group zero: structures & light

Debut record from Group Zero (Cathal Cully of Girls Names). Using synthesizers and drum machines, Structures And Lights glistens with subtle Euro sophistication - pairing cold-wave optimism alongside freaky and brutal tracks for the more open-minded DJs and dancefloors. Written, recorded and mixed intermittently over four years, the narrative of Structures And Light is bound by a deepening connection with electronics, instrumentation, and the studio. With no imminent touring schedule or release deadlines, Cully built a modest home setup and began producing on his own again. He explains: "It was as an exercise in my own development and it was fun. It brought the naivety and spontaneity back to making music." This first collection of Group Zero music - along with a library of other ideas and sketches - was thought to be eternally lost and all but forgotten until a chance conversation with Touch Sensitive Records led to the tracks being salvaged and subsequently restored. The genesis of this newly discovered musical freedom coincided with a viewing of Pyramid Of Light by Heinz Mack from the post-war Dusseldorf based Group Zero art movement which resonated deeply. Cully explains: "It stirred up questions and emotions which I could not get from a book or a screen. It was the direct relation between me, the light and the physical object hanging on the wall. New moments of beauty locked in the memory. I was in awe." Cully was also taking influence from a range of contemporary electronic producers - on labels such as LIES, Diagonal, Optimo Music, Blackest Ever Black, and PAN: "These records felt as much in keeping with post-punk traditions and my own DIY background whilst tapping into the primitive ideas of masters such as Cluster, Suicide, Malaria!, and the proto-techno of pre-club music." Just as a structure obscures or reflects light furnishing us with new ways of seeing; the propulsive rhythms in Structures And Light reveal subtle differences on each repeated cycle. Here's a record from a Belfast bedroom that sounds nothing like the city, past or present. It's made with synths and drum machines, and it glistens with subtle Euro sophistication.