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The Sleeper Awakes

by Ben Chatwin

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1.
Sirius 05:48
2.
3.
In The Fire 04:02
4.
203 Years 05:52
5.
Utopia 02:12
6.
Darwinism 04:09
7.
8.
Mirroring 03:24
9.
10.
Insomnia 05:18

about

Written and recorded at Chatwin's home studio in Scotland. Inspired by the writing of H.G. Wells, 'The Sleeper Awakes' is Chatwin's first album to appear under his own name and follows last year's highly-lauded Talvihorros project 'Eaten Alive'.

"I wanted 'The Sleeper Awakes' to represent the idea of a future that has been and gone. Before the information and telecommunications revolution there was a beautiful yet weird, naivety about what the future might bring and it was this that I tried to tap into whilst making the record. I sourced a one hundred-year-old Dulcitone (a kind of portable piano that was made for a short period of time in Glasgow at the turn of the Twentieth Century) and used it extensively, making it sit with modern electronics and synthesis. The pairing of older, traditional instruments with modern recording techniques and processes is something that I'm very interested in."

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"A colossal record that conjures up dramatic vistas from the outset, The Sleeper Awakes is one of the most fully realised albums of its type released in the last few years." - DROWNED IN SOUND

"Chatwin's solo debut, following a string of releases as Talvihorros, is a richly melodic hybrid of ambient electronics, and organic instrumentation, seamlessly woven into a cinematic soundtrack of intense beauty..." - UNCUT

"From the opening ‘Sirius’ with its almost Mogwai feel to the closing ‘Insomnia’ it’s a journey to be enjoyed. The further into the album you go the more you feel steeped in its alternate dimension. I could pick individual tracks to highlight but honestly the biggest highlight is the album itself." - ECHOES & DUST

"Chatwin is skilled at crafting a mood that continually evolves and shifts focus across the album’s ten pieces, with some more tense moments such as the distorted edge of “Shadow Cutting” or the rolling crescendo of closing piece “Insomnia.” From start to finish, though, Chatwin’s talent for achingly beautiful arrangements shines through. It’s easily the best album of its kind I’ve heard in years — my favorite of the year so far." - HEADPHONE COMMUTE

"At its heart, Chatwin has crafted a study in hopeful regret, soundtracking a protagonist who's made mistakes but has convinced himself otherwise. The delusion is both beautiful and devastating." - RAVEN SINGS THE BLUES

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credits

released May 4, 2015

All tracks written and produced by Ben Chatwin
Recorded at The Vennel Studios, Scotland

String arrangement on Sirius by Maarten Vos
String arrangement on In The Fire and Darwinism by William Ryan Fritch

Cello on Sirius performed by Maarten Vos
Hammered Dulcimer on In The Fire performed by Joel Hanson
Cello and Viola on In The Fire performed by William Ryan Fritch
Cello, Viola, Clarinet and Voice on Darwinism performed by William Ryan Fritch
Violin on Insomnia performed by Sarah Kemp

Mastered by Frank Arkwright, Abbey Road
Photography by Kim Høltermand
Design & Layout by Richard Robinson

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Ben Chatwin Scotland, UK

Ben Chatwin is an experimental electronic composer who works primarily with modular synths and other hardware to create densely layered soundscapes with sweeping emotional resonances. His music combines brutalist rhythms with drifting strings and synths, to create music that is at once abstract and cinematic. ... more

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