Zurich

Zurich is an indie band from Oxford, United Kingdom, active since 2014. The name is also used by an earlier musical partnership formed in 1994 by Neil Halstead of Slowdive and Tony F Wilson, but the current group is the Oxford-based band.

Oxford indie band

The Oxford lineup forms out of the ashes of The Scholars and works in indie, gloom rock and alternative music. It is a British group rather than a solo act.

1994 recording partnership

In 1994, Neil Halstead and Tony F Wilson record a small set of tracks together. At the time, Wilson co-promotes and DJs at Quirky, a South London club and live night where he books artists including Pan Sonic, Hafler Trio and Autechre. Halstead is about to work on Slowdive’s final album, Pygmalion, which is also the group’s most experimental release.

The recordings from this period reflect the peak of ambient techno but are comparatively austere. A Harsh Truth has an eastern, graceful quality similar to a Sakamoto/Sylvian collaboration, while Tzarist has a gothic industrial sound closer to early Coil. After Pygmalion, Halstead ends Slowdive and moves towards more song-based material with Mojave 3.

Later material and rediscovery

Wilson later collaborates with drum and bass producer and engineer Joe Gray on more rhythm-led productions that remain atmospheric. Too Scared to Breath features Sarah Peacock of Seefeel on vocals and is compared with Autechre and Aphex Twin, while Militia (Dynamic Warfare) is described as a post-metal dub track in the vein of Techno Animal and Scorn.

These recordings are lost for a time before Mark Van Hoen of Touch finds them on old CD-Rs and cassettes given to him by Wilson. Wilson also produces and records in the Knives ov Resistance project for Aurora Borealis and works with Ted Parson of Swans and Prong.