Patrick Higgins

This album marks a new direction and development of Higgins' acclaimed work as a guitarist and composer, drawing on electronic music, free improvisation, and avant-garde modern composition, Versus is a highly emotional and expressive work that pushes Higgins' own instrumental virtuosity into new territories. He performs guitar, keyboards, synthesizer, drums and laptop programming across a 9-track record that traverses and transforms many aspects of Higgins' earlier work. The title track "Versus" was premiered at Monom Studios in Berlin, in a configuration for 75 surround sound speakers. Combining composed and written elements with highly-focused lyrical improvisations, Versus shows Higgins at his best — bridging styles and innovating new music that is harsh while seductive, intense while inviting, and always unexpected. The recording is itself a stunning achievement of electro-acoustics, beautifully created organic immersive stereo-scapes where instruments and electronics become indistinguishable, hi-fi audio at its best and most innovative. (Headphones or high quality speakers recommended.)