Painter, Alexander - Civil Twilight

Civil Twilight is the debut album by cellist/saxophonist, Alexander Painter. Existing in a surreal hinterland, the album consists of a series of visions following the narrator’s own funeral, where experimental techniques and improvisation co-exist with pop melody, hypnotic rhythms and lush analogue texture.

Almost entirely performed and recorded by Alex in his compact basement studio in Brighton, UK, the songs often feature his distinctive cello and sax playing, interspersed with tape manipulation and DIY FX, and are delivered with a voice redolent of Nick Drake or Arthur Russell. Influences range from the 70s New York experimental music scene to modal jazz to contemporary classical, pop and even black metal; Alex’s music existing in a similar world to artists such as Mica Levi, John Cale, Mount Kimbie and Laurie Anderson.

Inspired in equal part by Tarkovsky's ‘Mirror’, Dante, and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, the songs form a loose narrative exploring themes of alienation, longing and the changing nature of memories. Glimpses of childhood, vivid hallucinations and alternative futures lead us through a richly imagined otherworld that is evocative, inventive and witty.

Alex grew up in Devon, and cut his musical teeth playing music alongside his dad in pubs and faded seaside hotels from early teenage. Now living in Brighton, UK, he composes for film and often collaborates with artists such as Orlando Weeks, Gazelle Twin, Tony Njoku, and Anna B. Savage as well as performing improvised sets for experimental events such as Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.