Doug Thomas: I am a French composer based in London. Over the years, I have been lucky enough to release a wide diversity of projects, both solo on my own label NOOX and through collaborations with many fantastic musicians and labels. I am also a music writer and journalist.  Circles is 2021 project for solo piano which explores musical miniatures vertically, horizontally and circularly. It is a collection of pieces that I brought together for the collaboration with Ramble Rattle. I realised that I had a few pieces that somehow connected between each other and I decided to build on that.
The piece which ignited the project is “Psalm”; commissioned for Gregory Euclide’s Thesis Recurring project and app, it is a loop which blurs the notion of beginning and end, and simply sits repeatedly.
On this initial piece, I decided to develop the idea of loops, circles, through four additional pieces, two hymns and two carols.  When seen in its integrity Circles is a project which can be played from its beginning to its end, with each piece fading into each other — vertically — or through each piece perceived independently, and repeated over and over — horizontally. 

Ramble Rattle: I am Vlado. I’ve been creating an image for a long time now. I am part of the first generation of post-communist children in Bulgaria. I have a studio, almost two cats and great people to create with. My interests are in the field of so-called cover art. These photos are part of a long series related to our connection with the subconscious. They are made in a period of 4 years and are analog prints on paper. The selection is special for Doug Thomas after we discussed how his music interacts with topics such as Serenity, Anxiety, Isolation, Sacred.

How would you characterise your visual style / sound?

Ramble Rattle: I have never felt the need to characterize my visual style. I hope it creates emotion and asks questions.

Doug Thomas: I pride myself in not following any rules or trends and my works range from approachable aka easy-listening to avant-garde. I take my inspiration in the music of the past, from baroque, to impressionism and minimalism, as well as jazz and popular music. I guess it reflects in the diversity of my works and my there are no rules approach. My ethos is to blend the intellect and the soul, interest and beauty.

Tell us about one of your best memories from your career.

Ramble Rattle: My best memories of my career are every time I work for one of my idols, when someone you are inspired by says “This is great”.

Doug Thomas: Two of my greatest memories of the past year include a fantastic collaboration with the Italian composer and pianist Luca Longobardi, who I admire both as a human being and artist, through Landscapes. I have also had my name minuscularly associated with (Gabriel) Prokofiev — through the featuring of my piece “Tension/Release 1” on nonclassical’s compilation I hope this finds you well in these strange times, Vol. 3 — probably one of the greatest honours that I have had recently!