Release data: Rhea – 108 Minutes -that changed the world- CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Wool-E Discs, 2018 Rhea’s “108 Minutes” -a three track/65-minute sonic tribute to Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space- is a nicely accomplished travelogue for all who love to dwell and space-out in cosmic environs. Synthesist Mark de Wit takes his listeners deep into a minimalist,…
Release data: Altus – Trailhead: Singles Collection Volume 4 DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2019 Since his debut “24 Hours” (2001), Canadian Mike Carss has proved a skilled ambient composer of emotive textural landscapes full of elegance and drama. In addition, expansiveness, deepness as well as a symphonic component lies at the core of his albums and single tracks. With “Trailhead”,…
Release data: Skyscaper – Atmospheric Stratification [Reshape] CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Gterma, 2020 This release was put out simultaneously with Mathias Grassow’s “The Dreamquest Sessions”. It’s made by label-owner, sound designer, composer and audio postproduction engineer Anders Peterson, also known for his mastering expertise found on almost all Gterma releases. [Rescape] is a reinterpretation of the original “Atmospheric Stratification” album (originally released…
Release data: Ron Boots & Synth.nl – BorkHavn CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Groove Unlimited, 2020 Many will recall Ron & Michel’s fine debut album “Refuge en Verre” based on music drafts made during a vacation of both families in Belgium. A decade later “BorkHavn” sees the light of day, distilled from live improvised music made in a similar setting a few years…
Release data: Gadi Sassoon – Multiverse LP/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, A Strangely Isolated Place, 2020 Gadi Sassoon is a composer from Milan of Syrian and Italian heritage who published music under the aliases Memory9 and Aliens at Home previously. “Multiverse” (existing both as stereo mixes and as an immersive multichannel experience) though is the first record he releases under his own name and is the…
Release data: Kyoto – Squares & Triangles DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Microcosmos Records, 2020 Once in a while I enjoy listening to some ambient-chill music, a genre where this one fits in for sure. Kyoto is the moniker of Russian musician, dj and producer Vitalii Zenkov who’s been active for some 15 years in various electronica genres. “Squares & Triangles” features over…
Release data: Brain Ballet – Aquarium of the Deep Sea CD-r/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Magnanimous Records, 2004 I feel ambient music celebrating the magic and beauty of the water element is something special. In this respect chasing “Aquarium of the Deep Sea”, an obscure release by Hidemasa Kondo -aka Brain Ballet- is worth the effort. The 41-minute/8-track outcome is a calm, introspective,…
Release data: Kloob – Cryptic Interactions CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 The sonic world of Spanish ambient sound sculptor Kloob I’m accustomed to so far is one of deep invocation, and his “Cryptic Interactions” (inspired by various weird encounters with ‘suspected entities’ that mankind has had throughout history) is no exception. Dark, dense expanses, spacious environs and ancient mystery shake…
Release data: Lost Radiance – Marly Digital Download/CD-r, Sense/Net Neu Harmony, 2016 “Lost Radiance” is a project by the Russian trio Alexander Asimov, Roman Rogov and Yuriy Miller. “Marly” (a character in William Gibsons cyber-punk novel “Count Zero”) is a 47-minute outing into retro Berlin School territory with minimalist touches featuring energetic, tight and driving sequencers. It strikes even higher on the…
Release data: Mathias Grassow – The Dreamquest Sessions CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Gterma, 1998/2020 At the end of 2020 Gterma surprised its fans and followers with the release of “The Dreamquest Sessions”, an ambient work of art Mathias Grassow created in 1998 for which he asked Klause Wiese to contribute the pure, clean soundings of Tibetan Singing Bowls. The recording is in fact the third…
Release data: Juta Takahashi – Music for Urban Promenades II CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Lunisolar Records, 2020 This is a second volume of continuous low volume ambient environs inspired by a collage of faint bell sounds heard inside an indoor shopping mall in Yokohama. Next to some acoustic piano and synths, Juta mainly applied Tibetan Singing Bowls among other bells of which…
Release data: Cosmic Ground – 0110 CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 The music of the German project Cosmic Ground fits in the league of vintage electronic music of the beginning and middle of the ´70`s made with a fine selection of classic hardware synths as well as some bass and guitar. The 5-track/78-minute “0110” is another highly atmospheric and powerful…
Release data: Brian Eno – Film Music 1976 – 2020 CD/LP/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Universal Music, 2020 All familiar with his music know a lot of Brian Eno’s music has (or evokes) a cinematic impact. The 17-track “Film Music: 1976 – 2020”, which contains seven newly available pieces, proves his music also works very well without having the visuals to accompany them. Next to that,…
Release data: Awenson – Aweena CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Groove Unlimited, 2020 On this album (an ode to love, beauty, peace and harmony) Joël Bernard identifies himself with Aweena, a self-created cosmic divinity bringing humanity the opposite of all the sorrow and aftermath caused by the worldwide covid pandemic. The 77-minute outcome is a kind of contemporary cosmic symphony featuring an assortment…
Release data: Andrew Heath – The Alchemist’s Muse CD/Digital Download, Disco Gecko Music, 2020 I won’t deny (and even want to stress) it demands a special ear and state of mind to immerse into environmental ambiences with a minimal touch. The Budd/Eno-esque sonic architecture displayed to the 60-minute “The Alchemist’s Muse” features guitar drones, warm textural layers, heavily treated field…
Release data: Simon Lomax – eM DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Council of Nine, 2020 As for many other artists Covid19 brought a period of pause. In case of Simon Lomax it allowed him to turn to and reflect on some neglected work in the form of a 22-minute Ep of some experimental pieces he’d dabbled with on and off over the past…
Release data: Martin Stürtzer – Far Beyond the Stars DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Exosphere Music, 2020 This is the debut album of German soundartist Martin Stürtzer (better known as Phelios and the project Späre Sechs) on Synphaera’s sublabel Exophere. “Far Beyond the Stars” is a full-blown spaced-out ambient work that sees a pairing of darker tones, ethereal soundscapes and profound textures with…
Release data: Ashtoreth & Stratosphere – Between Worlds CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Winter-Light, 2020 “Between Worlds” is a full-length collaboration of Belgian musicians Ashtoreth (aka Peter Verwimp) and Stratosphere (aka Ronald Mariën). Together they deliver a 7-track ambient soundscape with some ritualist dark as well as some occult undercurrents at work that remains accessible all the way. Elevating the listener to higher,…
Release data: Time Being – An Ocean of Time CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Spotted Peccary Music, 2020 With their third full-length release, aka US-synthesists Jourdan Laik and Phillip Wilkerson take another step forward in developing and defining their musical signature. As on the previous albums, “Ocean of Time” has a lot to like for fans of immersive, textural-ambient space music. As we…
Release data: Sequentia Legenda – Beyond the Stars CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 On each new album Laurent Schieber keeps pushing the boundaries while expressing his enduring passion for (and presenting his interpretation of) classic Schulze Berlin School electronics. On “Beyond the Stars”, once again featuring lengthy sonic excursions only, Laurent has started riding the cosmic waves even more profound.…
Release data: Steve Roach – Tomorrow CD/LP/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Projekt Records, 2020 Drawing from a vast, unique and deeply personal authenticity, Steve’s works are and always have been fueled by the momentum of a lifetime dedicated to (what he refers to as) The Soundcurrent. “Tomorrow” offers equal parts serene floating space music, as well as kinetic movement and minimalist sequencer-based forms that…
Release data: Desensitized – Hemispherica Portalis (Portal of 1000 Years) CD/Digital Downbload, Spotted Peccary Music, 2020 It can be an interesting yet refreshing experience when a musician decides to travel a different sonic path than usual. Such is the case for Deborah Martin and Dean De Benedictis who joined their talents as Desensitized, a rather experimental-ish New Age music project.…
Release data: Boreal Taiga – Elementa Soundtrack DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Wayfarer Records, 2020 “Elementa” is New Zealand-based nature photographer and film maker Richard Sidey’s second feature collaboration with ambient composer Boreal Taiga that’s also concluding the director’s Speechless trilogy. The compelling, non-verbal film (released in June 2020) is a black-and-white visual meditation of all that is wild – an escape and…
Release data: Kloob & Onasander – Mundus Patet CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Winter-Light, 2020 Fall and winter make most appropriate seasons for deeper listening and travels into dark ambient spaces. Specialized in this EM-genre, Dutch Winter-Light-label brings us “Mundus Patet” (the world is open) named after an esoteric, dark rite exercised by the ancient Romans where the boundaries between the world of…
Release data: Forrest Fang – The Book of Wanderers CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Projekt Records, 2020 On all previous albums of Forrest Fang I’ve encountered so far I’ve much enjoyed a rather complex style of music merging elements from Non-Western and Western music elements sophisticatedly. Being confined in his home studio during the Covid lockdown in spring and summer 2020, Forrest felt…
Release data: Johannes Schmoelling & others – 20 CD-EP, Viktoriapark Records, 2020 This is a celebratory release due to the 20th anniversary of Viktoria Park Records founded by Johannes Schmoelling in December 2000. The 30-minute Ep features four previously unreleased tracks where harmonic, melodic lines merge sophistically with delicate yet evocative sequences. There are two compositions Johannes made with his…
Release data: Thom Brennan – Night Lights CD-r/Digital Download, TMB Soundworks, 2020 “Night Light” brings six lengthy tracks where lush swirling soundscapes hover over long strings of smooth pulsating, minimalist sequencer patterns. Brennan’s aural signature is all over the place as is vintage vibe showing up now and then in the imaginary but also sustained dynamic outcome. In a way…
Release data: 猫 シ Corp & telepath – Building a Better World CD/LP/MC, Hiraeth Records, 2019/2020 Jornt Elzinga is a Dutch music producer and owner of Hiraeth Records who’s been making music using the 猫 シ Corp pseudonym (that means something like Cat System Corp). For the beautifully constructed, stellar mastered “Building a better World” (10 tracks, 43:43 minutes) Jornt teamed up…
Release data: TheAdelaidean – Isolation CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Projekt Records, 2020 From Down Under comes “Isolation” by successful Aussie writer Sean Williams. The latter uses the moniker TheAdelaidean to explore original and collaborative soundscapes while referring to his output as structured ambient sound. Composed entirely during lockdown, the 62-minute ambient-textural release created out of fragmentatry field recordings is meant to bring…
Release data: Quiet Places – Volume One LP/Digital Download, A Strangely Isolated Place, 2020 Quiet Places is UK’s seasoned electronic music producer trio Dennis White, Charlie May and Dave Gardner (best known as long-time collaborators with Sasha), now focusing on vivid and wide-screen ambient journeys. According the info, the outcome was born out of a whisky-inspired late-night laptop jam session…
Release data: Daniel & Booth – Circle of Phenomenon DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Electronic Composers Outlet, 2020 This is Michael Daniel & Phil Boots’ second album made available on Mai 1st 2020 as a special ECO lockdown/one day only digital preview. “Circle of Phenomenon” features four lengthy tracks clocking between 18 and 20 minutes each. It’s a most enjoyable listen for all…
Release data: Erik Wøllo & Michael Stearns – Convergence CD/Digital Download, Projekt Records, 2020 “Convergence” marks the debut collaboration between Erik Wøllo and Michael Stearns offering a blend of slowly-evolving, contemplative and intimate music reflecting a very visionary and vast aural landscape. The outcome is a perfect blending of technology, music, and emotion utilizing sophisticated electronics, acoustic and original instruments like…
Release data: Under the Dome – Almagest DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Cochlear Vision, 2020 What a surprise to the this recording pop up out of the blue after so many years, as UTD’s last release (“Over the Pond”) came out in 2003. The major part of the 10-track/69-minute release was recorded between April and July 2020 with the exception of a tribute…
Release data: Ran Kirlian – Sidereus Nuncius DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Altera Orbe, 2020 The largest part of “Sidereus Nuncius” (Sidereal Messenger) -named after Galileo Galilei’s famous 1610 astronomical treatise- was created mostly during the Covid19 confinement in spring 2020. It served as an imaginary escape route for the composer to travel light-years away without leaving his home studio. Moreover, it was…
Release data: Echoflex – Echoflex I Digital Download, SeeHear Recordings, 2020 “Echoflex 1” is an ambient recording by Echoflex, aka Plymouth-based composer and visual artist David Muddyman (also a member of the band Loop Guru) who lives close to the sea on the Devon/Cornwall border. He developed an interest in how emotions could be brought into a sound palette by…
Release data: Juta Takahashi – Music for Urban Promenades CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Lunisolar Records, 2020 Taking inspiration from a collage of faint bell sounds heard inside an indoor shopping mall in Yokohama, Juta Takahashi decided to undertake his own environmental approach and create this continuous low volume ambience. The outcome, the nearly 63-minute “Music for Urban Promenades”, is a slow evolving…
Release data: Ava Felsenstein – Hydrolux DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2014 Through the years there have been several electronic musicians who make or have made Jarre-inspired music or music recreating his synth sounds and atmospheres such as Kebu, Victor Cerullo and MoonSatellite. German synthesist Ava Felsenstein has the same intention with “Hydrolux”. Well, the eight tracks continuing Jarre’s spherical sounds…
Release data: Havdis – Fugløya CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Gterma, 2020 “Fugløya”, Havdis’4th album on Gterma, was actually ready to go to print in early March but due to Covid19 had to sit back and wait a bit just like everyone else. This time around the album comes with some stunning photographs of label owner Johan Rehn complementing the 78-minute narrative ambient…
Release data: Steve Roach – A Soul Ascends CD/Digital Download, Projekt Records, 2020 Meant for deep inward immersion & infinite playback, “A Soul Ascends”(created over seven days in mid-April 2020 during the Covid19 crisis) kinda fits in the same league as Roach”s “Quiet Music” and other tranquil longform soundworks. While submerging in this new slow morphing outcome it becomes clear…
Release data: Eguana – Abyss DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Cosmicleaf Records, 2020 Here’s another fine work of space-ambient bliss by Sergey Severin, aka Eguana, taking its listener into an infinite destiny. “Abyss’” tranquil sonic narrative -that never becomes superficial- unfolds as a weightless drift with sets of gentle oozing textures along a sustained, smooth pulsating sequence. As the journey morphs onward effortlessly…
Release data: Colin Rayment – FRB CD-R/Digital Download, SynGate Records, 2019 For the music on this release, UK-synthesist Colin Rayment was inspired by so called Fast Radio Bursts, unusual repeating signals in the cosmos coming from a source about 1.5 billion light years away. It has led to seven contemporary-melodic mood tracks carrying the composer’s own signature sound aside from…
Release data: Max Corbacho – The Unfolding Dawn CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, SilentSun, 2020 The COVID19 confinement period triggered talented Spanish Max Corbacho creating “The Unfolding Dawn”, a continuous longform ambient expanse. The liquid, slowly and always gently transforming spaces encountered here are an in-depth sonic and highly-immersive experience where a kaleidoscope of sedate dynamics is at work while overall tranquillity, gracefulness…
Release data: Airwaves – Multiverse CD/Digital Download, Carpe Sonum, 2020 “Multiverse” is the final recording from the sadly deceased Oscar Menzel his widow discovered on his computer years ago. It is now made available to the public as a limited edition cd and digital download after another meticulous master job by David Morley. “Multiverse” features 52 minutes of music composed…
Release data: Gandalf – Secret Sarai CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, BSC/Prudence, 2020 I abandoned Gandalf’s music many years back as I found out over and over again the intriguing magical scent gracing his early work was no longer present: it had become too sweet and New Age instead. This time around multi-instrumentalist Heinz Strobl is joined by Theologos Michellis (Violin), Nicky Eggl …
Release data: Forrest Fang – Ancient Machines CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Projekt Records, 2019 Every recording by multi-instrumentalist and sound creator Forrest Fang I’ve listened to has been an enchanting, mystifying and intriguing experience. In the creative process of molding and shaping “Ancient Machines”, the composer acknowledged the early sounds and influences of minimalists Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and Terry Riley. Furthermore,…
Release data: Janne Hanhisuanto – Ambient Collection 2020 Digital Download, Private Release, 2020 This release features 10 remastered ambient tracks taken from previous released albums created between 2007 and 2019. Some of these albums are hard to find nowadays. One of the pieces (“Warm Memory”) is previously unreleased while four tracks were taken from the 2012-recording “Quiet Places”, an album…
Release data: Gáston Arévalo – Terrain LP/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, A Strangely Isolated Place, 2020 Seven years after “Rollin Ballads” Uruguayan sound artist and musician Gastón Arévalo returns with “Terrain”, an exploratory-themed ambient album told and unfolding through the lens of an expedition diary – a rich, intimate and most calming cinematic atmosphere set amongst the beauty of nature. The one-hour/12-track textural…
Release data: Madis – Sea of Tranquillity CD/LP/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Seabound Music, 2020 Here’s a nice catch for fans of synth-pop related and rather infectious-melodic electronics composed by Polish musician/producer Amadeusz Malkowskraka Madis, aka Madis. The latter launched his debut mini-album “Ocean Rain” in 2013 followed by his own remix of “Interstellar’s” main theme in 2015, various other remixes and singles,…
Release data: Brian Eno – Ambient #1: Music for Airports CD, Editions EG, 1978 “Ambient 1: Music For Airports” (conceived by Eno as an atmosphere, or a surrounding influence: a tint) broke new ground when it came out as it introduced the new term “ambient” to the musical lexicon, its modus operandi formalising the use of steady states as the…
Release data: Liquid Mind – XIII: Mindfulness CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Real Music, 2020 Well, here’s an electronic recording heading up the New Age avenue. Liquid Mind, aka US-composer Chuck Wild, started in January of 1988 during a time of personal crisis to help heal from anxiety and panic disorder. Since then, music has been an important part of Mr Wild’s own…
Release data: Zanov – Chaos Islands CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 Zanov’s sixth album “Chaos Islands” takes inspiration by the chaos theory and contains seven electronic vignettes blending the simple and complex while the listener can expect the unexpected. Still rooted firmly in characteristic Zanov’s edged sound design, the sequence-driven, symphonic-angled, partly melodic outcome features various most peculiar twists and…
Release data: Spacecraft – Excursion DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 This is not a recording by USA’s Tony Gerber & co but a solo music project by the same name of Bombay-based musician Rishi Bhatia. “Excursion” -the follow-up of 2019’s “Mars”- is a 22-minute/4-track EP is a treat for fans of lush soundscape music as it takes the listener into…
Release data: Lauri Lest – Duality DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 “Duality” -an ode to introspection in the age of machines, devices and constant strive for progress and success- is the hypnotic-ish, rather spacey and often beat-less debut recording by Estonian electronic musician Lauri Lest. In the process of creating the 6-track, pure-synth music the composer’s aim was to focus…
Release data: Hyonodial – Good Times End Times DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 Hypnodial is an ambient chill-out project by Spanish musician Ilia Rodríguez who released his debut “Aether Alcoves” in 2017, followed by the Ep “Sub” in 2019. The outcome of “Good Times End Times” (according the composer conceptually moving into more abstract, stream-of-consciousness terrain) consists of 7 tracks/45…
Release data: Skoulaman – Deepminds DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2020 “Deepminds” offers a nice set of music consisting of four compositions Hans van Kroonenburg published previously on YouTube as well as three new pieces: “Polymood”, “Mytilini Intermission” and the title track. The latter were created with (and inspired by) a couple of second hand instruments Hans got his hands on…
Release data: Brian Eno – Ambient #4: On Land CD, EG Records, 1982 As a big fan of ambient music for many years, I wondered how I could forget giving some attention to Brian Eno, one of the godfathers of ambient electronic music. In the years preceding “On Land” the idea of making music that in some way related to…
Release data: Germind – Flows Digital Download, Synphaera Records, 2017 “Flows” is the debut release of Russian composer Mihail Glukhov, aka Germind, an ambient recording taking the listener on a 66-minite ride to the farthest reaches of the universe. The gentle morphing celestial courier features 8-track minimal, enveloping soundscape arrangements of a drony, darker nature. It recalls the impressionist realm…
Release data: Dave Bessell – Reality Engine CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, DiN, 2020 The surreal, gothic and cinematic form the main thread on Mr Bessell’s “Reality Engine”, his second solo album on DiN. This time around the UK-composer indulged his passion for literature in compositions inspired by the writings of Jorge Luis Borges, the Brothers Grimm and Lord Dunsany. Still applying analogue…
Release data: Loneward – Moongate CD-R/Digital Download, Private Release, 2020 As Loneward, Canadian synthesist Mike Carss started a new sonic journey in 2018 into what he referred to as purer ambient. “Moongate”, where processed guitar (both electric and acoustic) and soft synths taking centre stage, is a drifting, slightly pastoral-oriented affair of slow moving textures that come and go. It’s…
Release data: Robert Schroeder – C’est Magique CD/DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Spheric Music, 2020 I confess I somewhat gave up on on Mr Schroeder after the uninspired outcome of his previous two releases. Well, on his 2020-release “C’est magique” -a sound excursion into the depths of magic- the Aachen-based composer turns up the ambient chill-out avenue. Despite my low expectations Robert seems…