Holmes + atten Ash / The Reliquiae of Western Skies

The Reliquiae of Western Skies is one of four tracks that features on Reliquary, a collection of spoken-word electronica tracks by duo Holmes + atten Ash that take inspiration from three poems written by Paul atten Ash, two of which feature in the forthcoming third issue of our printed journal, Oscillations.

The EP was written, recorded, and produced remotely in Edinburgh and Bristol by Simon Holmes and Paul Nash (aka Paul atten Ash).

The tracks are a musical response to Paul’s words and photography and are rooted in a deep sense of place post-plunder, ghosted in the landscape.

Time spent on the inner Hebridean islands allowed for an opportunity to scour the landscape for relics which would act as visual companions to the tracks. A stone monolith positioned in the field of a crofter on Tiree created the perfect backdrop to The Reliquiae of Western Skies. An abandoned stone breaker within an obsolete quarry on Rum encapsulated the bygone age of industry central to Aberfan (A Song of Absolution).

This autumn, we’ll release the duo’s first full-length album, Saturnian, a suite of choral electronica tracks inspired by the moons of Saturn.