Adem Ilhan | |
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | Adem |
| Born | Adem Ilhan (1977-11-20)20 November 1977 (age 48) |
| Origin | South London, England |
| Genres | Folktronica,indie folk,post-rock |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, bass guitar |
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Labels | Domino Recording Company |
| Website | www |
Adem Ilhan (born 20 November 1977) is an English composer, producer and singer-songwriter. He has released many albums: his solo music project released under the nameAdem, in the acclaimedpost-rock bandFridge, alongsideKieran Hebden, and as part of the electronic duoSilver Columns withJohnny Lynch. He has scored several feature films and television series and numerous documentaries.
Ilhan's debut solo album,Homesongs, appeared onDomino Records in 2004. Mixed byKieran Hebden, the album found critical acclaim with limited commercial success. The album includes the song "Statued", which featured on the soundtrack of the filmDead Man's Shoes.
A second album,Love and Other Planets, was released on 24 April 2006 to generally favourable reviews.
In May 2008 Ilhan released a collection of cover songs calledTakes. The album includes tracks originally written and performed byYo La Tengo,The Smashing Pumpkins,Björk,dEUS, andBedhead, among others.
In 2008 Ilhan along withJeremy Warmsley &Mystery Jets contributed the song "Grains of Sand" to theSurvival International charity albumSongs for Survival.
In 2011, Adem collaborated with folk music groupLau to create theGhosts EP under the name Lau vs Adem.[1]
Since 2014, Ilhan has been performing withPhilip Selway's band and opened for Selway on his 2015 US tour.[2]
After years of collaborations by production and session-playing, Adem released a new solo album,seconds are acorns, in October 2015. The first single from it, "Snow in April", received its first radio airplay onBBC 6 Music in August.[3]
Ilhan has also been involved in film and television soundtracks. He was musical director and co-wrote the original tracks for the 2019 filmYesterday, and soundtracked several productions, includingIn the Loop (2009) andAvenue 5 (2020) (both byArmando Iannucci), andDavid Farr's filmThe Ones Below (2015). He produced the original songs and the official soundtrack album ofThe Ballard of Wallis Island (2025).
Ilhan grew up in London; his father had emigrated from Turkey. He attended theElliott School in Putney, which had gained a reputation of nurturing talented musicians, with Ilhan being the contemporary of artists includingKieran Hebden, members ofHot Chip and members of the Elysian Quartet, all of whom he has later collaborated with.[5] He also attended theUniversity of Warwick. In December 2006 Ilhan played a free concert in Barrhead Community Library, commenting: "I love libraries. [...] The existence of public libraries is one of my favourite achievements of human kind".[6]
Ilhan is deaf in one ear.[7] After many years in London, he and his family now live inMargate.
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