CUTS is a mysterious multimedia project helmed by British musician and filmmaker Anthony Tombling, Jr. Taking inspiration from influences as abstract as abandoned spaces and sleep paralysis in addition to musical styles such as shoegaze and horror soundtracks, recordings such as 2020's Unreal feature ethereal vocals, droning guitars, and meticulous sound design.

Tombling began his musical career in the '90s, when he released ambient techno as Transambient Communications. During the 2000s, he founded post-punk/indie rock group Dragons, who released their debut album in 2007; their second full-length was recorded, but was unreleased. He began making music and accompanying videos as CUTS in 2012. Initially shunning any biographical information that might distract from the music, CUTS signed to Invada Records, the label owned by Portishead's Geoff Barrow. The ominous-sounding EP 1, which featured vocalist Jo Spratley, was released as a limited-edition VHS cassette as well as on vinyl in 2014.

The project returned in 2016 with EXIST, a 35-minute film described as "a journey into nowhere" that featured narration by graphic novelist Alan Moore. The music from the film saw release two years later, issued as two separate vinyl EPs as well as a single CD, preceding CUTS' debut full-length album, A Gradual Decline. The album focused on the ever-increasing fragility of the world, accentuated by field recordings of a decaying global environment, including shelves of ice breaking into the Antarctic ocean. Tombling recorded CUTS' second full-length, Unreal, primarily in lockdown after he moved to a remote location outside Bristol. Released near the end of 2020, the album is a reflection on disinformation and life during a global pandemic. ~ Heather Phares & Paul Simpson, Rovi