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“The two of them seem to fall away as humans in the face of the battle between acoustic and electronic power […] They were like two massive beasts, rumbling and roaring in these huge worlds of sound” – BBC Late Junction 

“Dense bass shell of varying dynamics, full of distorted electronic sounds. [Ego Death] balances classical music and futurism, which results in a quirky, deep synthesis of cello strings and layered electronics, buzzing music with lyrical elements. […] I’m glad that the intensity of the music is almost too overwhelming” – The Quietus 

The transfer of consciousness from the human body to an electronic medium can be seen as a conversion of purely electrical impulses coming from the brain and transferred just to a different electronic medium – but more accessible to others.

A well-known question emerges: do we lose any ‘knowledge’ in the transformation process? Or maybe this process allows for some loss of control of the creative flow, helps to abandon total power, induces attentiveness and openness, and above all: dissolves boundaries? And probably all that can be important especially when we are not creating alone and not only for ourselves.

In constant serotonin and dopamine fuelled environment, demanding endless productivity, the decision to try to leave the path of the ego can be a relief and even a form of resilience and spiritual warfare.

The 2020’s ‘Weavings’ show (a durational improvisation featuring 12 instrumentalists from around the world performing via Zoom) conceived and curated by Nicolás Jaar and the Unsound festival team marked the first musical meeting between the two composers – Resina and Aho Ssan. The complete synergy and subconscious understanding on both sides resulted in an immediate decision to develop and explore the infinite common musical interests – despite the different tools and instruments used. In 2021, Resina took part in the recording of ‘Rhizomes’ (Aho Ssan’s album based on the Rhizomes concept by the philosophers Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari). In addition, both artists met again on stage – to improvise together once again during ‘Weavings’ live performance to wide critical acclaim. In October 2022 they premiered a joint new project named ‘Ego Death’.

Resina is the alias of Karolina Rec, a composer and cellist based in Warsaw. In 2016, after signing with FatCat Records/130701, she released her album “Resina”, “Traces” and an EP with remixes of tracks from “Traces” by Ben Frost, Abul Mogard, Lotic and Ian William Craig. Her latest album “Speechless,” which includes compositions for a 24-person choir was released in November 2021. She also writes for film, theater and video games. Resina builds her personal musical language by blurring the boundaries between seemingly different musical genres, playing with the tension between the biological/animalistic aspects of performance versus electronic and amplified sound world. Removed from classical contexts, the processed voice and cello bring an amalgamation of noise, heavy drumming (by Mateusz Rychlicki), ambient and choral elements, moving from delicate beauty to incandescent undercurrent of danger, from pulsating minimalism to unbridled explosions.

Aho Ssan is the artist name of Paris-based Niamké Désiré. After studying graphic design and cinema, he began to compose electronic music and create his own digital instruments. Shortly thereafter he went on to win the Foundation France television prize for his soundtrack to the film D’Ingha Mago in 2015 and has worked on several projects related to IRCAM. His debut LP ‘Simulacrum’ was released via Subtext Recordings. Based on the concept of Jean Baudrillard, it navigates through society’s presentation of inclusivity and equality against his own experience of growing up black in France. Aho Ssan is currently working on the upcoming album ‘Rhizomes’ and ‘Ego Death’ duo (with Resina).