This is an archive of the band profile for Glissando.

The basis of Glissando has always been built around Elly May Irving and Richard Knox. Previous years have been spent adding and subtracting members, playing shows here and there; some improvised, some not so. The duo have released a number of very limited edition CDR's on Gizeh and Loom, and last year gathered together a body of previous work to release 'Loves Are Like Empires', a wonderfully packaged CDR of old recordings, demos and live performances.

The path of Glissando to this point has often been a rocky one. In 2007 Elly and Richard's long term relationship broke down and Glissando's future was thrown into huge doubt. There was a lot of soul-searching to be done around that time but some light was found as a support slot to the wonderful Stars of the Lid was offered at the beautiful Holy Trinity Church in Leeds. This moment was too good to pass and the show was probably the best of the band's career to date. A corner was turned and Glissando's future suddenly looked a damn sight brighter. Plans were made to go and record in Leicester with Tom Morris (Her Name is Calla) and this period of enlightenment turned out to be 'With Our Arms Wide Open We March Towards the Burning Sea'. With help from some beautiful friends, what once seemed destined for failure now has limitless ambitions.

'With Our Arms Wide Open We March Towards the Burning Sea' is probably best listened to at night., I'm not trying to rule your life or anything - just a friendly nudge in the right direction. It has a dark, gentle heartbeat that opens up an atmosphere lost and bleak, but through Elly May's vocal there is always a sense of wonder, a thought that something otherworldly is occurring. There is an ambience to the record that throws it into the vein of some of the Kranky labels releases but it's more orchestral than that, there's more melody and a lyrical content that just seems to suck you in and hold you close. The closing lines of 'Floods' in which Elly May, Richard and Tom Morris (Her Name Is Calla) are all chanting "You were on fire as they ran to hold the flames, we did not see, so the water never came" is an album highlight, backed by Angharad Cooper's (Held By Hands) soaring violin it has a touch of the likes of Efterklang to it before fading to a shimmering drone section to finish.

Glissando's previous comparisons have been to such visionaries as Low and Rachel's, the later is more apparent in 'Always the Storm' which is almost classically based in its mood and ambience. As the record comes to a close 'Grekken' is another highlight as it's dark tones and an ending of "You made me kill myself" wrap around you. The added vocal of Dave Martin (iLiKETRAiNS) serves a haunting purpose and it throws you into an almost dream-like state before the album closer of 'Our Flags Wave and Our Arms Are Around Another's Shoulder's' lulls you back into that comfortable place that you know so well.

A heavy touring schedule over the past 18 months has restricted Glissando's writing and recording for the follow up to 'With Our Arms..". However progress is now under way with a tentative date set for a September 2010 release..