Since 2001, artist, violinist and composer Jessica Moss has been a force of depth in contemporary experimental music. First as a central member of Thee Silver Mt. Zion, until the legendary chamber-punk outfit went on hiatus in 2016, and in the years since as a solo artist. She self-released her debut solo album Under Plastic Island recorded with Guy Picciotto in 2015, then four acclaimed albums on Montreal’s unshakeable Constellation Records followed. Her two most recent releases, Galaxy Heart (2022) and Phosphenes (2021) - feat. contributions from Thierry Amar (godspeed) and Jim White (Dirty Three, etc), engineered and co-produced with Radwan Ghazi Moumneh of Jerusalem In My Heart - are ambitious summations of her work to date: profoundly emotional, expansive musical experiences that draw on post-classical, ambient metal, Eastern European folk, drone, and a myriad of traditions in between.
Through her history as a solo performer, Moss has developed an inventive approach to building sonic environments where instrumentation and vocalization are treated as interconnected strands, woven together into aural tapestries. Her intense and profound live shows have garnered the highest praise from fans; please see this video for a sample of this appreciation via social media. She’s toured through Europe & North America every year since 2015; including stops at Le Guess Who?, Big Ears, ATP Festival, Supersonic, Basilica Hudson 24-Hour Drone, Suoni Per Il Popolo, and many, many more. Also a sought-after collaborator, she has worked with (amongst many others): Vic Chesnutt, Carla Bozulich, Patti Smith, Jem Cohen, Jim White, Guy Picciotto, Big⎮Brave, Melissa Auf Der Maur and Mary Margaret O’Hara.
Beyond her own solo practice, Moss has been busy of late: reviving her avant-Klezmer group Black Ox Orkestar for a new album + tour in 2022, and working on a unique project with Novarumori chamber orchestra that saw the first transcriptions and symphonic expressions of her work in spring of 2023. This rich period of reimagining, reinterpreting and recontextualizing her own catalog has led Moss to the actualization of a vivid new live show that draws equally from across her career, and balances delicately between composition and improvisation. The result is a concert experience that’s proven profoundly resonant for artist and audiences alike; an opportunity to witness one of Canada’s leading avant-garde figures working at the height of her powers, and with unmatched compassion. Moss appeared on the cover of the fall 2022 issue of Musicworks Magazine.