Circuit Des Yeux

Indiana native Haley Fohr began her experimental indie folk project Circuit des Yeux in 2007, writing and self-recording disturbing, nightmare-like atonal pieces caked in distortion and tape hiss. Her debut LP, Symphone, was released in a limited edition by De Stijl in 2008, followed in 2009 by the more widely available Sirenum on the same label, as well as a 7" single on Dull Knife Records. 2010 saw the release of Ode to Fidelity, a three-song 7" EP on De Stijl which signaled Fohr's shift to more song-based material, letting her deep, haunting vocals and unsettling lyrics rise to the forefront. Third album Portrait arrived on De Stijl in 2011, sporting a much clearer recording quality, as well as a dirge-like deconstruction of Bruce Springsteen's "I'm on Fire" recorded live. Fohr graduated college in 2012, and moved from Bloomington, Indiana to Chicago, where she began collaborating and performing with several artists in the city's vast music communities. The first fruits of her collaborations came in early 2013 with the release of CDY3, a 10" EP on Magnetic South showcasing a trio lineup of Circuit des Yeux, with bassist Greg Simpson and drummer Clarke Joyner accompanying Fohr's vocals and guitar playing. Fohr recorded the fourth Circuit des Yeux album, Overdue, with Cooper Crain of Cave and Bitchin Bajas, and self-released the album along with help from Brooklyn-based Ba Da Bing Records. The album continued Fohr's growth as an artist and songwriter, featuring confessional folk songs as well as caterwauling experimental noise pieces, and was her most well-received and acclaimed work to date. Circuit des Yeux toured extensively in 2014, playing over 100 shows with numerous folk and experimental musicians, including Loren Connors, Sir Richard Bishop, and Bill Callahan. Toward the end of the year, Fohr contributed vocals to The Voice Rolling, an album by Mind Over Mirrors, the synthesizer/harmonium-based experimental ambient project of ex-Peeesseye musician Jaime Fennelly. The album was released on cassette by Immune Recordings in early 2015, and the duo toured together. Soon after, Circuit des Yeux signed with well-regarded Chicago-based indie/experimental label Thrill Jockey, who released the project's lushly orchestrated fifth album, In Plain Speech, in May of 2015. ~ Paul Simpson