Duran Duran’s Nick Rhodes and British artist and singer/violinist Wendy Bevan release 2nd collaborative album
Out now is the second album by the duo consisting of Duran Duran’s Nick Rhodes and British artist and singer/violinist Wendy Bevan who started working together in 2018, Wendy in Los Angeles and Nick in London. Titled “Astronomia II: The rise of Lyra” the album has been released via Tape Modern, the record label founded by Stephen Duffy and Nick Rhodes in 2002.
Over the past twelve months, the duo have collaborated on a series of 52 cinematic instrumentals inspired by the Universe. These works will be presented across four 13-track, individually named albums, as the Astronomia project. The first release “The Fall of Saturn” was released on the Spring Equinox (March 20, 2021) and “The Rise of Lyra” will be followed by two further records, released on the Autumn equinox and Winter solstice of this year.
A real lifeline
As it happens, the recording sessions for both artists confined to their houses in London and Los Angeles did also help them cope with the lockdown.
Nick Rhodes: “Throughout the last year, writing and recording the Astronomia compositions was a real lifeline for Wendy and I, it gave us both a sense of purpose during the bleak times and it became our diary echoing every mood and feeling we had as the days passed by. Being freed from all rules and conventions of traditional song writing was entirely liberating. Without restrictions we were able expand our horizons and we still have not reached the boundaries. It is thrilling to start with a blank canvas, no sketch at all and just see where the notes and sounds lead you.”
Wendy Bevan: “Just like Nick says, Astronomia became a lifeline for both of us during the lockdown. It allowed me to have a space for my emotions to flow into music, a sacred space to create my own universe, with endless freedom. We had no boundaries. It took me away from the reality of what was happening in the world during the pandemic and gave me a sense of hope. When Nick and I started Astronomia we had no idea of the vast amount of music we would create. Notes kept flowing in response to the situation we found ourselves in, it became a parallel universe with its own unique language, drama and elegance, far, far away from reality.”
You can check out the first 2 releases in the series below.
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