Haptic

Electro-acoustic trio from Chicago.

Creating densely textured works that can range from stark minimalism to violent, carefully directed chaos, Haptic combines a rigorous attention to sonic detail with restless experimentalism. Formed in Chicago in the spring of 2005 by Steven Hess (Pan American, Dropp Ensemble, On, Fessenden), Joseph Clayton Mills (Jonathan Chen, Dropp Ensemble), and Adam Sonderberg (Dropp Ensemble, Civil War), Haptic was initially conceived as a vehicle for live collaboration. To that end, the group has frequently incorporated a different, rotating fourth member, deliberately chosen to send the music in unpredictable and challenging directions. Such collaborators have ranged from Tony Buck (The Necks) and Olivia Block to Mark Solotroff (BLOODYMINDED).
Individual members of the group have recorded for a multitude of labels, including Kranky, Crouton, Longbox Recordings, Utech, Cathnor, Tonschacht, Entr’acte, Absurd, Other Electricities, and BOXmedia, among others.