Casually Here - Possible Worlds
writing, production, mixing
‘The perfect soundtrack to the optimism and freshness of spring’ Electronic Sound
‘Sweeping, transcendent electronica’ Future Music
‘Delightful, deeply immersive and irresistibly groovy... rich in imagination and skilled in execution’ Metro
‘Casually Here sets sails for folktronica’s undiscovered kingdoms’ Uncut Magazine
‘A uniquely picturesque experience’ Clash Magazine
‘Drenched in beauty’ The Everyday Magazine
Written, performed, produced & mixed by Nic Nell
Mastered by Guy Davie
Cover art ‘La Ville Creuse’ by Luc Schuitten
Design by Alexander Brown
Algebra Records | 2022
Viny & digital available here
London based Casually Here's (AKA Nic Nell) expansive and ambitious second album 'Possible Worlds' is out now via Algebra Records. The record's seven sprawling tracks explore bifurcating possible futures at this precarious point in history, all whilst maintaining an innate sense of optimism. The record explores these themes with acoustic and electronic instruments, analogue hardware, field recordings and sound design, using modern studio tools to push the sonic boundaries of both the dancefloor and home-listening. Written, performed, produced and mixed by Nell himself, 'Possible Worlds' was mastered and cut by Guy Davie (Jon Hopkins, Bibio, Nathan Fake etc). The artwork is provided by Belgian artist/architect Luc Schuiten, whose late 70s painting 'La Ville Creuse' depicts a vision of a future organic city.
Nic Nell is a London-based artist, composer, sound designer and producer/engineer, with a background in art and mathematics. He recently produced Orlando Weeks' (The Maccabees) acclaimed album 'A Quickening', and collaborated on an electronic art/dance project with Lawrence Hart via Hotflush. Also one half of Young Colossus and art-pop duo Rainer, it is safe to say the Algebra Records keeps a lot of plates spinning. He runs the label with a focus on supporting emerging artists, helping foster artistic community and context. Releasing music as Casually Here, 'Possible Worlds' follows 2015 debut 'Kept,' an immersive sound sculpture exploring liminal conscious states, and accompanied by several films. In comparison, 'Possible Worlds' is a more organic affair, both woody and earthy, it nestles between digitally imagined textures and pushes the perception of sound beyond the stereo field."I approach sound production as the making of forms & worlds, hearing sound as colour, texture & shape,"explains Nell, who is passionate about the long-term future of life and concerned about the existential risks to it: "For me, living in closer harmony with nature is key to our long term survival".
Centred around piano and an Oberheim OB-Xa synth, album opener 'Pale Blue Dot' references Voyager 2's famous photo of the Earth as a distant pinprick of light, taken through the rings of Saturn as it swept out of the solar system as a poignant reminder of the beauty and precariousness of life in our universe. 'Apex' is the spiritual and emotional centrepiece of the album, inspired by a transcendent dancefloor experience, evoking feelings of optimism and joy of not only belonging to greater humanity, but of being a part of all life on Earth. 'Crickets' was born from a field recording made in Liwonde, Malawi, its off-kilter rhythms juxtaposed by ambient calm. 'A 2067' is a dystopian journey into surveillance AI, and 'The Great Filter' – in reference to the Fermi Paradox - is a galactic cheer to the future. Conjuring images of iridescent pinks, meditative penultimate track 'Rhubarb Skies' ends in banks of trilling clarinets, evoking flocks of flamingos nesting in the ice lakes of the Bolivian Altiplano, and final track 'Fête' has humanity at its close, looking back at life on earth, the zipping electronic sounds representing our digital ancestors in drone form.
"Feelings of wonder, beauty and awe are so hard to hold on to. Making this album has been like an ember of hope that I've kept stoked. In turn, I hope 'Possible Worlds' helps listeners to look upwards and outwards, and to feel closer to those invaluable feelings of optimism for the future."
Orlando Weeks - A Quickening
writing, production, mixing
‘Nothing short of stunning’ DIY Magazine
Album produced, mixed, engineered & co-written by Nic Nell
Play It Again Sam | 2020
Lawrence Hart & Casually Here - Many Worlds
writing, production, mixing
Album written, performed, produced & mixed by Nic Nell & Duncan Tootill
Mastered by Beau Thomas except ‘Ochre’ mastered by Christian Wright
Artwork by Alexander Brown
‘Wanderlust’ appears on the Hotflush 20 triple vinyl compilation marking the 20th anniversary of Hotflush Recordings availble here
Hotlfush Recordings | 2019
Art School Girlfriend - Is It Dark Where You Are?
remix, mastering
Album mastered by Nic Nell
‘Good As I Wanted (Giulia Tess Remix)’ stem mastered by Nic Nell
‘Softer Side’ remixed by Nic Nell
Wolf Tone Records / Universal Music | 2022
Casually Here - The Well Of Deep Time
writing, production, mixing, mastering
Written, performed, produced, mixed & mastered by Nic Nell
Algebra Records | 2023
Originally composed to accompany a deep time meditation taking the listener back through the 4.8 billion year history of Earth, accompanying an episode of the ARIA award winning podcast 'The Long Time Academy', produced by Scenery Studios, featuring Brian Eno discussing the origins of ambient music.
It was subsequently part of 'PAN + TILT', a VR collaboration with virtual realist artists duo Gibson / Martelli, premiered at the 2022 BFI London Film Festival Expanded Exhibition.
SWO - world2
production, mixing, mastering, writing
Album Mastered by Nic Nell
‘HARRY’ & ‘A DAY IN THE LIFE’ Co-Produced, Mixed & Mastered by Nic Nell
‘A DAY IN THE LIFE’ Co-Written by Nic Nell
Self Released | 2024
Art School Girlfriend - I Would Die 4 U
mastering
Mastered by Nic Nell
Wolf Tone Records / Universal Music | 2021
Casually Here - Kept
writing, production, mixing, mastering
Written, performed, produced & mixed by Nic Nell
Mastered by Nic Nell & Noel Summerville
Artwork by Nic Nell & Alexander Brown
Algebra Records 2015
Essence Martins - Deer In The Headlights
mastering
EP Mastered by Nic Nell
Self released | 2024
Esther Morgan - Letters To Past Lovers
mastering
EP Mastered by Nic Nell
Self released | 2024
Sami El-Enany - Woodhill
mixing, additional production
75 minute dance score composed by Sami El-Enany | Mixing & Additional Production by Nic Nell
★★★★★ "Astonishing portrait of Britain’s failing prison system." The Guardian
★★★★★ "A very powerful show that will leave you feeling the desire to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with strangers." The Student
★★★★★ ‘A dazzling show that does justice to injustice’ The Evening Standard
★★★★ "You'll have tears in your eyes and anger in your hearts." The Scotsman
Winner of the Lustrum Award 2023
Winner of the Sit Up Award 2023
Three men at Woodhill prison are dead. Their families demand answers. This is a call to arms about the crisis facing prisons.
Through choreography and a machine-led, 75 minute score by Sami El-Enany, Woodhill shines a light on the hidden story of HMP Woodhill. Lyrically told in their own words, three families investigate what happened to their boys. What they discover is so haunting, it turns their world upside down. An explosive true story.
'Woodhill' is a powerful call to arms about the crisis facing prisons and tells the story of three families searching for justice. The show is a collaboration between writer and director Matt Woodhead, composer Sami El-Enany and choreographer Alexzandra Sarmiento, produced by Lung Theatre with partners The North Wall and Shoreditch Town Hall.
Lung Theatre | 2023
