Nanocluster Vol 3. Immersion | SUSS

Album: 14 February 2025: 2 X 10-inch Vwm59LP // CD wm59CD // digital wm59D – pre-order here

Single: In The Far Away available on all streaming platforms now

Watch the video here:

The very first touring Nanocluster – March/April 2024 – dates below

The third album in the Nanocluster series is a mid-Atlantic melting pot of ideas that have created a brand new ‘third way’. The album sees a collaboration between the European post-punk electronic discipline of Immersion and American ambient country band SUSS and their big sky, new world, Americana cinematic soundscapes, to create a perfect Nanocluster!

The debut Nanocluster album, released in September 2021, saw the core Immersion group of Colin Newman (Wire) and Malka Spigel (Minimal Compact) collaborate with Laetitia Sadier, German post-rock duo Tarwater and electronic musicians Ulrich Schnauss and Scanner. Released in June 2024, follow-up Nanocluster Vol. 2 had guests Thor Harris – the charismatic percussion player from Swans and Cubzoa – and Jack Wolter from Penelope Isles. Both albums were received to great acclaim. We are still running an offer on both albums together.

If you want to know more about the artists Immersion have collaborated with – and will collaborate with – check out our Spotify playlist.

Nanocluster, Vol. 1 - the new album from Immersion (the ongoing musical collaboration between Colin Newman, Malka Spigel and a group of ever-changing, extraordinary collaborators) is so beautiful, exotic, immediate, and compelling as to defy description. It is not only one of the most beautiful albums of the decade, but also one of the best albums of this century so far. Rock&Roll Globe (Vol. 1)

Collaboration has never seemed more precious and one actively listens for those moments of genuine contact which come all too rarely in a music scene of thrown together, first time associations. Those gathered here come across as natural and deeply felt. The Wire (Vol. 1)

It’s a beautiful piece of work and a fantastic album, a snapshot of time and music. Fighting Boredom highly recommend you have a listen. Fighting Boredom (Vol. 1)

They’ve created an extreme, something to be spoken of alongside the great albums of the century, and something that utterly holds its own with the sui generis work of Post Punk’s purest and most quality-minded act, Wire. Rock&Roll Globe (Vol. 2)

Experimentalism collides head on with some immense pop tunes, making it feel like a project that has plenty of immersive potential going forward. The Quietus (Vol. 2)

This is a real treat. Underestimate Colin and Malka at your peril. National treasures. Moonbuilding Weekly (Vol. 2)

The latest Nanocluster adventure and collaboration with SUSS will be released in 2025. It’s a perfect combination that fits the Nanocluster vision. Immersion’s open-minded approach sees their music spark new textures with the American band who were once described by UNCUT magazine as “Eno’s Apollo Atmospheres crash-landed in America’s Sonoran Desert,” and by Pitchfork as “Neither rawboned nor ramshackle … their elegantly composed brand of ambient country stands as tall and clean as a brand-new pair of cowboy boots”.

Composed of veteran musicians Pat Irwin (the B-52s, Raybeats, 8 Eyed Spy), Bob Holmes (numun, Rubber Rodeo), and Jonathan Gregg (the Combine, the Linemen), SUSS combine pedal steel, national steel guitar, mandolin, harmonica, baritone guitar, and the harmonium, which they weave with synthesizers and loops to create their big, lonesome sound.

Their fifth album, Birds & Beasts, released on Northern Spy Records in June 2024, shows the band heading off into a new direction, populating their stark landscapes with the creatures, cycles, and rhythms of the world around them.

This sense of adventure makes them perfect partners for the Nanocluster project. SUSS understood immediately the nature of this fascinating collaboration as that was already part of their creative process.

SUSS’s Bob Holmes said: “Collaboration is an important aspect of the type of music SUSS makes. Whether we are collaborating with each other, or with musicians and artists outside of the band, the exploration and discovery of the unknown is central to our creative process. When Colin and Malka approached us to collaborate with them on Nanocluster, it seemed like a perfect fit. Their use of rhythm, synthesizers, bass and atmospherics felt very complementary to our instrumentation. As expected, the results were unexpected and our music was taken to a place where we would not have gone otherwise.”

It’s this element of surprise that sparks the best art. As Pat Irwin from SUSS explains: “One of the challenges of a collaboration is being led into places you never could have imagined. I look forward to those challenges.” And these challenges create the sparks, as fellow SUSS member Jonathan Gregg points out: “It’s always exciting to include and react to new sounds and approaches.”

Nanocluster will tour the US with the album in spring 2025

March 15: Houston, TX - The Orange Show

March 16: Dallas, TX - The Texas Theatre

March 18: Memphis, TN - The Green Room

March 19: Nashville, TN - Third Man Records

March 21: Louisville, KY - The Whirling Tiger

March 22: Chicago, IL - Constellation

March 23: Detroit, MI - Third Man Records Cass Corridor

March 25: Pittsburgh, PA - The Warehouse at Tech 25

March 26: Columbus, OH - The Old First Presbyterian Church

March 27–30: Knoxville, TN - Big Ears Festival

March 31: Washington, D.C. - Pie Shop

April 1: Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda’s

April 3: Boston, MA - The Red Room at Cafe 939

April 4: New York, NY - Joe’s Pub

Immersion will also have a UK headline tour in November/December 2024

November 22: Manchester, UK - SOUP

November 23: Gateshead, UK - Central Bar

November 24: Glasgow, UK - Old Hairdressers

November 28: Birmingham, UK - Hare & Hounds V2

December 1: Ramsgate, UK - Music Hall

December 6: Winchester, UK - The Railway

December 7: Penryn, UK - Fish Factory

>>> Find tickets for both tours at Songkick or Bandsintown <<<

 

immersionhq.uk

Immersion's website is in the process of getting a much-needed update as it had sadly been neglected for a few years. It provides an overview of the band as well as contacts for those that work with us. There is also a gigograpy.

 

Some other news you might have missed

Githead recording

 

L-R: Max Franken, Tim Lewis, Sean Douglas, Robin Rimbaud, Colin Newman, Malka Spigel

In a twist of fate that will doubtless confound fans, Githead – a band that had not played together for over 10 years – took a trip to the legendary Rockfield Studio in Monmothshire this spring for some exploratory recording. We arrived with nothing written, save for a few texts, and left with a hamper full of early stage, promisingly diverse material. We will work through what we have and likely reconvene for more recording at the appropriate stage in the cycle.

The band were assisted in their work by recording engineer Sean Douglas, with Tim Lewis (the legend that is Thighpaul Sandra) contributing years of Rockfield experience to make the sessions go even more smoothly. 

Swimming In Sound

Colin and Malka’s weekly show, Swimming In Sound, on Brighton-based Slack City Radio, started as a lockdown project. Incredibly, it has now reached 200 editions – and you can stream them all here, with no misses and no repeats! By 1 December, it will be an incredible four and a half years since the first broadcast. We’d like to thank Totally Radio for hosting all our shows on their catch-up system (the show is in effect both radio broadcast and podcast) and all our listeners – whether they like and share the show on socials or not!