Source: The Guardian. By the time Jon Hassell became a revered figure – the kind of determinedly non-commercial, avant-garde artist whose ideas are … Jon Hassell Profiled in Memorium
Ambient
Max Brody – MAXBRODYWORLD TV 2006-2007: THE SOUNDTRACK
If you haven’t heard the name Max Brody before, you probably know a lot of the bands he’s worked with: Ministry, the Test Apes, the Butthole Surfers, Scratch Acid, the Big Boys, Lubricated Goat and so many others. He was a powerhouse drummer in the Austin Industrial music scene, but Continue Reading
László Hortobágyi – The Amygdala Expedition
This is quite a momentous occasion for me, as áMARXE Records out of Galicia, Spain, release an album by Hungarian composer László Hortobágyi which has been shelved since 1989. The album was programmed specifically for vinyl, and áMARXE are releasing a small edition of 250 copies, no doubt of high Continue Reading
RHaD – Metamusic
It’s one thing when you’re the impresario of a record label who consistently delivers astoundingly good quality. It’s quite something else when you make music yourself that is as solid as any of the releases you so lovingly curate. RHaD (Research for Historical Audio Documents) is a side project of Continue Reading
Ferran Fages – Llum Moll
I’ve had the pleasure of reading about Farren Fages‘ work for at least 20 years now, but I never had a chance to fully explore his work. I’m happy to say that I regret not diving into his catalogue earlier. It’s impressive, to say the least. This particular album, Llum Continue Reading
Gadi Sassoon – Multiverse
Gadi Sassoon is an Italian sound designer and composer whose latest release comes from the venerable Los Angeles-based record label A Strangely Isolated Place. I had only heard one track of his work before, this coming from ASIP’s 2020 Compilation. Though impressive, it didn’t prepare me for one of the Continue Reading
稷廬 / jì lú – 山與客聽 / Mountain, Traveler, Listener
The Sichuan, China-based Jì Lú (稷廬) are a new project that has connections with one of China’s most innovated bands, Raflum. The instrumentation on this album is sparse, but it makes for good listening, as bamboo flute and guitar seem to blend pleasantly. Some notes regarding the release: When talking about landscapes in the traditional context, it’s mostly about reclusion. Although true recluses are rare, the mountains and rivers are always there. Ironically, the real landscapes are actually “horrible nature” instead of some leisure place. The traditional landscape paintings are a kind of “tame nature,” which were described as “To observe with meditation, and lie down to experience” and “Sitting in the forest and spring instead of go to banquet” by ancient Chinese poets. It emerge at North and South Dynasty, then become a game of finding the essence during the Five Dynasties and the Song Dynasty, and finally stuck in the static self-development after the Ming and Qing Dynasties. The development of landscape paintings are just like how people detach with the nature and entering urban life. This album is the continuation of this thesis. In a time when the virtual reality are replacing urban life, we attempt to reinterpret this cliche with improvisation that based on the topic of “landscape.” We also naming the songs by minutes and seconds instead of the traditional way of titling the songs, which is based on its imagery. That creates interactive between the “teller” and listener, and reflects the beauties for individuals due to their own aesthetic experiences. At this time, the distant, outmoded, cumbersome and vague image of landscape might leave a huge space for “starting again.” Instrumental Continue Reading
Stijn Hüwels & Tomoyoshi Date – 遠き火、遠き雲’ (A Distant Fire, A Distant Cloud)
laaps Records is a French label releasing quality ambient music. This one seems to be their latest, a calming wash of sounds composed by Belgian composer Stin Hüwels in collaboration with the Brazilian-Japanese composer and sound artist (and emergency room doctor!) Tomoyoshi Date. The music is a mix of organic Continue Reading
Sailcloth – Woodcut
A pleasant find. Alex Luquet, the aforementioned Sailcloth, is an American composer based in Pennsylvania who works with a double bass, synthesizers and guitar which, in turn, produce engaging drone-scapes. The tones are rich, easy to get lost in (you might be picking up on a theme in that I Continue Reading
HIEMIS – La Chose
Gradual Hate Records has had a stream of excellent releases this year, but this album by HIEMIS, an artist out of Spain, is the best of the bunch. This is dark, gothic (in the original sense, not the bad makeup sense), ethereal and would compare well to artists who made Continue Reading