Cloudland Canyon

Experimental outfit Cloudland Canyon, which shares its name with a state park in Georgia, extends the abstract electronic lineage established by Ash Ra Tempel and Edgar Froese, while weaving in dream pop textures and occasionally veering toward stargazing disco rhythms. The project originated in 2002 after Brooklyn-based guitarist Kip Uhlhorn, formerly of screamo band the Red Scare and then a member of Panthers, crossed paths with German multi-instrumentalist Simon Wojan during an European tour.

Following a short initial recording session and several years of exchanging tracks between Uhlhorn and Wojan, with additional contributions from Jacob Morris of the Double, Jerry Fuchs of Turing Machine and the Juan MacLean, and Uhlhorn’s wife Kelly Winkler, Tee Pee issued the debut album Requiems der Natur 2002-2004 in 2006. The band shifted to Kranky for the 2007 EP Silver Tongued Sisyphus and later that year released the 30-minute single-track collaboration with Lichens titled Exterminating Angel on Holy Mountain. Lie in Light appeared on Kranky in early 2008, and a split 12" EP with Mythical Beast came out on Not Not Fun the same year. Wojan departed, later joining King Khan & the Shrines.

Cloudland Canyon returned to Holy Mountain, launched its own imprint Intercoastal Artists, and put out the more shoegaze-oriented Fin Eaves in fall 2010. The album earned positive notice, resulting in tours alongside the Flaming Lips, Interpol, and Bear in Heaven. After limited 7" singles on Intercoastal Artists (a split with Citay) and Bathetic Records, the group coalesced around the core lineup of Kelly and Kip Uhlhorn together with Memphis-based drummer Ross Johnson of Tav Falco’s Panther Burns. The trio enlisted producer Sonic Boom, formerly of Spacemen 3, who mastered three 12" releases in 2012: Born Blonde on Trensmat, Prophetic Frequencies on Monofonus Press, and Aureliua on The Great Pop Supplement. The band also worked with Robert A.A. Lowe of Lichens on the score for the 2012 Indian drama film Miss Lovely.

While preparing their third proper album with Sonic Boom, Cloudland Canyon issued a split 7" single with Disappears on Sonic Cathedral Recordings in late 2013 and another split 7" with Lorelle Meets the Obsolete on God Unknown Records in 2015. The full-length An Arabesque finally surfaced on Medical Records in early 2016. Featuring an expansive roster of guests including M. Geddes Gengras, Sonic Boom, and former members of Big Star, the Flaming Lips, and LCD Soundsystem, the record integrated cosmic space disco elements alongside the group’s longstanding Krautrock and dream pop foundations.