Category: ambient music

ambient music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Matthew Florianz – Los


Los

Matthew Florianz is one of the dutch artists I have been following for a lot of years now – together with fellow experimenters like Rutger ‘Machinefabriek’ Zuydervelt, the ‘Piiptsjilling’ (Kleefstra) brothers and Michel Banabila. 
It’s funny mentioning them together, because their music is quite different. But all have their own definite ‘brand’ that identifies their music, all work tirelessly on their music, and – finally – all get international recognition for their works’ quality.

From these artists, Matthew Florianz (who started recording as ‘Liquid Morphine’ around 2000) may be the one whose music remains most close to the origins of ambient music as defined by Brian Eno.
In musical style, I mean, not regarding the ‘generative’ compositional aspect of much of Eno’s music. Florianz carefully constructs his music, paying attention to the placement of every little detail.

ambient music, other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Various Artists – Festive Greetings…


Festive Greetings

Okay: Christmas and New Year’s Holiday are rapidly approaching – you’ve probably already had your share of the End-Of-Year Top 2000 lists (full of unsurprisingly position shifts of headliners like The Eagles and Queen) – Your “Last Christmas” and “Imagine”  singles are totally worn out – as has “Phil Spector’s Christmas Album“? Even the ZE Christmas Record (featuring Suicide!) is not surprising anymore?  

Well, maybe it’s time for a slightly different approach ….

Enter: “Festive Greetings from Hibernate and Home Normal”  – and be prepared for some surprises!

ambient music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Specta Ciera; Sense; Pleq + Lauki; Ujjaya; Sequence 2

In the Shortlist sections, I will mention some of the albums that I enjoyed listening to, but couldn’t find the time (or the right words) for a “full” review for. Still, I think they deserve your attention: use the links to find more info and hear previews.

Underpass

Specta Ciera – Underpass
Specta Ciera is the pseudonym for sound designer Devin Underwood from Cambridge, MA. “Underpass” is the latest in a line of 15+ releases combining ambient drones, field recordings and avant garde electronics. The four tracks on this (FREE) FeedbackLoopLabel release are warm, immersive and slightly dark. (In fact there are three tracks, because the title track returns in a Darren Harper mix). This great EP only scratches the surface of the compositional style and approach Specta Ciera employs, so it may be a good starting point for checking out his back-catalogue.

sense - selected moments

Sense – Selected Moments Vol. I
With his vintage synth sounds, Sense, aka Adam Raisbeck, brings back “the golden era of 90’s ambient music”. The sounds are beautiful analog, but the music itself is far from ‘retro’. The compositions are warm and nicely balanced. In Adam’s own words: It’s about selected moments of my life over the last 5 years and consequential realisations from looking at those moments individually it’s about change and growth its about opening hearts and healing. My ultimate goal is create an interface via my music whereby people listening to it will totally feel what’s happening and understand what I was feeling at the time I was making the music, it’s something that is to me – beyond-sonic.”

ambient music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Looped Exodus – The Near is Ending


Looped Exodus

Although ‘outsiders’ may think otherwise, ‘ambient’ music knows a lot of different musical variations. Referring to ambient music as one single genre is a bit like using ‘world music’ as a genre definition for all kinds of different ethnic music.
 
In fact, ‘ambient music’ is a rather undefinable collection of sub-genres. It ranges from deep-listening drones via eno-esque generative music to dance music and dub-techno, from acoustic improv to post-classical string ensembles, from 70’s cosmic psychedelica to new age tribal music.

The Near is Ending”  starts with a deep droney track, but then continues to combine some different kinds of electronic music to a surprisingly well-balanced album.

ambient music, other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Kleefstra-Pruiksma-Kleefsta – Deislieper

“Deislieper” is the third release in what I like to call the “Kleefstra Wire Trilogy“.
In fact, there’s no real ‘trilogy’, but three separate albums that were presented by three independent labels on one single advertising page in Wire Magazine: “Wurdskrieme” (on Experimedia). “Tongerswel”  (on Home Normal), and now “Deislieper” (on Hibernate).

“Deislieper”, by the way, is a Frisian name for the nightjar and literally it means ‘day sleeper’

Rooted firmly in the improv scene, core members Jan (poetry) and Romke (guitar, effects) Kleefstra never work alone.
With Piiiptsjilling, most of the contributors were Dutch fellow musicians (like Rutger ‘Machinefabriek’ Zuydervelt, Mariska Baars, Chris Bakker), but soon they also started playing with an international cast of musicians like Peter Broderick, Nils Frahm, Greg Haines (on the Seeljocht project).
Tongerswel presented their work together with saxophonist Gareth Davis, and now Deisleeper features the incredible percussion music by Sytze Pruiksma.

ambient music, other-music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Chris Watson – El Tren Fantasma

There is, has been and will always be, a lot of debate about what “ambient” music is. Whatever you think of that, the word definitely has ambience in it, so the music will probably have something to do with the atmosphere of your surroundings. 

Closely related, yet still an entirely different matter, are what we call Field Recordings, and/or Environmental Soundscapes. 
The first strive to record environmental sounds as closely as possible to its origin, the second add an emotional  dimension to that recordings by deliberately manipulating these recordings into a soundscape. Which, inevitably leads to the discussion about the moment when sound becomes music.

Chris Watson is one of the very few real masters of this area (which might be a lot more challenging than you’d suspect). He was one of the founding members of Sheffield’s Cabaret Voltaire and the Hafler Trio, and started another career as a television sound recording engineer in 1981. 
Recording and documenting natural sounds, he has also specialised in assembling these recordings to fascinating soundscapes.
Most of his memorable works have been released on the Touch label, that recently presented his latest masterpiece: “El Tren Fantasma” (The Ghost Train).
And after listening to this album for quite a few times, I can easily state that this is certainly one of the most impressive soundscapes available.

ambient music, MIXES, surround

November Thoughts (Mix)

In the Northern Hemisphere, the November month is the month of Autumn: the month that summer is definitely over, when cold and darkness slowly creeps in. 
(In the Southern Hemisphere, November is a month of Spring – which means this mix will probably not fit your “November Thoughts” at all). 

(Northern) November can be rough and harsh, but it’s also very beautiful to watch nature prepare for winter and finding ourselves doing the same.
It is also a good month to think November Thoughts.


ambient music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Leonardo Rosado – Mute Words

However deep and fascinating ‘classic’ (drone) ambient music may be, listening too much of the same kind can get a little eh… same-ish. The borders and boundaries need to be stretched in some ways, and that’s where the adventurous music tends to start.  Even though, by strict definition, this may or may not be called ‘ambient’ music at all (such as with a lot of the post-classical or improvised acoustic music lately). 

I don’t really know, but this may very well have been one of the reasons for Leonardo Rosado, also known as the curator of the Feedbackloop label (with its impressive catalogue of ambient/experimental music), to start a new label with a somewhat different concept: Heart and Soul.

Heart and Soul  will focus on combining poetry and music, and will release albums in physical formats only (so NO downloads!): a paperback book combined with the CD in this particular case.
Editions are “totally homemade” – but unlike many others not ‘strictly limited’, because they are made on demand. 

The very first release on this Feedbackloop sister label is Rosado’s own “Mute Words“