A Trace Of Memory

Back in 2019, just before Covid hit, fellow Sanguine Hum member Matt Baber and I set about writing a new album.

It was summertime, and we had time to spare and an itch to play, not only our instruments but more in the literal sense - to have fun, relax and enjoy ourselves and the music we were making.

We’d arrive at the studio in the morning before the heat got too much and set up our instruments. Once we were ready to play, we had only one rule: we must come away with a new song at the end of each day.

At the beginning of our sessions, we would start with a pre-prepared idea, a scale or sequencer loop, or anything we could organise an idea around. Once we knocked the idea back and forth a few times, we began improvising, chiselling away at anything that struck us as worth pursuing.

What surprised us both was how ideas were falling into place! Almost as if they were coming out of thin air, a title that we would later adopt for track four on what would become A Trace Of Memory.

Within a few short weeks, we had the record written, and the tracks were all sketched out on iPhone recordings and manuscripts. Then Covid blanketed the country with unprecedented lockdowns, and we were left twiddling our thumbs.

With more time on our hands than ever, we decided to record the album in lockdown, each band member laying down their parts in home studios, piecing the tracks together one instrument at a time.

Over a few months, the album took shape, and I think we were all surprised with just how the record turned out! A Trace Of Memory came out on 20th November 2020 on Bad Elephant Records as a CD and limited LP with a gatefold sleeve designed by Meriel Waissman.