RACHEL GRIMES

Known primarily as the composer and pianist of Rachel's, Rachel Grimes work with that pioneering indie chamber group resulted in six albums on Quarterstick/Touch & Go Records. Touring as a soloist since 2009, she has recently shared the stage with Nils Frahm, Peter Broderick, Dustin O'Halloran, Orchestra Kandiskij and astrïd. With the release of her solo album, Book of Leaves, Rachel Grimes brought her unique craft at the piano into the open air.

“Book of Leaves, her first solo album, is like a warm embrace from an old friend... Grimes has crafted an album that sounds and feels truly solitary-- the halting chords of "The Corner Room", the frenetic interlocking melodies of "My Dear Companion" (a distant relative of Rachel's "Arterial"), the sudden cascades of "She Was Here", and the chord sheets of "Mossgrove" all have the feel of creativity accessed while in between encounters with other people. That time between is something we all need now and then, and this record resonates primarily because of how well it embodies the nourishment of aloneness." - Pitchfork

Grimes also plays with a number of other bands. "If Then Not When", a new album by King's Daughters & Sons was released Nov. 2011 on Chemikal Underground. Other recent projects include the release of "Marion County 1938", a DVD/EP chamber music suite, and orchestrations of the songs of George and Ira Gershwin for Cafe Variations, a new co-production with Emerson College and Anne Bogart/SITI Company of New York City.

"These pieces exude a distinctly autumnal feel, suspending the listener in the bracing chill of an October afternoon. Where Rachel's could often come across as lugubrious and austere, Grimes's solo work is lighter and sparser, partly due to the lack of supporting instrumentation. The pastoral bent of the album is driven home by "Frogs", a brief interlude of amphibious croaking that recalls the field recordings woven through the 2003 Rachel's album Systems/Layers; but in truth this orientation is already implicit in the uncluttered, ruminative melodies… [Rachel Grimes is] one of American independent music's few truly inspired technicians." - Joseph Stannard, THE WIRE

KIM MYHR

Kim Myhr (born 1981) is an active voice of the creative music scene in Norway, both as a composer and as a guitarist, with frequent performances throughout Europe, Australia, Asia and North- as well as South-America.

Myhr's first solo record was released in january 2014 and explores the acoustic possibilities of the 12-string guitar, and can remind the listener of early music of Ligeti and of Morton Feldman, but it also contains an energy and simplicity similar to american folk music.

"'All Your Limbs Singing' is a delirious love letter to the 12 string acoustic guitar. Employing a symphonic minimalist approach that recalls Rhus Chatham or Tetsuzi Akiyama, Myhr aims to immerse the listener within the album's rich and ringing world of texture … He simply wants you to get as lost as he is inside his sound. It's a romantic and seductive invitation." - Clive Bell, The WIRE

As a composer, Myhr wrote "stems and cages" for the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra in 2009, a large ensemble including Sidsel Endresen, Christian Wallumrød, Jim Denley among others. The music was released on the CD "stems and cages" in 2010, and recieved wide critical acclaim. Kim wrote another piece for the orchestra for the 2012 Ultima festival called "In the end his voice will be the sound of paper", this time featuring the voice of Jenny Hval. More activity is expected for this project in 2014. Myhr works frequently with dance, notably writing music for productions by italian choreographer Francesco Scavetta, and in 2014 a new collaboration with dancer Orfee Schuijt.

Kim is one third of MURAL, a trio with australian wind player Jim Denley and percussionist Ingar Zach. They have worked together since 2007, and have released two CDs; the last one "Live at the Rothko Chapel", is a documentation of a continuing relationship with the Rothko Chapel in Houston. In april 2013, MURAL played a four hour long concertthere, which is planned to be released in 2014 as a 3CD-box set.