect these frailties”.
He goes on: “I have tried to make a record that feels like it’s all come from one place. My only musical influence on this was William Basinski’s ‘Disintegration Loops’. Not the music, but the process. The idea of a decline in sound really suited the concept of this record”.
“All this music and instrumentation trapped in this declining digital signal”, he continues. “I wanted it to sound brittle and precarious. I also wanted to avoid doing overly dark material, opting instead for something that was more fragile, melancholic and even hopeful in moments”.
An EP featuring three pieces, including the album’s title track, is available now. Watch the video for that title track here:
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