Anna Meredith X Ligeti Quartet - Nuc Anna Meredith X Ligeti Quartet

Released: 14/04/23

The cross-genre composer/producer Anna Meredith's new project, Nuc, a strings 'n' electronics collaboration with Ligeti Quartet, is a huge, life-affirming shot in the arm, and the perfect album to usher in the spring. As evidenced by tracks such as the blitzkrieg hyper-pop of opener Tuggemo' “ all Xenakis-esque glissandi with rave chords (reminding me a little of the bonkers Aphex Twin remix of Philip Glass's Heroes),and the elegiac, drop-dead gorgeous Blackfriars', Nuc is an album that ignores the idea that cutting-edge classical experimentation cannot also be joyously expressive and emotional. There is positivity and playfulness everywhere on Nuc, and the awesome A Short Tribute to Teenage Fanclub', with which Meredith pays homage to one her favourite bands (not that it sounds anything like the Glaswegian four-piece), is yet more proof of her impeccable taste and striking lack of pretension.