Giant Swan

Giant Swan built a fearsome yet magnetic stage presence through their punishing, unbalanced techno pulses and sharp-edged electronic abrasion, later translating that punk-infused disorder onto wax via the pounding 2018 High Wasted EP. Robin Stewart and Harry Wright assembled the project in Bristol, U.K., as a side venture from their band the Naturals, initially shaping ideas through extended jam sessions that gradually evolved into fully autonomous, improvised live performances. The duo soon established themselves as fixtures on the city’s D.I.Y. circuit, where their shows mirrored the visceral charge of punk gigs while remaining wholly distinct from one night to the next.

Their earliest documented work arrived in 2014 when the track “Slum” appeared on Howling Owl’s Record Store Day EP Sink. The same imprint followed with the murky self-titled EP the next year. Early notices drew parallels to the initial recordings of Holy Fuck and fellow Bristol residents Fuck Buttons, as the pair’s gigs began bridging into club-oriented techno environments. In 2016 they issued their second release, the tighter Earn EP. The year after, they moved deeper into techno circles with the single Celebrate the Last 30 Years of Human Ego, issued on bass and techno producer Batu’s Timedance label.

Even while appearing at numerous techno events alongside Headless Horseman, Peder Mannerfelt, and Container, the duo maintained ties to Europe’s underground noise community. Two further EPs, Whities 016 and High Wasted, surfaced in 2018, coinciding with a Boiler Room session at London’s Southbank Centre and a slot at the experimental electronic festival Berlin Atonal. During scattered intervals between commitments, the pair started assembling material for a debut album. That self-titled full-length arrived in 2019, seeking to preserve the force of their live sets while introducing guitar textures to broaden the sonic palette.