Friday 2 May / 8.00pm / £7 advance, £9 on the door

Merja Kokkonen, alias Islaja, is one of the Cube's favourite artists. She first emerged from the Finnish psychedelic folk scene, her abstract songs adrift amongst creaking acoustics and analogue hiss, alongside artists like Lau Nau and Kemialliset Ystävät. Now resident in Berlin, her music has morphed into a blizzard of icy electronica and blurred bass, a kind of futuristic ritual music. She's touring with a new album recorded using analogue synthesisers and drum machines.

Toronto-based "sleep rock" band Picastro use a minimalist palette based on cello and acoustic guitar to create brooding songs that might recall fellow Canadians Godspeed You! Black Emperor or Cube favourites Esmerine, as well as artists like Dirty Three,  Low, Swans and Jessica Bailiff. Owen Pallett, a.k.a. Final Fantasy, was once a member, but the driving force is frontwoman Liz Hysen, whose voice takes the listener from forlorn desparation to whispered menace. Their new album You is available on Function Records.

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