Kiezsalon

w/ Alison Cotton, Matchess and Ichiko Aoba

Violist and vocalist Alison Cotton will premiere her album Only Darkness Now, for the first time in Berlin. Released in 2020 to widespread critical acclaim, it strips the music back to reveal the audible and lyrical noises inherent in fields and stones, creating “an expressive and thoroughly absorbing album, which envelops the listener and takes them to places that seem both familiar and terrifying, halfway between inner and outer worlds.” – The Quietus

Thriving on collaboration, violist, singer and keyboardist Whitney Johnson (aka Matchess) has worked in a long list of rock bands and experimental projects, and “has been ubiquitous on Chicago’s underground music scene for more than a decade” – The Chicago Reader. Her album Sacracorpa, was named by Pitchfork as one of the best experimental albums of 2018.

The third guest for this special event is Ichiko Aoba, a Japanese folk singer and songwriter who releases music on her own label, hermine. Her main instrument is guitar, but she also plays piano, clarinet, accordion and flute. Known for her acoustic sound and songwriting, which is often inspired by her dreams, she was also featured on the soundtrack of the 2019 Nintendo Switch remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening.

Alison Cotton
Matchess
Ichiko Aoba