Nick Carlisle has played an integral role as writer & producer in a handful of projects on the UK DIY music scene over the last 15 years, from Peepholes (Upset The Rhythm Records) 2006-2014, through Bamboo (Upset The Rhythm) 2014-2020, Katy and Nick (Gob Nation) (2017-2022), and Lean Logic (O Genesis Recordings) (2020-present). Originally from rural Northern Ireland and now residing in Brighton, England, Nick’s music blends vintage analogue electronics & acoustic instruments with more contemporary digital sounds and samples to paint a world that’s instantly recognisable but simultaneously unfamiliar & often unsettling. Whilst this is Nick’s debut solo album of songs, in 2022 he released a largely instrumental album Häxan - A Soundtrack having been commissioned by QFT to compose and perform a new soundtrack for the 1922 horror film of the same name, as part of the BFI In Dreams Are Monsters season. Nick will be performing the soundtrack live at the Barbican, London on the 28th January 2024, as well as another showing at Queen’s Film Theatre, Belfast, and the Ulster Folk Museum Picture House, Northern Ireland later this year.

Bloody Saturnalia takes its title from the book “Defying Hitler” (Sebastian Haffner), where Haffner describes the atmosphere as Germany slid towards Fascism in the 1920s when “all standards lost their value” following the hyper-inflation crisis. The phrase hangs over the album in a few different contexts- there’s the obvious parallel with populism in the US and UK, but also the looming cloud of climate change, feared by many and ignored by others in equal measure (see album opener “Life In A Major Key” and anxious portent “2039”). And finally in a more personal context, in the title track, set in a hospital ward where outside the window the distant carnival atmosphere of New Year’s Eve interrupts the silence with exploding fireworks.

The single “End Of Terrain” was written following the passing of Nick’s Dad: “I took myself off to Iceland for a few days to try and see the Northern Lights, maybe because it seemed like the sort of thing Dad and I might have done - maybe a step up from getting up at 2am to watch lightning storms as we used to do when I was a child. Anyway, I didn’t see a bloody thing, just a faint green tinge only visible in long exposure photos. But! With a little poetic licence, in End Of Terrain the lights are there, dancing in the sky; the souls of recently departed loved ones if you believe the Inuit legend.”

Nick produced the album and handles all the lead vocals, as well as adding his signature keyboards along with occasional guitar, bass and percussion. He’s also joined by past and current collaborators: Rachel Horwood from Bamboo (also Trash Kit and Bas Jan) adds a backing vocal to “A Tear In The Fold”, & Rose Keeler-Schäffeler from Lean Logic (also Keel Her) does the same for “2039”, a version of which which was released as a single and part of the Earth/Percent x Earth Day ’23 Compilation album in April as part of Brian Eno’s Earth/Percent charity initiative. Other players on the album include Foz Foster (The Monochrome Set / David Devant And His Spirit Wife) who adds a selection of guitars and hand bells, not to mention musical saw in “2039”, Marcus Hamblett (Bears Den) who adds bass guitar & brass on several tracks, Aubrey Simpson (Pale Blue Eyes) who plays bass guitar on "Chloe's Brain" as well as providing the photography, and Simon Adams, who plays the drums and percussion throughout.

Bloody Saturnalia

End Of Terrain

Alex Ball Remix of the song "End Of Terrain" by Nick Carlisle. The original version of "End Of Terrain" is taken from the album "Bloody Saturnalia", released 24th November 2023 on The Colour Inverted Records.

End Of Terrain (Alex Ball Remix)

"Chloe's Brain", out 10th November on all download/streaming platforms, is taken from the forthcoming Nick Carlisle album "Bloody Saturnalia", released 24th November 2023 on The Colour Inverted Records (digital/gatefold 180 gram vinyl LP formats).

Music & lyrics by Nick Carlisle. Produced by Nick Carlisle.
Digital master by Nick Carlisle, vinyl master by Julian Tardo at Church Road Studios, East Sussex.
Vocals, keyboards & guitar: Nick Carlisle
Bass guitar: Aubrey Simpson (of Pale Blue Eyes)
Drums: Simon Adams

“With 'Chloe's Brain', I was trying to base a song on those horrible fever dreams I would occasionally get as a child. The sort of dream where you wake up screaming as the wall seems to recede into the distance; where you're kept awake by half-dreamt sped up and slowed down voices and disturbingly hard corners and sickly smooth objects press on your imagination. The song also loosely refers to Alice In Wonderland Syndrome as experienced by the artist Käthe Kollwitz. The mind can sometimes be the most frightening place to inhabit.” - Nick

Nick Carlisle has played an integral role as writer & producer in a handful of projects on the UK DIY music scene over the last 15 years, from Peepholes (Upset The Rhythm Records) 2006-2014, through Bamboo (Upset The Rhythm) 2014-2020, Katy and Nick (Gob Nation) (2017-2022), and Lean Logic (O Genesis Recordings) (2020-present). Originally from rural Northern Ireland and now residing in Brighton, England, Nick’s music blends vintage analogue electronics & acoustic instruments with more contemporary digital sounds and samples to paint a world that’s instantly recognisable but simultaneously unfamiliar & often unsettling. Whilst this is Nick’s debut solo album of songs, in 2022 he released a largely instrumental album Häxan - A Soundtrack having been commissioned by QFT to compose and perform a new soundtrack for the 1922 horror film of the same name, as part of the BFI In Dreams Are Monsters season that year. Nick performed the soundtrack live again at Queen’s Film Theatre, Belfast, and to a sold out Ulster Folk Museum Picture House, Northern Ireland in October/November this year, and brings the live score to the Barbican Centre in London on 28th January 2024.

Chloe's Brain

Chloe's Brain (Radio Edit)

Recorded by Chris Smith at Kluster Rooms Studio 2017.
Mastered by Daniel Husayn.

Unsavoury Union

Written & performed by Katy Cotterell & Nick Carlisle.
Produced by Nick.
Guitar by Tim Carlisle.

Everything

Katy Collateral (Es) & Nick Carlisle (Peepholes / Bamboo).
Photo by Max Warren. New album "What I Did For You" out now on Gob Nation.

Everything

Katy and Nick

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