Isolarii is the new collaboration between Tokyo based artist Corey Fuller (one half of the duo Illuha) and British composer and sound artist Richard Skleton. It is out now via THESIS project (Limited Edition Sound Collaborations with Handmade Packaging).

According to the press release, ‘Isolarii’ is an archaic word used to describe ‘island books’ — a category which, according to George Tolias ‘belongs somewhere within the shadowy bounds of geographical, historical, and travel literature and nautical manuals’. A recent addition to this largely forgotten literary genre is Judith Schalansky’s ‘Atlas of Remote Islands’. Fuller sent Skelton a copy during lockdown, and it became a tacit guiding text for their ensuing collaboration, as both artists were islanded, and geographically remote from each other (Fuller in Japan, Skelton in the UK). As travel restrictions tightened, they exchanged recordings of cello, accordion and piano as a way of circumventing those geographical limitations — of making musical excursions into unknown waters. The result is a series of compositions that seamlessly move back and forth between Japan and the UK, layering time-zones and topographies to create a new, singular ‘atlas of remote islands’.

Listen below.