Watch Qasim Naqvi perform Brutal Moderna, taken from our 10th anniversary box set 1+1=X. Recorded on the day the US general election results came in, it was created with help from Erased Tapes family members Masayoshi Fujita on vibraphone, Anne Müller on cello and Peter Broderick on vocals, reading out the news headlines from that fateful day.

"Brutal Moderna came from a simple place. I had recently acquired a Moog Model D synthesizer and I was eager to write something for it. My familiarity with this machine was incredibly limited, so through some trial and error and some layering and experimentation, I wrote Brutal Moderna; a series of electronic pulsations. A few days later, I decided to add parts for strings and vibraphone, as I wanted to bring in the amazing Erased Tapes musicians, who were available to play during the session. Their addition really expanded the resonances of the electronics and it was a perfect match. 

We were slated to record the instrumentals in Berlin right after Election Day in the United States. When Trump’s victory was announced, like many people in that moment, it felt like someone had knocked the wind out of me. That day in the studio, Peter Broderick was going to lay down some vocals and as I was reading the news I thought, we need to memorialize this truly terrifying moment in history. So I asked Peter to recite different election coverage headlines and fragments from different news feeds over the track. Using the text, he came up with these beautifully incoherent, manic and out of breath vocals. Peter’s final addition of existential dread added necessary darkness to an otherwise emotionally light work." — Qasim Naqvi

1+1=X is a set of exclusive music from every artist on the label, featuring never before heard tracks from Nils Frahm, Kiasmos, Peter Broderick, A Winged Victory For The Sullen and many more. Produced by label curator Robert Raths, it sees Erased Tapes artists come together to make an album as a collective, sharing the same space, instruments and each others’ capabilities during a residency at Vox-Ton studio in Berlin.

1+1=X is out now on 2CD/DL — with a general 3LP run on black vinyl out August 17 due to the strictly limited clear vinyl 3LP box set being long sold out since its initial release on Record Store Day 2018.

· pre-order 1+1=X on 3LP black vinyl

· order the limited edition 2CD box set / digital

· watch Brutal Moderna by Qasim Naqvi

· watch Bel Tono by Anne Müller

· watch Darling by Douglas Dare

· watch Up Is Good by Nils Frahm & Arthur Jeffes

· watch Zebra by Kiasmos & Högni

· watch The Perpetual Glow by Peter Broderick

· listen to Long May It Sustain by A Winged Victory For The Sullen