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Music

Sonologyst – Electrons (New Edition)

Our friend Sonologyst (Raffaele Pezzalla) has released his first project of 2023, and it’s a deep listen, taking the existence of electrons as its subject matter.  From his Bandcamp site:

“As the theory of the atom, quantum mechanics is perhaps the most successful theory in the history of science. It enables physicists, chemists, and technicians to calculate and predict the outcome of a vast number of experiments and to create new and advanced technology based on the insight into the behaviour of atomic objects. But it is also a theory that challenges our imagination. It seems to violate some fundamental principles of classical physics, principles that eventually have become a part of western common sense since the rise of the modern worldview in the Renaissance…”

You can read more at the site by clicking the link above.

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Music

Wings Of An Angel – Hieronymus Bosch’s Belated Revenge Comes On Like Thunder And Shakes Us Asunder

Despite the horribly long song and album titles, Wings Of An Angel is an ambient music machine, pumping out quality ambient music almost daily.  This is the album that caught my attention recently, and the tracks are long, droning tracks that float on clouds.  Despite the frequency of output, WOAA maintain great quality in their music.

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Music

Ophtalmologist – Julius Vernus Explorator

It’s quite a rare thing for music titles, especially instrumental tracks, to actually match the music produced.  A case in point was a four-album noise release whose name I happily forgot trying to reference a classic of literature.  No need to embarrass the artist or the writer, but it seemed that the choice of subject wasn’t appropriate for the music (at least to my humble ears).  This is not such a case.  Ophtalmologist is the artistic name of Theodoros Hernandez, a Greek-Mexican composer who might be working out of France. He specializes in what I would assume is ambient drone, but it’s a rather vigorous and seaworthy.  Yes, you read that right!

The title of the album references one of my favorite writers of my childhood, the ever-magnificent Jules Verne.  I wasn’t quite sure of what to expect, but after playing the track Meridiani Planum, I felt the immediate need to go 20,000 leagues under the sea.  The album as a whole is filled with fine drone, but it is not run-of-the-mill.  Something special is happening, at least in the first half, of this album.  It becomes more comfortable and familiar after track 3, but this is not to say I lost interest.  It is a solid listen all the way through, and that magnificent beginning hooked my attention for the rest of the album.

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Music

Tewksbury – Brutes

Douglas Tewksbury is an ambient musician out of, I believe, Canada.  I am quite impressed with the spacious and elegant nature of his music.  From his record label, HushHush’s Bandcamp site:

“‘Brutes‘ serves as a follow-up Tewksbury’s debut album ‘Paths.’ Released by the boutique Dutch label Geertruida Records in June 2021, Paths signaled Tewksbury’s initial intersection of music with his full-time work as a professor and researcher. Currently teaching at Niagara University in Lewiston, New York with a specialization in the media’s role in interpreting and affecting the debate on climate change, Tewksbury’s academic work has taken him on travels to cold-weather climates and ice-covered landscapes in places such as Norway, Sweden, Newfoundland, Alaska, and in Canada. These eye-opening experiences forced him to confront and ultimately commemorate the singular feeling of both unbearable beauty and unbearable loss in the slowly dissolving erasure of these ice-covered lands. In discussing the meaning and motivation behind ‘Paths,’ Doug says, “I wanted to try to make moments of stillness and transcendence in the face of looming disaster. It’s not easy to look at where we are with climate change and environmental destruction and be hopeful—and I’m pretty pessimistic about our odds—but I guess I just wanted to make something beautiful for listeners. I don’t really know if art can save us, but it seems especially important right now.”

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Music

Fellirium – Burning Boats

Andrey Vasilyev (Piano, Guitars, Effects) recorded a sublime lo-fi drone folk album in February 2021.  It’s a wispy album out of Russia that remind me of a grungier take on relaxing psychedelic music.

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Music

James Ross / Jim Goodin / Joseph Benzola – Ross Drone: 2nd February 2014

Joseph Benzola is an electroacoustic composer, drummer and percussionist whose work I had the pleasure of reviewing on my old blog, but it’s time to catch up on his work.

He has been joined by James Ross, who composed this 33-minute track and plays guitar and electronics, and Jim Goodin, who adds viola and more electronics.

The track is excellent, and what impressed me most was the fact that it was a gentle wall of noise, reminding me of gamelan music somehow. It’s a rather elegant release for an experimental music recording.