1. The melting sounds of Piotr Kurek
Taking his cues from medieval composition, baroque music and experimental jazz, Warsaw-based multi-instrumentalist and composer Piotr Kurek doesn't shackle himself to the past. Flanked by several Belgian musicians, he presents his album Smartwoods. Kurek has an innate ability to dance between the organic and the artificial: each time, the sounds of the acoustic instruments melt away into the electronics, resulting in unique, unpredictable textures.
2. The intertwining of music and AI
How should we think about art and music made with AI? Instead of looking for a definitive approach, perhaps we can try to think from multiple positions, simultaneously. At least that is what Jennifer Walshe proposes in her newest book 13 Ways of Looking at AI, Art & Music. She often uses artificial intelligence in innovative ways. In A Late Anthology of Early Music Vol. 1: Ancient to Renaissance (2020), Walshe reworked the Early Music canon with AI.
3. Stillness with Hildegard of Bingen and the kanklės
Hildegard of Bingen's chants are also given a new look: in the audiovisual project Гільдеґарда (Hildegarde), the music of the 12th-century mystic is given the company of a modular synthesizer - the tool for Ukrainian composer Heinali to reimagine old music and bridge past and present. He invites vocalist Yasia Saienko and Sophia Bulgakova provides the visuals. Or hear how Indrė Jurgelevičiūtė reinvents the kanklės, a traditional Lithuanian string instrument. Together with idiosyncratic guitarist Raphael Rogiński, she presents his latest album Žaltys.
4. For the overall experience
AKA HEX, the brand new collaboration between Aisha Devi and Slikback - one of the most adventurous producers of the moment - stands for experimental club music with deep basses, zigzagging synths and mutated vocals. The duo Ego Death also aims for catharsis. Consisting of French electronic artist Aho Ssan and Polish composer and cellist Resina, they create a confrontational, complex and entrancing soundscape.
5. Clubnight!
Unsound ends with a clubnight at Reset. Until 6am, you will hear an unforgettable line-up of DJ sets. French DJ, artist and producer CRYSTALLMESS stands out for her abrasive attacks on the dancefloor. Her DJ sets are uncompromising, ranging from hardcore rap to footwork, and have been featured everywhere from Berghain to Primavera. Sega Bodega, Chilean-Irish artist and producer notable for his solo career as well as his productions for the likes of Björk, Shygirl and Caroline Polachek goes b2b with UK heavyweight Lee Gamble. Slikback takes elements from the wide spectrum of club, noise, ambient and rap musics and forms them into a psychedelic lattice of high intensity sounds and emotions.
