Walking a tightrope between song, improvisation and sound-as-sound, Monkey Puzzle Trio is an ongoing project which features drummer Charles Hayward [This Heat, About Group, Massacre], bassist Nick Doyne-Ditmas [Pinski Zoo, Crackle] and the words, voice and textures of musician and sound artist Viv Corringham. Their music is driven by the restless energy, invention and power of Hayward’s drumming underpinned by the languid and exploratory double bass playing of Doyne-Ditmas, to which Corringham adds, with the aid of a loop pedal, her unique collage of words and sounds…. Together they create a distinctive sound world, both exhilarating and immersive, which relies on the sensitivity and experience of all three musicians, obsessed with song as an ideal, adept and fast thinking improvisers. The results are astounding.

VÄLVĒ  is the outlet for composer/performer Chlöe Herington’s compositional work using text and image as the starting point for scores. She collects sounds and diagrams, composing predominantly for bassoon, saxes, electronics and found sounds to explore synaesthetic memory and collective experience.

The band has been morphing – from what originated as a solo project, performing mainly in art galleries, it grew to include Elen Evans on harp.  After moving from from galleries back into music venues, they were recently joined by Chlöe’s Chrome Hoof comrade, Emma Sullivan on bass, microkorg and vocals. VÄLVĒ are now three! Live, the music traverses the realms of noise and improv into songs, punctuated with found sounds and eases into spacy soundscapes.

They have recently closed the Barn stage at Supernormal and been played by John Doran on BBC R3’s late Junction.