Hollow Body was sparked by an intense physical experience Remo Seeland had during a residency in New York City. “The subway became a sort of ‘atonal symphony’ for me, provoking a full-body experience with the rattling of the overcrowded, airless trains,” Seeland who founded Hallow Ground explains.

Based on field recordings from both urban and rural environments, the LP also aims at mirroring another of Seeland’s psychosonic encounters. “In the highlands of Iceland, I noticed my pulse lowering and my breathing decelerating,” he says. “Just shortly after that, a single insect’s buzzing seemed so loud to me that I became even more aware of the silence surrounding me.” Thus silence, perception, order, and the curious dialectic of the outside world and the inner workings of the human psyche are central themes of Hollow Body.

The release also draws from Seeland’s research on the anomic tantric cults of India. It serves as a mediator not only between individual experiences of site-specific sounds and general ideas of sound production in and about space, but also between different compositional techniques ranging from drone to synthesized vocals, and forms of ritualistic music.

Recorded in New York, Reykjavík, and Zurich, Hollow Body sees Seeland collaborating with Hallow Ground-affiliated artists Norman Westberg (Swans—guitar on “Body Innovation” and “Hollow City”) and Reinier van Houdt (Current 93—e-bowed guitar on “Hollow City” and Rhodes organ on “Pulse Points Green”), as well as the Switzerland-based American musician Steve Fors (Deaf At Sea—trombone on “Second Coming).

We are excited to premiere “Second Coming” ahead of the release of Remo Seeland’s Hollow Body, that will be out on Hallow Ground on September 13th. You can pre-order the LP on Bandcamp.