Anthea Caddy and Thembi Soddell

BIOGRAPHY

Bringing together the textural and dynamic capabilities of the cello, with an extensive palate of sampled and abstracted found sounds, this collaboration between Australian sound artists Anthea Caddy and Thembi Soddell generates a provocative and tense sonic world. Since the release of their debut album, Iland (Cajid 007CD) in October 2006, the duo have extensively toured both Australia and Europe, including performances at the Hoerkunstfestival, Erlanger, Instants Chavirés, Paris, and the Now Now Festival, Sydney.

"The thirty minutes of "Iland" are highly impressive, in that the fusion of these different kinds of electroacoustic presage cracks our fake tranquillity, dragging us into an uncertain kind of awareness that doesn't admit the presence of danger but at the same time almost expects it with unpronounceable pleasure. By alternating movement and stasis, Caddy and Soddell manage to express an otherwise undefinable sense of inner connection with something that resembles the various phases of a nightmare, but one that - one way or another - has an happy ending." Touching Extremes, Massimo Ricci - February 2007

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IMAGES

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ILAND PRESS RELEASE

Anthea Caddy (cello) and Thembi Soddell (sampler)
ILAND
cajid 007CD

Conjuring the audio ghosts of early Penderecki or late period Jani Christou, whilst tackling the microscopic sonic explorations of Rolf Julius and lush field recordings of Hildegard Westerkamp, this unique combination of cello and sampler is an intense, exhilarating and unforgettable sonic experience. An uncomprimising collision of extended technique, microsonics, studio production and investigative recording, ILAND is a supremely confident release with scant regards to much occurring in music today. File under: Contemporary Brutality!

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SELECTED REVIEW QUOTES

ILAND REVIEWS

"These female musicians have found each other and deliver a strong, convincing and excellent product." Phosphor Magazine Issue 122 - February 2007

"The stinging bites of cello act as vital punctuations for the concrete elements -the vigorous bowing and scraping resulting in jarring linkages between swelling oceans of Soddell's distended source materials." Lawrence English - The Wire, February 2007

"Going from absolute nowhere to absolute anywhere. A work that requires full attention in order to unfold it's beauty. Blocks of furious classical sound are replaced by careful static sounds. References go out to Jani Christou or Xenakis. A particular strong work here." Frans De Waard - Vital Weekly 550

PERFORMANCE REVIEWS

"Recovering from earlier technical issues to what was to become an event highlight, Anthea Caddy and Thembi Soddell burst into their performance with a richly textured and detailed wall of noise. Caddy performed cello in unconventional means and Soddell operated samples, however the artists' deliberate situation behind the audience and more so the musical cooperation and understanding of the duo meant a division between the artists' playing was indistinguishable. The performance demonstrated extraordinary dynamics and deeply considered timing. Caddy and Soddell took listeners through enormously spacious atmospheres; dense, textural noise climaxes; beautifully glistening granular sounds from Soddell and the incredibly rich creaks and wails of Caddy's disembodied cello. Upholding a delicate pace, Caddy and Soddell's sounds unfurled and revealed themselves over time, both through steady sonic shifts and as well as the subjective psychological shifts of extended listening" Jared Davis, Liqud Architecture Blog 2009

"This was the sound of friction, of machinery long abandoned but still attempting to function. The scenes kept changing, but one was left with a distinctly queasy feeling that something was not quite right—an enigmatic note on which to end the night." Shannon O'Niell - Realtime Arts, January 2006

"It was haunted house improvisation, gothic experimentalism as Caddy personified the creaking floorboards, the rising tension whilst Soddell embodied some kind mischievous yet immensely powerful presence." Bob Baker Fish - Cyclic Defrost, February 2007

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anthea caddy and thembi soddell PRESS KIT
	BIOGRAPHY Bringing together the textural and dynamic capabilities of the cello, with an extensive palate of sampled and abstracted found sounds, this collaboration between Australian sound artists Anthea Caddy and Thembi Soddell generates a provocative and tense sonic world. Since the release of their debut album, Iland (Cajid 007CD) in October 2006, the duo have extensively toured both Australia and Europe, including performances at the Hoerkunstfestival, Erlanger, Instants Chavirés, Paris, and the Now Now Festival, Sydney. "The thirty minutes of "Iland" are highly impressive, in that the fusion of these different kinds of electroacoustic presage cracks our fake tranquillity, dragging us into an uncertain kind of awareness that doesn't admit the presence of danger but at the same time almost expects it with unpronounceable pleasure. By alternating movement and stasis, Caddy and Soddell manage to express an otherwise undefinable sense of inner connection with something that resembles the various phases of a nightmare, but one that - one way or another - has an happy ending." Touching Extremes, Massimo Ricci - February 2007 +++++++ IMAGES +++++++ ILAND PRESS RELEASE Anthea Caddy (cello) and Thembi Soddell (sampler) ILAND cajid 007CD Conjuring the audio ghosts of early Penderecki or late period Jani Christou, whilst tackling the microscopic sonic explorations of Rolf Julius and lush field recordings of Hildegard Westerkamp, this unique combination of cello and sampler is an intense, exhilarating and unforgettable sonic experience. An uncomprimising collision of extended technique, microsonics, studio production and investigative recording, ILAND is a supremely confident release with scant regards to much occurring in music today. File under: Contemporary Brutality! +++++++ SELECTED REVIEW QUOTES ILAND REVIEWS "These female musicians have found each other and deliver a strong, convincing and excellent product." Phosphor Magazine Issue 122 - February 2007 "The stinging bites of cello act as vital punctuations for the concrete elements -the vigorous bowing and scraping resulting in jarring linkages between swelling oceans of Soddell's distended source materials." Lawrence English - The Wire, February 2007 "Going from absolute nowhere to absolute anywhere. A work that requires full attention in order to unfold it's beauty. Blocks of furious classical sound are replaced by careful static sounds. References go out to Jani Christou or Xenakis. A particular strong work here." Frans De Waard - Vital Weekly 550 PERFORMANCE REVIEWS "Recovering from earlier technical issues to what was to become an event highlight, Anthea Caddy and Thembi Soddell burst into their performance with a richly textured and detailed wall of noise. Caddy performed cello in unconventional means and Soddell operated samples, however the artists' deliberate situation behind the audience and more so the musical cooperation and understanding of the duo meant a division between the artists' playing was indistinguishable. The performance demonstrated extraordinary dynamics and deeply considered timing. Caddy and Soddell took listeners through enormously spacious atmospheres; dense, textural noise climaxes; beautifully glistening granular sounds from Soddell and the incredibly rich creaks and wails of Caddy's disembodied cello. Upholding a delicate pace, Caddy and Soddell's sounds unfurled and revealed themselves over time, both through steady sonic shifts and as well as the subjective psychological shifts of extended listening" Jared Davis, Liqud Architecture Blog 2009 "This was the sound of friction, of machinery long abandoned but still attempting to function. The scenes kept changing, but one was left with a distinctly queasy feeling that something was not quite right—an enigmatic note on which to end the night." Shannon O'Niell - Realtime Arts, January 2006 "It was haunted house improvisation, gothic experimentalism as Caddy personified the creaking floorboards, the rising tension whilst Soddell embodied some kind mischievous yet immensely powerful presence." Bob Baker Fish - Cyclic Defrost, February 2007 +++++++
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