Talk Low Music Festival is proud to partner with Longworth-Anderson Series to bring a night of adventurous sounds to Memorial Hall
Clipping.
The critically acclaimed West Coast-based experimental hip-hop trio, “clipping” is fronted by Tony and Grammy winning actor, rapper and writer, Daveed Diggs along with producers Jonathan Snipes and William Hutson. They initially rose to prominence with their debut album MIDCITY and follow up, CLPPNG. In 2016 they released their opus, SPLENDOR & MISERY, a science fiction concept album that garnered international critical acclaim, including a Hugo Award nomination for Best Dramatic Presentation. This was only the second time ever a music album was nominated for a Hugo Award, putting them up against the likes of GAME OF THRONES and BLACK MIRROR. Their follow up, THE DEEP, garnered similar attention including another Hugo Award nomination as well as influencing a Simon & Schuster published novel of the same name. Most recently the band diverted from their sci-fi storytelling and released a set of horror-based concept albums, THERE EXISTED AN ADDITION TO BLOOD and VISIONS OF BODIES BEING BURNED. Line of Best Fit’s Jack Bray hailed it as “sonically intriguing” and “another successful experiment for the group and one of the eeriest examples of modern hip- hop to date.”
Why? x concertnova
Yoni Wolf has spent the last two decades traveling the remote sonic terrain where underground hip hop, avant-pop, and psych-rock meet. In that time he’s cultivated a unique sound, and a unique position as one of contemporary music’s most distinctive voices. Some of Yoni’s most compelling and critically-praised musical experiments have been issued under the moniker WHY?, but Yoni has been involved in various other freewheeling music projects, including Yoni & Geti, Hymie’s Basement, and the seminal cLOUDDEAD.
Concertnova is a Cincinnati based organization whose mission is to: transform hearts, minds and communities through thought provoking musical exploration.
concertnova is a collective of like-minded musicians who create unique multi-sensorial performances that bring art forms together.
Our collaborative process draws inspiration from everywhere: visual art, dance, film, gastronomy, even the performance location itself.
We instigate an intimate dialogue between artist and audience, blurring the line between sender and receiver, creator and participant.
Concertnova will join Why? During several songs.
Kelly Moran
Over the past decade, New York-based composer and producer Kelly Moran has challenged the piano’s traditional, classically-imposed school of thought with a more contemporary, experimental approach. An accomplished and highly sought-after composer, Moran has collaborated and performed with FKA twigs and Oneohtrix Point Never as part of their live ensembles. Moran has also composed for classical musician Margaret Leng Tan and recorded collaborations with other visionary contemporaries like Kelsey Lu, Yves Tumor, The Avalanches, Helado Negro, Bibio, and more.
As a solo artist, Moran’s critically acclaimed albums, Bloodroot and Ultraviolet, have explored a variety of extended piano techniques like John Cage-inspired prepared piano and exercises in improvisation. Her unique strand of experimental piano compositions, which conjure hypnotizing textures and dramatic compositional arcs, have been included on year-end lists across classical, avant-garde, and metal genres. Moran’s most recent album out on WARP Records, Moves in the Field, was praised by the New York Times for being “a softhearted but steel-skinned set of 10 piano pieces that are as rapturous as a waterfall or as delicate as vapor. Her first album in six years, it is the redemptive conclusion in an extended span of personal tragedy and professional doubt, all ingrained in its sweeping songs.”
About Talk Low Music Festival
Whited Sepulchre Records presents the second annual Talk Low Music Festival, Sept. 26–28 at it’s new home at Contemporary Arts Center and Memorial Hall, bringing three days of experimental music from around the world to Cincinnati, The festival is organized by Ryan Hall, founder and executive director of Cincinnati-based record label Whited Sepulchre Records, Britni Bicknaver, and Brianna Matzke, executive director of concertnova.
Continuing the tradition of MusicNow and No Response Festival, Talk Low Music Festival makes Cincinnati a destination for world-class musicians, claiming space between multiple disciplines, genres and identities. The festival is designed to create unique contexts that foster deep listening and develop opportunities for collaboration and education.
The Talk Low lineup features LA experimental-rap group clipping, featuring stage and film star Daveed Diggs (Hamilton); Moor Mother pianist Kelly Moran; Cairo-based experimental electronic Nadah El Shazly; White Boy Scream; Cole Pulice; organist Sarah Davachi; and a special collaborative performance between Why? and concertnova.
Created by Whited Sepulchre Records in 2024, the inaugural Talk Low presented artists such as New Age legend Laraaji, Peruvian sound artist Maria Chavez, bassoonist Joy Guidry, and Kenyan electronic artist KMRU. With its return in September, the festival continues to grow, adding placemaking collaborations throughout Cincinnati, educational workshops from established artists and educators, and a line-up of artists at the pinnacle of their craft.
Talk Low makes Cincinnati a destination for inspiring world-class experimental music, with the goal to rival festivals such Big Ears( Knoxville, Tenn.) or Time:Spans (New York City) and to contribute to Cincinnati’s cultural fabric and economic development.
Complimentary Longworth-Anderson Series pre-concert reception for ticket holders sponsored by the Bailey Lamson Family Foundation from 6-7:30 p.m. Includes live music from Jess Lamb & Friends ft. Siri Imani, light bites from Ollie’s Trolley and N.Y.P.D. Pizza, and craft beer tastings from HighGrain Brewing Co.