{"title":"John Bence","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"archangels","title":"Archangels","description":"\u003cp\u003eJohn Bence can be described as a Savant in the world of Avant-Garde classical composition, and puts his mastery on full display in his newest release with Thrill Jockey. Archangels is a deep dive into the world and soundscape that Bence carefully crafts to offer a glimpse of the divine. Raised in Bristol’s burgeoning underground electronic music scene and a graduate of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, John Bence manages to employ compositional complexity to manifest potent emotions. Bence’s acclaimed early works focused on the human experience, charting the composer’s own experiences with addiction and alcoholism in both stark minimalism and caustic noise eruptions. Having written Archangels two years into his recovery, Bence deftly threads together gauzy electronic atmospheres, brooding orchestral passages, and minimalist piano meditations. Throughout his work, he manages to finely sew together Gregorian chant, orchestral arrangements, rippling synthesizers, and field recordings to reveal new surprises at every turn. Archangels is a compelling addition to contemporary composition by an artist unbound by classical traditions.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Thrill Jockey","offers":[{"title":"Red LP","offer_id":50384627433803,"sku":"2001203","price":37.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/d6f2e968-4ca9-15c3-0b7a-b208e2e95c64_7ae02b45_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726301949"},{"product_id":"love-1","title":"Love","description":"\u003cp\u003eJohn Bence uses music to probe the deepest recesses of the human psyche. Over a handful of releases the composer has already built up a striking body of work bound by an incredible clarity of vision. His elegiac works occupy an omnivorous sound-world, assimilating elements of British avant-garde and electronic music, classical tradition and sacred medieval song into cavernous, sepulchral compositions. Early releases for Nicholas Jaar’s Other People imprint and Yves Tumor’s label Grooming were engulfed in overwhelming emotion. Struggles with alcoholism and addiction found their outlet in brooding chamber atmospheres and caustic eruptions of choral aggression on the macabre\u003ci\u003e Kill \u003c\/i\u003eEP.\u003ci\u003e Love\u003c\/i\u003e forms the final chapter in a trio of works with\u003ci\u003e Kill\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eDisquiet\u003c\/i\u003e that chart Bence’s experiences with addiction and his subsequent journey to recovery. Returning to his first love, the piano, Bence explores the instrument’s deeply emotional qualities in ten movements. \u003ci\u003eLove’s \u003c\/i\u003estark minimalism and raw production reflect the composer's personal struggles with striking honesty, searching for the deeper meaning in human suffering.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Thrill Jockey","offers":[{"title":"Orange | LP","offer_id":50443216748875,"sku":"1102180","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50443215896907,"sku":"1102178","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50443218977099,"sku":"1102179","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/5a826991-2ba6-48e6-a3b2-6e28872eef4c_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727010728"},{"product_id":"kill-reissue","title":"Kill (Reissue)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eKill\u003c\/i\u003e is released as a special expanded version, pressed on clear vinyl and featuring a full etching on side B. John Bence is a composer and producer from Bristol, UK, whose work tackles epic narrative themes and uncompromising sonics with a juddering emotional punch. Over just a handful of releases including those for Nicholas Jaar's Other People imprint and Yves Tumor's label Grooming, Bence has built up a striking body of work, utilising music-making practices that span centuries in order to probe the full spectrum of the human psyche, its tragedies, ecstasies and all posts between. Written during a residency at Zaragoza's Fuga space, \u003ci\u003eKill\u003c\/i\u003e unfurls as a captivating and unnerving three-part suite, which as Bence explains, \"tells the story of a murderer who kills his lover, commits suicide and then accelerates towards God to be judged\". Throughout Bence sings like a man possessed, shifting from aching operatic vocals and Gregorian chant to chilling screams, with symphonic instrumentation pounding, swelling and resolving into transfigurative calm behind him.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Thrill Jockey","offers":[{"title":"Clear | LP","offer_id":50469171921227,"sku":"1093900","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/6a7d95f9-e3e3-44d7-9247-88a98b28db1e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727357662"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/john-bence.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}