"On their debut duo recording, The Terrible Habit of Theatre, Alex Cunningham and Eli Wallace display the kind of sympathetic telepathy typically demonstrated by long-established units. Showcasing their interconnectivity and patient communication, the album takes the shape of an engaging conversation, wherein listening supersedes speaking.

Though occasionally dense and frenetic in their exchanges, as evidenced at the top of album opener 'Fog Line,' Cunningham and Wallace frequently opt for more languid, exploratory passages, exploring the potential of their instruments through extended technique.

Violinist Cunningham exploits the inherent acoustic qualities of his instrument, the wood and strings themselves integral components of his expression. Wallace, through his prepared piano, creates a diverse tapestry of sounds both percussive and canorous. On 'I-94,' Wallace suggests the sonance of Gamelan, the duo building confidently in rhythmic intensity, receding only slightly before bursting.

Texture is paramount in these improvisations, with the artists eschewing traditional timbres and tones, creating an expansive new vocabulary that is synesthesiac in its sensory scope. Exhibiting bold internal logic, 'The Terrible Habit of Theatre' represents a stunning achievement by two of the most exciting voices in contemporary free improvisation."-Bob Bucko Jr, liner notes

Alex Cunningham is a violinist, improviser, and visual artist based in St. Louis, MO. His recorded output spans free improvisation, drone, noise, and minimalist composition. Cunningham has recorded with Lisa Cameron, Damon Smith, claire rousay, Chris Trull (under the Apathist! moniker), Mark Shippy, Thom Nguyen, Patrick Shiroishi, Jessica Ackerley, Seth Andrew Davis, Sandy Ewen, Eli Wallace, and Weasel Walter. Cunningham has released music on Close/Far Recordings, Personal Archives, Already Dead Tapes and Records, Fort Evil Fruit, Working Man Lay Down, Orb Tapes, Astral Editions, Infrequent Seams, Industrial Coast, Flat Plastic Home Media, Profane Illuminations, Waveform Alphabet, and Astral Spirits.

Eli Wallace, pianist/improviser/composer, resides in Brooklyn, NY envisioning his own projects, and collaborating with other like-minded artists. His work as a pianist displays a proclivity to free improvisation, incorporating elaborate piano preparations that John Lewis (The Guardian) says is "...pushing the boundaries of the prepared piano." His compositions employ notational strategies to broaden how musicians produce sound and the ways in which they interact. Over the past decade, he appeared on dozens of albums and performed at venues such as Roulette, Brooklyn, NY, Experimental Sound Studio, Chicago, IL, Bemis Center, Omaha, NE, and Cave 12, Geneva, Switzerland.