Acoustic strings, radio waves and electronics structured over long-term collaboration
For Translucence, released by Drag City, marks the first recorded collaboration between Whitney Johnson and Lia Kohl, two Chicago-based musicians working at the intersection of composition, improvisation, and electronic experimentation. Developed gradually over several years, the album is the outcome of a working relationship that began in 2018, shaped through regular sessions focused on free improvisation using viola and cello. The recordings now presented are not anchored in fixed genres or idiomatic structures, instead combining acoustic string instruments with radio signals, sine waves, synthesizers, and field recordings.
Artist: Lia Kohl Whitney Johnson
Release Date: 2025-03-28
Genres: Ambient, Electronica, Experimental Music
Label: Drag City
Description: For Translucence by Whitney Johnson and Lia Kohl is out now on Drag City combining acoustic and electronic material recorded over several years.
The release is being followed by live dates in the United States and Europe. Performances begin April 24 at Chicago’s Three Top Lounge, followed by shows in Indianapolis and Bloomington. A European leg begins in June, with concerts scheduled in Paris, Brussels, Eindhoven, Amsterdam, and Antwerp. Several dates include support or joint performances with Macie Stewart, and Johnson will also appear under the Matchess moniker in Denmark and Germany.
Johnson’s background includes solo and collaborative work under the name Matchess, using electronics and voice to address sonic perception and altered states. Kohl’s output spans installation, chamber music, and improvisation, often engaging directly with environmental and technological sound sources.
Whitney Johnson is a composer, sound artist, and multi-instrumentalist based in Chicago. Her solo project Matchess merges analog synthesizers, processed viola, and voice, with releases on Drag City’s imprint Trouble In Mind and others. She has performed extensively in North America and Europe and has collaborated with artists including Circuit des Yeux, Bitchin Bajas, and Haley Fohr. Johnson holds a doctorate in ethnomusicology from the University of Chicago.
Lia Kohl is a cellist and interdisciplinary artist also based in Chicago. Her work spans sound, performance, and installation, with a focus on texture and the incorporation of everyday or ambient sonic material. She has released music via Shinkoyo and American Dreams, and her collaborative projects include work with Makaya McCraven, Katinka Kleijn, and the Chicago-based collective Mocrep. In parallel with her music practice, Kohl has developed sound installations and performance works shown in venues such as the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago and the Experimental Sound Studio.
Live Dates 2025
Whitney Johnson & Lia Kohl – For Translucence
24 April – Three Top Lounge, Chicago, IL, US
25 April – Dear Mom, Indianapolis, IN, US (w/ Mark Tester, Rob Funkhouser)
26 April – Orbit Room, Bloomington IN, US (w/ Brandon Spaulding, Local Hypertext)
11 June – La Dynamo de Banlieues Bleues, Paris, FR (w/ Macie Stewart)
12 June – AB Club, Brussels, BE (w/ Macie Stewart)
15 June – POM (Paviljoen Ongehoorde Muziek), Eindhoven, NL (w/ Macie Stewart)
18 June – OCCII, Amsterdam, NL (w/ Macie Stewart)
19 June – Trix, Antwerp, BE (w/ Macie Stewart, Tomo Katsurada)
Matchess (Whitney Johnson)
4 June – Huset, Aalborg, DK (w/ Macie Stewart)
6 June – Milla Club, Munich, DE (w/ Macie Stewart)
7 June – Trafo, Jena, DE (w/ Macie Stewart)
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