Luke Howard - All That Is Not Solid '2020

Tracks list

Tracklist

01. Passions Of All Kinds
02. Abstract Mathematics
03. Nostalgia
04. Spectral
05. The Metaphysical
06. The Unknown
07. The Unseen
08. Loss And Mourning
09. Antoinette Boulevard

15 MAY 2020 (TORONTO, ON) - Australian composer and instrumentalist Luke Howard
will release his new album ‘All That Is Not Solid’ via Mercury KX
Records on July 17th. Listen now to the first track from the album
‘Antoinette Boulevard’ and watch its accompanying video now
– here.


Named after a quote by composer and academic David Toop, ‘All That Is Not
Solid’, is his most audacious and exciting album yet. It documents the
four concerts Howard played in January of wholly improvised music. The result is
Howard at his purest, highlighting his breath-taking melodic talent. The four
weekly concerts at Melbourne classical venue Tempo Rubato in January from which
these records stem, saw Howard freely improvise for an hour, before a second
half of his existing tunes. The shows took place while bushfires raged in
Australia. They were nearly cancelled because of the heat, but offered solace
and comfort to audiences when they went ahead.

‘All That Is Not Solid’ became the natural home for
‘Antoinette Boulevard’. The only song from the shows’ second
half of pre-existing pieces, the album’s joyous finale needed an audience
to respond to its restless energy. “I could release a whole album of
versions of ‘Antionette Boulevard’ I’ve tried in the
studio,” he laughs. “That tune has been a bit of a curse before, but
it worked as more of a party tune to play at these gigs. I could play it really
fast, or start slow and have fun speeding it up. I’d end the shows with
it, and after what could have been a melancholy night it’s good to have
something to whip through.” Its video is comprised of drone footage edited
by Howard of the Australian landscape, from Victoria and New South Wales, filmed
by Howard’s friend Finn Robertson.

The eerily beautiful ‘Antionette Boulevard’ video is a reminder of
the stark period when Howard’s ‘All That Is Not Solid’
residency took place. Howard is in awe of the resilience of people who lost
their homes in the fires, noting: “Their attitude seems to be ‘Oh,
we’ll pick up and start again’, when as a city dweller I’d
find it such a traumatic experience.” A passionate student of climate
change, Howard has explored tackling the subject in his next studio work.

In the seven years since his compelling debut album ‘Sun, Cloud’
was released, Luke Howard has established himself as one of the most important
and exciting musicians in contemporary classical music. The composer has been at
the forefront of opening up piano music to a new generation, while challenging
the notion of what can be achieved in the form. He has twice been nominated for
the Australian Music Prize. His 2019 work ‘Beating Heart Stories’
featured stunning reworkings of his acclaimed album ‘Open Heart
Story’. The same year, Howard’s first film soundtrack ‘The
Sand That Ate The Sea’ for director Matthew Thorne’s documentary
about the Australian outback was nominated for Best Soundtrack at the ARIA
Awards. He has worked on ballets with The Royal Ballet at Covent Garden and
Atlanta Ballet. As well as his solo music, he leads The Luke Howard Trio and has
made albums with jazz bassist Janos Bruneel and Grammy-winning trumpeter Nadje
Noordhuis.

Whatever the future holds for this most restless, challenging and innovative
musician, the beauty and wonder shot through ‘All That Is Not
Solid’ is a stunning achievement, an album created on the spot needing
years of expertise to draw from first. It sets both Luke Howard free and anyone
who cares to listen.

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