We’re lucky to have so many talented musicians and composers in Los Angeles covering all genres. One of the most intriguing I’ve come across lately is Yann Novak, who hails from Wisconsin originally, but who is, like myself, a Southern Californian. Yann has recorded with labels such as 901 Editions, Continue Reading
Ambient
Matthew Halsall – Salute to the Sun – Live at Hallé St. Peter’s
There’s not much to say about Matthew Halsall that hasn’t been thoroughly discussed over the past decade. He deserves the accolades, of course, but this live album is quite a treat. This is really going to appeal to fusion fans, especially Bitches Brew and Live-Evil-era Miles Davis, as well as Continue Reading
William Ryan Fritch – Built Upon a Fearful Void
Soundtrack composers don’t seem to need films to cue inspiring, haunting scores anymore. Take, for example, the new double album by Californian composer William Ryan Fritch. The story that goes along with this fabulous artifact is as impressive as the music is. We let the label, Lost Tribe Sounds, tell Continue Reading
Xerxes The Dark – Soundtrack To The Blind Owl
I feel a bit silly admitting this, but for some reason, I thought I had Soundtrack To The Blind Owl previously. Iran’s foremost dark ambient composer Xerxes The Dark has been active for many years now, and is part of a pretty amazing scene developing in one of the least Continue Reading
Various Artists – Anthology Of Exploratory Music From India
India is a country with such an embarrassingly rich musical history that it boggles the mind as to how good it is, and it’s not merely their traditional music. Jazz, pop, progressive rock, metal and everything else you can imagine seems to flourish there, yet there is only one problem. Continue Reading
Cousin Silas – Dreamsville
Cousin Silas is one of my favorite guitarists, and I can’t think of many who are better at making such mellow soundscapes. This is one of his latest albums, and his massive body of work is consistently good. Really consider looking him up on Facebook and following his massive release Continue Reading
trajedesaliva – Mima Blanca
My friends from trajedesaliva gifted me one of their older albums recently, and as I had some spare time to listen today, I indulged in Mima Blanca. It took me a moment to figure out what this reminded me of, but then it dawned on me – several incredibly good Continue Reading
Jonny Martyr – Impossible Space
A pleasant surprise out of Edinburgh, Scotland. Jonny Martyr is a pianist who manages to, “build a world of sound with contemporary classical, electronica, post-rock and serialist influences.” There is truth in advertising in this release, as each track manages to balance these genres perfectly. It looks like Martyr has a Continue Reading
Celer – In Light Of Blues
Will Long is Celer, an ambient music composer living in Japan and therefore, a relatively close expatriate neighbor of mine. He releases a lot of music, as is the fashion with some highly competent composers these days, but his work feels like a cut above. Though this album has 12 Continue Reading
Gil Talmi – Unspooled
Thanks to my friend and Galego brother Andrés, I’ve come across a soundtrack composer and sound designer out of New York called Gil Talmi. He has been nominated for an Emmy Award (presumably in soundtrack music and apparently fond of working on socially conscious projects. I’m far from a bleeding heart, Continue Reading