Claire Cross – Sleep Cycle

Bassist and composer Claire Cross explores the different phases of sleep on her new record, Sleep Cycle. Inspired by the work of Jon Hassell, William Basinski, The Australian Art Orchestra and Skúli Sverrisson, Claire draws on the language of contemporary jazz, ambient music and minimalism to present a mesmerizing work that is as beautiful as it is ambitious.

“This record is a bit of a turning point for me in some respects,” explains Claire. “It’s my first attempt at flexing different composition and improvisation muscles I haven’t used before. I’ve previously been very much the kind of composer who arranges lots of parts or tries to have a lot of control over the writing, and this project has been about letting go of that and leaning into a more open approach to improvisation and composing.”