Home Diaries
After the physical distribution became impossible, Whitelabrec’s Harry Towell started the Home Diaries series: artists documenting their personal experiences during the Covid-19 lockdown.
Tag: spheruleus
Sven Laux/Harry Towell * Jazzdefector/Slow Clinic * Kalte
Sven Laux and Harry Towell prepared for the birth of their first child with an album on Fluid Audio * 1+1=3 on Jazzdefector & Slow Clinic’s Green Echo *Kalte (Dean Hughes / Rick MacLean) present their sixth full album: ‘Phages’.
Ian Hawgood & Friends – Wolven (A Modern Reinterpretation)
In its relatively short existence (almost 4 years), the Hibernate label has presented us with many beautiful releases and positioned themselves as one of the most important independent labels at the very centre of the ‘ambient’ music scene. Or – since it’s increasingly difficult to use the word ‘ambient’ as a genre definition: music “both abstract and melodic but always with a hint of melancholy.”
The Hibernate label kicked off in 2009 with a release that set a high standard immediately: “Wolfskin“, by Ian Hawgood – well-known for his own music as well as from the labels he curates: Home Normal and Koen Music.
Hibernate and Koen Music (KoMu) now present a 2-CD set revisiting the original “Wolfskin” release, called “Wolven – A Modern Reinterpretation”.
Time Released Sound: the Chocolate Box series
I can’t really decide if I should consider Time Released Sound primarily an art or a music label.
I can drool when watching the incredible (handmade!) art that is created for each initial release. Carefully handcrafted, with regards to every detail, but consequently they also carry a price tag that seems to aim at art collectors more than the average music lover.
These special releases are always very limited and often quickly sell out. Luckily for those of us not fast (or rich) enough, Time Released Sound often immediately re-release these titles as a standard 5″-CD with a regular picture sleeve.
Below are some of the highlights of the latest batch: the “Chocolate Box” series. This, of course, refers to the Deluxe packaging of each individual title. Check the website for more details about that: I’ll leave out the notes about the packaging and will just focus on the music.
McDougall + Sasajima; Hydrophones; Francisco Lopez; Pleq a.o.
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.
James McDougall & Hiroku Sasajima – Injya
Using environmental sounds from Australia and Japan, McDougall and Sasajima create a new virtual world by rearranging and manipulating the original recordings. Their carefully crafted collages manage to maintain the ‘natural’ feeling of the recordings yet at the same times creates a non-existent landscape that is fascinating to listen to. One of the best environmental soundscapes I know.
Various Artists – Hydrophones
Using only (publicly available) recordings from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), carefully manipulating the underwater sounds of ships, earthquakes, “air guns”, whale sounds and some unknown sources, this free download includes three immersive sub-aquatic ambient soundscapes created by Michael Hendley, Beau Finley and Keep.
Interesting Collaborations
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.
The Beautiful Schizophonic & Yui Onodera – Night Blossom
The Beautiful Schizophonic (Jorge Mantas, Portugal) and Yui Onodera (Japan), two renowned sound artists, continue to refine their collaborative work that started in 2009, with “Radiance”.
Immersive, yet restrained, beauty.
From the Mouth of the Sun – Woven Tide
From the Mouth of the Sun is the name of the first project of Dag Rosenqvist (Jasper TX) and Aaron Martin. Just mentioning these two names should raise your interest!
“Out of the charred embers of dusk Woven Tide emerges with an incandescent glow. Each glimmer cast by the sustained notes of ebony keys, the taut strings of the cello, and the rampant buzz of guitar lights our way, gives us hope, brings us into the dawn of a new day. As From The Mouth of the Sun, the duo act as our torchbearers, scrawling messages along the walls of an elongated cave, toiling through the decayed remnants of fetid matter to create eight illuminating pieces.”
Pleq, Spheruleus & Various – "A Silent Swaying Breath"
When they decided to work together on a charity fund-raising album “for those that has beenaffected by the recent unrest that ravaged cities across the country” (referring of course to the recent UK riots), Pleq (Bartosz Dziadosz) and Spheruleus (Harry Towell) chose a different approach.
Instead of asking fellow artists to contribute a complete track, they teamed up with SoundFjord (UK Sound Art Gallery), and started asking their (immense) network of ‘artists, musicians and the general public’ to contribute just a short (under one minute) sample for this project.
Then they started working on these samples, creating this one hour album with twelve full length tracks.
Various Artists – Just a Moment
The Japan Earthquake and the Nuclear Disaster following it seem to have vanished from the media radar completely.
Which is strange enough, since the effects of the latter will be felt for decades (at the very least), and it’s unlikely that the people that were directly affected bu the earthquake have recovered from the disaster by now.
There have been some heartwarming beneficial releases by ambient/experimental artists until now, most notably the “Kanshin” and “For Nihon” albums. But for causes like this, there’s never ‘enough’ that can be raised for those that have suffered.
So, Harry ‘Spheruleus‘ Towell teamed up with Bartosz ‘Pleq‘ Dziadosz to curate another compilation in support of those affected by the Japan March disaster.
“Just a Moment” is released through the Audio Gourmet label, originally specialized in the short 15 minute ‘coffee/tea break’ EP editions.
In the Bleak Wilderness of Sleep
Apart from releasing music as Spheruleus, Harry Towell also curates the Audio Gourmet netlabel, well-known for their now 40+ releases that all can be downloaded for free from Bandcamp (or from Archive.org when the Bandcamp credit runs out, but in that case I’d suggest donating a few dollars to keep them running).
Apart from these “tea/coffee-break” EP’s (all of them somewhere around 15 minutes in length), Audio Gourmet also has released a few full length albums (such as “Hidden Landscapes”).
“In the Bleak Wilderness of Sleep” (released may 2011) celebrates the first year of Audio Gourmet existence. And considering the contents of this compilation, Audio Gourmet has definitely found their place between the yop netlabels in the ambient/electronic/soundscape field!