Cairo by TBHQ

TBHQ is the nom de plume of Hazel Rigby, a native New Yorker turned Los Angeleno, whose new album Cairo looks to heal its listener through improvisation styles and new age tones, forging a sonic terrain that is at times nostalgic and disorienting; abrasive yet poignant.

Following several years playing in experimental punk bands Outside World and Big Knife, Rigby began performing solo as TBHQ in 2019, embarking on a loving abandonment of conventional songcraft. Three albums later, Cairo is a cinematic journey rooted in the work of soundtrack auteur Angelo Badalamenti and jazz guitar great Sonny Sharrock, rounded out with hints of modern ambient masters Laraaji and Emeralds.

The album centers itself far from its warm weather Egyptian counterpart and within the small humble town of Cairo, located at the crossroads of the Catskills region in Upstate New York. Fittingly, the album was recorded in a cabin in the woods, where little more than snow disturbed an uneasy peace. Winter is on the mind and in the music — increasingly audible vocal trills welcome the listener during “A Car is a Room”, followed by the glacial spoken-word reckoning of “Rare Conditioning”, and finally plunging into the cold water abyss of “Chalazion” and “2 Feet”. Cairo breathes life into sounds both familiar and invented, marking an exercise in externalizing the internal din that comes from being ensconced in quiet surroundings.

Clocking in at just over 20 minutes, Cairo is meditation music for modern maladies. Complemented by artwork by Dean Cercone and accompanied by a hand-dyed pouch of blue vervain herb, Cairo releases in unlimited digital and limited cassette tape format on Friday, October 1, 2021 via Soap Library. In folklore, blue vervain is used in spells and potions, though it is conventionally known to calm nerves and encourage healthy sleep. Enjoy this native North American plant by steeping in hot water for 10-15 minutes and adding honey and/or lemon to taste — most importantly, relax and warm up.