Release data: Ice Planet 9000 – The Nebula Suite CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2025 The project Ice Planet 9000, formed in 2018, is the brainchild of Brent Zius and Karl Learmont. They pinpoint their music as “defying genre boundaries, blending elements of active dark ambient and classic Berlin School”, weaving intricate sonic landscapes using a mix of modern and vintage…
Release data: Numina – Zen Zone BiomeDigital Download, Private Release, 2025 With “Zen Zone Biome”, composer Jesse Sola transports his listeners into an aural world of minimalist deep-space ambient, a collection of tracks composed for Pi Day 2025. A continuous stream of gentle soaring and spiraling textural waves unfolds slowly on each of the eight quiet, atmospheric pieces, as we…
Release data: ASC & Sam KDC – Decayed SocietyLP/CD-r/Digital Download, Auxiliary, 2012 “Decayed Society” is a work of haunting, elegy-like ambient by Samuel Wood (aka Sam KDC) and James Clements (aka ASC) that’s “loosely based around the events of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster”, a theme that easily could have led to a rather bleak, bland and rather oppressive…
Release data: Lapsed Pacifist – HypatiaLP/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, A Strangely Isolated Place, 2024 Ambient music comes in many forms and can be a real challenge to listen to when it features opposing atmospheres addressed on the same album. For me, this is the case on “Hypatia” (a reference to one of the many fantastical descriptions of imaginary places by Marco Polo…
Release data: Deborah Martin & Jill Haley – Into the QuietCD/Digital Download, Spotted Peccary Music, 2023 “Into the Quiet”, the second collaborative project between multi-instrumentalists Deborah Martin and Jill Haley, is an ambient recording exploring (and delving into) expansive spaces while leaving the pressure cooker of the nowadays world far behind. It actually plunges into the inner realms of human…
Release data: HERE – A Quiet Unease Mc/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Slowcraft, 2025 HERE is London-based producer Simon Vince and composer James Murray, offering seven pieces of bittersweet atmospheric, electro-acoustic ambient underscored by an elegant disquiet current on their EP “A Quiet Unease”. A blend of calm and intrigue hovers over and is found inside these drifting melodic strands, choral echoes, and…
Release data: Subclavian – II Digital Download, Private Release, 2025 The composer’s urge to create some sequencer-based music continues on this album, although this time Mr Thompson decided to give the tracks a subtitle, as he just felt they needed it. In addition, all the music was created with hardware synths, so not a mixture of hardware and software like…
Release data: Vanderson – Return to Conciousness Digital Download, Private Release, 2018 If you’re in search of some tasty, melodic, happy sequenced electronic music, you can’t go wrong with Maciej Wierzchowski’s music, better known as Vanderson. In my opinion, this recording is preferable to “Sequenced Thoughts” that came out that same year as a factory-pressed CD, mainly due to the…
Release data: Phelios – Passage CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2006/2011 Phelios’ second album “Passage” is a gloomy, dark ambient work by Martin Stürtzer that initially came out on a diy cd-r. In 2011, it was re-released as a proper CD. It features the carefully remastered original material, as well as two previously unreleased tracks (both recorded shortly after the 2006…
Release data: Martin Stürtzer – Celestial Tides Digital Download, Private Release, 2024 Since I ran into the thoughtfully made music of this skilled German musician many years back, I enjoy most of it -except his dub-oriented stuff. Four lengthy tracks make up Mr. Stürtzer’s album “Celestial Tides”, a 68-minute cosmic reverie of assorted sequences and lush floating pads, all unfolding…
Release data: ASC – Tales of IntrospectionCD/Digital Download, Quiet Details, 2025 What I have here is another work of lush, in-depth ambient music at its finest, featuring a vast, highly emotive sound design that can ease and/or elevate the busy or troubled mind. An ethereal thread along a sense of bliss and the infinite is clearly present throughout the…
Release data: Interstellar Data Unit – Crossing the Heliosphere Digital Download, Wayfarer Music Group, 2025 Interstellar Data Unit (whose wish is to expand the imagination of humanity) is space ambient exploring our solar system and beyond. It was all created by a skilled musician who prefers to stay anonymous for the time being. The project was actually born out of…
Release data: Sequentia Legenda – DecemCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2024 Laurent Schieber describes “Decem” as a jubilee release, celebrating 10 years of artistic and spiritual evolution in capturing the essence of the Berlin School. That can be, but for me, this three-track recording doesn’t bring anything new to the table: this time around, the composer loses himself in a too-lengthy…
Release data: Londeward – Gossamer Wings of Illusion Digital Download, Private Release, 2025 In the last few years, Mike Carss’ music (released through various aliases) has seen more emotional depth aside a stronger sonic narrative or cinematic impact. The 57-minute “Gossamer Wings of Illusion” -exploring the complex world of the mind and how each of us view our existence- is…
Release data: Xan Alexander – Ouroboros IICD/Digital Download, OtherSide, 2025 British synthesist Xan Alexander may be known to some as a member of The Omega Syndicate. He was also part of Magnetron (next to Stephen Humphries) and The Grey Encounter (with Phil Booth). Aside from that he also released a range of solo albums along the way. This recording…
Release data: Robert Schroeder – Observer CD, Spheric Music, 2024 Let me be clear about this recording: there’s nothing surprising nor exciting about the outcome making up Mr. Schroeder’s “Observer”, his 46th regular release if I’m not mistaken. The 10-track, 66-minute release is a work of ambient chill-out electronica featuring Robert’s known sonic footprints and characteristics. Some pieces are more…
Release data: Lauge & Aes Dana – Terrene LP/CD/Digital Download, Ultimae Records, 2022 It has been quite a while since I reviewed a release from the French Ultimae label but I’m happy to present another nice one, this time created by Henrik Lagesen (aka Lauge) and label owner Vincent Villius (aka Aes Dana). “Terrene” (a daedal story taking one on…
Release data: ASC & Sam KDC – Surfacing LP/Digital Download, Auxilliary, 2024 Several years back these two musicians already impressed me with their well-done “A Restless Mind”, which now sees a continuation through the introspective ambient recording “Surfacing”. The six-track, 37-minute release offers an un-rushed approach with its highly emotive, somber soundscapes merged with slices of melancholic drones and hints…
Release data: Liquid Mind – XV: In the Love CD/Digital Download, Private Release, 2025 Calming New Age music for stress relief, meditation, pre-sleep, emptying your mind, and slowing down in fast, hectic times continues to be featured on the releases from sleep and relaxation music composer Chuck Wild. Still it sticks to a practical, simplistic, and functional sonic approach as…
Release data: Craig Padilla – The Pulse of LifeCD/Digital Download, OtherSide, 2025 For a while Mr. Padilla had the idea to put out an album to pay tribute to George Mattson and his contributions and inventions to the synthesizer community since the ‘70s.”. Therefore, Craig limited himself to using modular synths only that Mr. Mattson built to creating the…
Release data: Phobos – Shrouded Digital Download, Private Release, 2025 Like its predecessor, “Tholus”, this release consists of two 30-minute live-in-studio recordings created for UK Morphic Resonance events (improvised synthesizer concerts) at Halloween (episode 54) and Christmas specials (episode 57) in 2024. Soaring, expansive textures wandering into the dark, deep end are served from the start, painting quite haunting, surreal,…
Release data: TiRa The Art of Dance – Endless Ambient Part 3CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Groove Unlimited, 2024 It seems to me that Ralf Gülpen has further smoothened the overall sound design for the music that makes up part 3 in the series. Just listen and immerse in the first four tracks all featuring moody, airy, free-floating soundscapes that almost feel like…
Release data: TiRa The Art of Dance – The 4 Elements: Water & AirCD/Digital Download, Groove Unlimited, 2024 After three releases, German synthesist Ralf Gülpen takes a bigger approach releasing two double albums simultaneously, each focusing on one of the four elements. All consist of 8 parts that flow smoothly into each other and have exactly the same playing time…
Release data: Abstract Rituals – II CD/Digital Download, Private Release, 2025 What I got here is another release drawing inspiration from the early pioneers of electronic music, and sequenced Berlin School in particular. The person behind Abstract Rituals is Mike Donzella, an American electronic music composer who’s now based in Tokyo, Japan. Moreover, Mr. Donzella points out the 12-track contemporary…
Release data: Rhea – Luminescent Ties CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2024 “Luminescent Ties” was born out of a collaborative project of Mark de Wit (aka Rhea) with Belgian glass artist Stijn Wuyts. For his summer exhibition and installation ‘Uranium Capsule’, Mark made five 5-minute tracks (the “Isotope” pieces) that visitors could listen to with headphones. During the last day of…
Release data: Spyra – TauCD, Private Release, 2024 “Tau”, launched at Spyra’s „Hello 2025“ live event at Planetarium Bochum on 30.12.2024, is the final part of the trilogy “Staub” (2014) and “Dunst” (2018). Its sound is recognizable immediately as Spyra with fresh contemporary sounds blending his sonic ideas with beats and classic Berlin School soundscapes/sequencer music. The biggest part…
Release data: 猫 シ Corp – Blueberries on MarsCD/Digital Download, Hiraeth Records, 2024 What I got here is the first space-ambient album by Dutch music producer Jornt Elzing (using the 猫 シ Corp moniker -meaning something like Cat System Corp to release his music), who already impressed me various years back with the sonic gem “Building a Better World”.…
Release data: Perge – Exolon: Live’24CD/Digital Download, Private Release, 2024 I’m glad Matthew Stringer accepted invitations to perform live in The Netherlands at E-Day in April 2024 and at the UK’s “Awakenings” in May 2024. A great selection of new songs as well as reworked pieces from the Perge back catalog ( “Mythos”, “Second Sun” & “Out The Way…
Release data: Deborah Martin & Erik Wøllo – Kinishba CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Spotted Peccary Music, 2024 In the lengthy period that I’ve been reviewing electronic music, I’ve developed a fascination for in-depth atmospheric ambient. “Kinishba”, the second collaboration between Deborah Martin and Erik Wøllo, opens a respectful, authentic window into the remembrance ceremonies of the Apache people. The album’s name actually…
Release data: Cosmic Ground – Area 24DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2024 The eight-part/50-minute “Area 24”, released on December 23th 2024, is an alienating, haunting, psychedelic as well as strange sonic affair containing a whole range of abstracts hooks and stark organic bits. Imagine a slow moving landslide of murky, dark textures, dense soundscapes and repetitive motives dressed with field recordings,…
Release data: AirSculpture – Europa CD/CD-r, Neu Harmony, 1997 After their strong their strong debut “Impossible Geometries” in 1995, things went fast for the talented UK trio Christian The three describes their output as improvised sequencer music arising while in the act of playing along with both texture and mood as strongholds. “Europe” holds the entire improvised performance of AirSculpture’s…
Release data: Kevin Keller – PendulumCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Lektronik Soundscapes, 1999 I recently rediscovered this album from 1999 in my collection by chance. Known primarily for “ambient chamber music,” a style that combines live instruments with electronic effects, American composer Kevin Keller has worked in the spaces between neo-classical, ambient, and electronic music for over thirty years. The 50-minute “Pendulum”, able…
Release data: Patrick Kosmos – Planetia UtopiaCD/Digital Download, Groove Unlimited, 2000/2024 “Planetia Utopia” was first released as the 11th CD of “The Chronicles” box and is the fifth re-issue of cosmic traveler Patrick ‘Wille De Wael’ Kosmos. The 67-minute album is another ticket into the mystery and vastness of our cosmos, presenting deep atmospheric soundscapes for discoveries into…
Release data: Loneward – Abridged Versions CD-r/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2025 The first volume of the “Fractional Dimensions” series ,all featuring dream-infused soundscapes and gentle ambiences meant for contemplation, meditation and sleep, came out in 2022. For the 41-minute “Abridged Dimensions”, all four volumes have been collected, this time around remixing four long-play tracks into new, shorter-form pieces. Each “dimension”…
Release data: Erik Wøllo – SojournsCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Projekt Records, 2022 “Sojourns” is a rather timeless sonic canvas that takes its audience to all kinds of different places and states of mind. Reminiscent of Erik’s other ambient works, it serves a kaleidoscope of emotive soundscapes, intricate rhythms, ethereal guitar, and mesmerizing synth textures. A sense of serenity and calm swirls through…
Release data: Rene de Bakker – Cosmic EquilibriumCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Groove Unlimited, 2024 Artistic expression can come in various ways, here seeing the artist gracing his new release with some stunning visual artwork all done by himself. On his previous albums, Rene already presented his audience his own cleverly and attentively moulded Berlin School impressions characterized by pleasant, warm sound designs…
Release data: Axess – Resurrection CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2024 This album is dedicated to Axel Stupplich’s late wife Irina, who was not only the love of his life and soulmate but also the first and closest person to him to offer feedback on his music. Creating new music proved a way to deal and come to terms with the immense…
Release data: Vanderson – 2055CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Spheric Music, 2024 Like the biggest part of Vanderson’s discography, “2055” will tick a lot of boxes for fans of contemporary-melodic Berlin School electronic music. In four accessible, well-produced, and mastered tracks, synthesist Maciej Wierzchowski aka Vanderson takes us on a 45-minute cosmic flight that merges catchy elements of both 80’s Tangerine Dream and…
Release data: Kurtz Mindfields – Flying AgainLP/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2024 Kurtz Mindfields’ “Flying Again” is the follow-up to “Flying from Berlin To Paris” as well as the result of a desire on the part of Stephen Ingrand, maker of the NRSynth synthesizer clones, to produce an album that would fit next to Tangerine Dream’s output from the mid-’70s and…
Release data: Something Completely Different – The Last Gate CD, Invisible Shadows, 2003 With the deluge of releases abroad, you would regularly forget that sometimes interesting music is also made close to home. What about SCD alias Boele Gerkes from Zutphen, whom I had never heard of until I saw him live at EMIL 2003. Boele is one of those…
Release data: Mathias Grassow – DissolutionCD, Aurora, 1999 Mr Grassow’s “Dissolution” – a dark trip dedicated to paganism – will be a treat for aficionados of deep, slow-evolving ambient and expansive drone-based sonic landscapes. The outcome is referred to as the ground, a below zero, where everything is put on hold and the wheel of life stops turning. Haunting, mystical,…
Release data: Paul Ellis & Per Thomhav – Orpheus CD/Digital Download, Groove Unlimited, 2024 I reckon many fans of contemporary Berlin School style will absolutely embrace the sparkling outcome of Ellis & Thomhav’s collaborative “Orpheus”. It’s a concept album painting strong, in-depth atmospheres through lovely sequenced parts dressed with assortments of ethereal, melancholic soundscapes and vibrant textures. The very well-engineered…
Release data: Skoulaman – Waves of WaterCD/Digital Download, Groove Unlimited, 2024 With this atmospheric, almost cinematic album, skilled composer Hans van Kroonenburg has outdone himself another time. “Waves of Water” features some 72 minutes of very well-rendered sequencer-driven Berliner School music with occasional hints of classic Teutonic electronics, all unfolding meticulously before the listeners ear. Warm synthetic sounds and…
Release data: Remy & Däcker – Live at ByssCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Deserted Island Music, 2024 Remy Stroomer and Peter Dekker were part of the select group of musicians who had the opportunity to perform at Bas Broekhuis BYSS studio during the 2020 pandemic. On that December evening, the two played together in public for the first time with a 1,5 hour…
Release data: Bruno Sanfilippo – Only Five PetalsEP, DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, AD21 Music, 2024 The 13-minute EP “Only Five Petals” is another fine exercise of reflective neoclassical piano music. The outcome, conceived during late-night sessions in the spring and summer of 2024, captures the essence of stillness and mystery as it sees Mr Sanfilippo explore the depth of his Kawai RX-3 grand piano.…
Release data: Phelios – Spirits of Rhea CD/Digital Download, Private Release, 2020 Here’s another great exercise into outer space by the accomplished Wuppertal-based composer Martin Stürtzer. The 68-minute deep galactic voyage of lush, smooth spiralling darkening soundscapes found here is enhanced beautifully with radio emissions and re-synthesised images from the Saturn system recorded by the NASA probe Cassini. Immersing in…
Release data: Altus – Ultraviolet DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2024 In a way, I find it hard to get used to and adjust to Altus’s music, which marries rhythmic structures with transparent, soft, wavering soundscapes. This is the case on “Ultraviolet” and a track like “Transmission Erosion,” in particular. As the composer already remarks, the eight-track outcome here veers away…
Release data: ARC – Chronicle CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, DiN, 2024 “Chronicle” contains Redshift’s concert performed at E-Live 2007 in the Netherlands with Mark’s huge modular on stage, and it’s actually the only one of their 8 gigs never to have been released until this very day. A closer look and listen reveals the 63 minutes of organic-sounding music featuring multiple abstract…
Release data: Robert Rich – Travelers’ ClothCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Soundscape Productions, 2023 When it comes to immersive, journey-like and dreamy music, Robert’s album “Travelers’ Cloth” -referring to the fabric of vibrating creation that surrounds us, the fabric of life that sustains us, the fragility of comfort and stability- has lots to offer. It’s actually inspired by David Hinton’s translations of T’ang dynasty Chinese…
Release data: Frank Van Boagaert – Sounds from Higher GroundsCD/Digital Download, Groove Unlimited, 2024 After two privately released albums, six albums and a CD-single through Groove Unlimited, accomplished composer, producer, and musician Frank Van Bogaert put an end to his Em career with “One out of Five” (2006). After that, he focussed his attention on his own ACE studio…
Release data: Rudy Adrian – Beyond the Sleepy HillsCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Spotted Peccary Music, 2024 Like almost all of Rudy’s previous releases, I heard lots of demo tracks and sonic sketches for this one in an early stage. Once again, the aural balm draws inspiration from the natural world. Something that’s different though and noticeable quite soon (despite the music still…
Release data: F.D. Project – The Last Curtain CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Groove Unlimited, 2024 On his previous recordings, Dinslaken-based composer Frank Dorittke has proven he knows his ways around with electronics, with or without enticing e-guitar. On the nearly 71-minute “The Last Curtain”-which Frank refers to as the best from his self-released download albums “Project M.O.M.”, “Atmos” and “Earth and Moon”-…
Release data: Peter Challoner – ResonanceCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Groove Unlimited, 2024 I’ve been following this UK-musician since 2004, seeing him evolve from an amateur to an established, skilled synthesist finding his own way in the genre (mostly solo but also by collaborating with Jez Creek through Infinity Curve) with his textural ambient, rhythmic-spiced contemporary electronics. As Peter writes in the booklet,…
Release data: Pyramid Peak – Kontinuum CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2024 Pyramid Peak’s 12th studio album has a special feature, as the music was produced for the first time by Axel Stüpplich only, as Andreas Morsch is still in his musical break that began in mid-2023. Nevertheless, everything that Pyramid Peak has been known for, for over 20 years, is…
Release data: Brendan Pollard – Filaments CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Acoustic Wave Records, 2024 “Filaments” is an adventure into the more darker and experimental side of his music but still has Mr Pollard’s occasional sequencer elements. On four tracks, Brendan’s electronics are joined by Michael Daniel’s tasty guitar work. The first two tracks start out in a gloomy, dark and psychedelic fashion,…
Release data: Brent A. Reiland & John Lyell – Wormholes CD, Solarwind Productions, 1998 “Wormholes”, the debut album by US musicians Brent E. Reiand and John Lyell, occupies a very distinctive corner within ambient music. The release showcases a strange kind of space ambient with both dark -think music on the Hypnos-label- and somewhat lighter passages, in which the use…
Release data: Frederique Rousseau – Spirit in the WoodsCD, Origins, 1997 French engineer and musician Frederick Rousseau will be know by many due to his work with Vangelis in the ‘80’s and the ‘90’s as well as Jean Michel Jarre, but he also did various own releases aside from being involved in many film projects. This release, for which…
Release data: Letum – The Entrance to Salvation CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Cold Meat Industry, 2001 Anyone wanting to try a not-too-hard-hitting album of dark ambient should give the (second) cd by Letum, aka Swede Mattias Hendriksson, a try. Letum, which besides death also seems to be some god from the underworld, manages for 50 minutes to set a dreary, monastic and…
Release data: Robert Rich & Luca Formentini – For Sundays when it rainsCD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Soundscape Productions, 2022 When it comes to atmospheric recordings, Robert Rich has always something special to offer. To create the electro-acoustic as well as ambient outcome, Luca spent three days at Robert’s new home in Carmel. This with the aim to record as many guitar tracks…
Release data: Alpha Wave Movement – Resonant WavesCD-r/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Harmonic Resonance Recordings, 2024 Gregory Kyryluks’ “Resonant Waves” is a contemporary electronic release purposely realized on four pieces of equipment and no software (the composer is not a fan of soft synths whatsoever). The seven-track outcome is lively, rhythmic-driven, airy, and transparent sounding with nice high-tech, groovy bits and flavours and…