Tag: collage

ambient music, RECOMMENDATIONS

Celer + Machinefabriek – Greetings From…


postcard set

It’s almost impossible to keep up with the speed of Will ‘Celer’ Long and Rutger ‘Machinefabriek’ Zuydervelt. 
By the time I have finished writing this review, I guess probably at least three new releases will have emerged which are all also worth hearing… 

Following up their 7″ collaboration (“Maastunnel – Mt. Mitake” ), they recently did a short tour through Holland (and Brussel).
Recordings of these sets have now been released simultaneously with the duo’s second 7″ single “Numa – Penarie“. 

And, to conclude this batch: the CDR “Bliksem“, recorded by Celer especially for this tour (in a very limited physical edition of 10) is now also available as a digital download.

ambient music, MIXES, surround

Solaris Mindset (Mix)

Mentioning Andrej Tarkovsky’s 1972 movie “Solaris” as a source of inspiration has become a bit of cliche somehow. This classic movie (we’re talking the original Russian 1972 version now) has inspired numerous people, in various fields of art, in its 40 years of existence.

The sparse music soundtrack, created by Edward Artemyev, and the overall meditative ambient atmosphere has also inspired a great deal of ambient music artists.
It also inspired this mix-collage.
Referring to Solaris from a mix like this may not really be in the ‘true spirit’ of what Tarkovsky meant to achieve: he originally wanted to make the movie entirely without using music at all, and asked composer Artemyev to orchestrate the ambient sounds as a musical score. The latter proposed subtly introducing orchestral music. (source).

The sparse use of musical background, together with the length and slow pace of the movie (a ‘meditative psychological drama’) has always had a strange effect on me: it puts me in some kind of half-sleep, a kind of state in which where it is difficult to distinguish details, to separate reality from images less ‘real’.
A half-conscious state of mind that perfectly matches the movie’s theme.


Solaris

This mix includes many different sources. Some parts of the originals Artemyev soundtrack are linked to fragments of the beautiful game soundtrack from Skyrim, by Jeremy Soule. The cinematic parts are alternated with various electronic soundscape fragments – familiar and less familiar.
Together with many tiny fragments from your own memory, a new – and strictly personal- alternate reality may be created, which (like in Solaris) may be hard to distinguish from real life…

Solaris was originally released in march 1972.
This tribute mix is celebrating this inspiring movie’s 40th anniversary!

ambient music, MIXES, surround

Stillness [Mix]


Stillness

“Stillness”
image by imago2007

This mix obviously found its name from the lovely intro (and outtro) track by Nest.
Inbetween, there are many moments of ‘stillness’, too… Moments you may slowly drift off into the drones, letting your mind wander … to be pulled back again by some of the post-classical ‘anchors’ in this mix by Winged Victory For the Sullen, Human Greed, Vladimír Gódar, and Maya Beiser (member of Bang on a Can, with a stunning cello performance of the Djivan Gasparyan composition ‘Memories’).

Most of the tracks featured in this were released in 2011. But this mix is nót intended as a “Best of..” overview. That would result in a mix with an entirely different atmosphere (- and much longer, because one hour would not be enough to cover all the great releases I have enjoyed in 2011).

Maybe it’s a good way to start a new year with a small opportunity to retreat from current society’s turmoil, and to find some time to ‘cocoon’ to the sounds (and the sometimes fascinating depths) of ‘Stillness’.

Some word of warning, however: if this suggests this mix only contains warm, comfortable and pleasurable sounds, be prepared for some suprises.
I never said that “Stillness” always means “Comforting”…

Best wishes for 2012 to all of you!

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, MIXES, surround

Teloorgang (Decay and Loss) (Mix)

“Teloorgang” is a beautiful dutch word that can be best translated with “Loss” or “Decay”.

Some say there is beauty in decay….This may be true, but in fact only when watched from a safe distance – the ‘decay’ not regarding ourselves or our own environment..

It is, of course, tempting to relate the theme of this mix to the current state of our (western) society.
But that may just be coincidence: this word “Teloorgang” came to mind when listening back the mix after it was finished.

True: this mix is a somewhat darker than some of the others published here. Thus, it perfectly fits in with the season that is up ahead: summer retreats, autumn kicks in, nights getting darker and colder. 

Sit back, close your eyes and immerse yourself in the beauty of decay and loss.

(The picture was taken in a small town nearYusufeli (Turkey): an near-desolate area that will be covered with water in the near future when the Dam Project will be completed)

ambient music, MIXES, surround

Discouraging Intruders (Mix)

The main theme for this mix (as well as the title “Discouraging Intruders” ) came from the spoken word track by the Dwindlers: “What the Wolves Said”:

“No two of us on the same note, we sound bigger…our harmony discouraging intruders…”

Although generally not sounding like a pack of howling wolves, sometimes the purpose of ‘ambient’ music also is also is to ‘discourage intruders’ (such as unwanted sounds) to invade your environment..

From the opening, this mix slowly dwells into long drone soundscapes – some discouraging, others comforting – only to be interrupted by a climactic eruption from Siddhartha Barnhoorn‘s cinematic ‘Artifacts‘ directly following the enchanting vocals of Fovea Hex, a choir arrangement that seems to be coming directly from heaven by Franz Liszt (from ‘Via Crucis‘, 1879!), followed by a Sibil’La Catalana string theme from the 15th century – and finally to be concluded by the acquiescent vocals from the Terje Isungset track.   

Whether you prefer to be on the inside or the outside is up to your imagination…

Image with kind permission from the Panopticons project.

ambient music, MIXES, surround

Invisible Ink (Mix)

Though the title of Arve Henriksen’s opening track (Stille Veg, Quiet Road) was the working title for this mix, I finally decided to call it “Invisible Ink” – referring to the quote from Laurie Anderson’s track from “Homeland”, which may describe the confused global state (and – if you wish –  the political state of Holland in particular):

Was the Constitution written in visible ink?
Has everybody here forgotten how to think? 
Is this great big boat starting to … sink?”

But apart from this, this journey along the ‘Stille Veg’ may present some interesting encounters – some dark and mysterious, others enchanting and optimistic…

ambient music, exclusives

Cinta Cita – part 2


Cinta Cita 2

“Cinta Cita – Meeting with the Tape” is the second ‘guest mix’ created especially for ambientblog.net.
(The first was Muttley’s “Isolate”).

Cinta Cita is a 2 1/2 hour journey by DJ Rich-Ears, presented in two parts.
This is Part 2  (Part 1 can be found [here]).  

“Ambient as atmosphere. Ambient as the cusp of melody and texture. Here we have an elegantly complex woven soundtrack (by DJ Rich-Ears) from the Lowlands that takes us through time, back and forth, from the familiar, the rare, the digital and the analogue. Let it be the soundtrack to a moment where everything slows down and re-engage with yourself and your surroundings.”
Robin Rimbaud / Scanner / april 3th – 2010

ambient music, exclusives

Cinta Cita – Part 1


Cinta Cita, Part 1

“Cinta Cita – Meeting with the Tape” is the second ‘guest mix’ created especially for ambientblog.net.
(The first was Muttley’s “Isolate”).

Cinta Cita is a 2 1/2 hour journey by DJ Rich-Ears, presented in two parts (Part 2 can be found [here]).  

“Ambient as atmosphere. Ambient as the cusp of melody and texture. Here we have an elegantly complex woven soundtrack (by DJ Rich-Ears) from the Lowlands that takes us through time, back and forth, from the familiar, the rare, the digital and the analogue. Let it be the soundtrack to a moment where everything slows down and re-engage with yourself and your surroundings.”
Robin Rimbaud / Scanner / april 3th – 2010