Photo: Leon De Backer
Canadian experimental guitarists Aidan Baker (also of Nadja, Caudal, Tavare) & Eric Quach (aka Thisquietarmy) originally formed Hypnodrone Ensemble in Berlin, Germany in 2014, along with the drummers Felipe Salazar (also of Caudal), Jérémie Mortier, and David Dunnett, to explore the conjunctions of atmospheric, space-rock-ish, shoegazer-y music with motorik, krautrock-ish, propulsive beats to offer immersive, psychedelic, and transportive performances.
While these five musicians formed the original core of the group, members have regularly changed over the years which, besides stalwarts Baker and Quach, currently features Angela Martinez Muñoz (also of nunofyrbeeswax, Tavare), Fiona McKenzie (also of Halma) and Sara Neidorf (also of Mellowdeath, Aptera). This line-up, along with bassist Gareth Sweeney (also of Caudal) and guest vocalist Lane Shi Otayonii, toured in Europe in the spring of 2023 with a pause in May for a recording session, set up by Heartnoize, at Punctum in Prague.
Hypnodrone Ensemble‘s live, self-titled debut came out in 2014 on Consouling Sounds, followed by their studio-recorded full-length, The Shape of Space, the following year, released by Calostro Recordings. Plays Orchestral Favourites, recorded as an expanded nine-piece ensemble, came out in 2018, followed by Gets Polyamorous, with 15 contributing musicians, in 2020, both on Wolves & Vibrancy. A pared-down six-piece group played on The Signal In The Signal, released by Trepanation Recordings on 2023.
Their newest album, featuring material from the May 2023 Punctum sessions, is entitled The Problem Is In The Sender – Do Not Tamper With The Receiver, will be released in July 5 2024, and can be pre-ordered as follows: on vinyl by Wolves & Vibrancy, on CD by WV Sorcerer, and cassettes by Katuktu Collective in the US, and Cruel Nature Recordings in the UK.
