Karl Willebrant released an EP’s worth of meditative music that would be appealing to fans of groups like Embryo and Popol Vuh. The tunes are gentle, a bit on the kosmische side, and well-balanced in terms of its sonic character. This is a rather fine little release.
From the impeccable Spotted Peccary:
“”Spotted Peccary Music is thrilled to announce the 20th anniversary release of TIBET by Deborah Martin and Cheryl Gallagher, completely remastered and remixed for Dolby Atmos and Spatial audio, finally presenting this masterful work as it was originally envisioned – a total immersive experience of being in the land above the clouds.
This richly textured musical sojourn beautifully inspires through the blending of electronic and acoustic instruments with traditional Tibetan percussion, instruments, and actual on-site recordings of sounds and prayers intoned by the peoples indigenous to that geographic region.
Now after 20 years, these eight original compositions have been realized in their fullest potential with the help of modern technology not available when the project was first released. Deborah states, “In listening to the remastered and Atmos versions of this very special project, I realized that the music not only transported me back to the land and peoples, but it instilled in me the fact that I never really left.” Cheryl adds: “TIBET was then and remains now a transcendent experience of remarkable personal growth and creative expression, an unforgettable experience of fire and ice, seamlessly combining the hellish uncertainty of life in Tibet with unfettered light filled bliss of said life in equal measures.”
Absolute respect to the estimable Ernesto Diaz-Infante for telling me about this noble cause. Foxy Digitalis has a nearly 3o-year track record, first as a xeroxed zine, and the in its current digital incarnatiom, of reviewing what I would rate as the absolute best of non-mainstream music. This compilation, featuring Ernesto, Lawrence English, Yann Novak, zàke, Stephen Vitiello and a number of names who are new to me, but no less impressive, have contributed tracks for the purpose of helping to keep Foxy Digitalis up and running. Do consider a donation. The magazine, as I hope is the case with this blog, is absolutely worth your time!
Rudy Adrian has been at the forefront of New Age music since the early 2000s, and shamefully, I lost contact with his releases. It’s quite nice to catch up with him on his latest release, a collection of relaxing ambient music to soothe your mind a bit, but also to enjoy as proper electronic music. Rudy remains a craftsman.
From the legendary duo’s Bandcamp site:
“We present this soulful 30 year reunion between two stalwarts of Ambient-Electronic music in its entirety, exactly as it occurred. Steve and Robert answered the urge for unification after a very long orbit and 40 year friendship, reuniting and engaging their collective creative process, fueled with decades of individual innovations, genre defining releases and worldwide concerts. Recorded live to a sold-out audience on December 5, 2023 at the Club Congress, Tucson Arizona. The set flowed through solo and duo passages, culminating in pieces from the classics Strata and Soma. The energy was electric throughout the night and the set that formed with a rapt audience is beautifully captured, presenting what feels like a hybrid studio – live convergence within the waves of now.”
Norman Records does a far more in-depth job introducing the world to the music of North Macedonian composer Dimitar Dodovski a wee bit better than I could. From their promo sheet:
“”Dimitar Dodovski approaches his craft of granular synthesis from a melodic perspective at most definitely the warmer end of the drone spectrum. Opening track ‘I’ introduces, of all things, mallet-struck chimes amongst the digital layers. The mallets recur on the following track (‘II’), but only when you least expect them. Staccato synth rises from a mist-draped lake of sound, each milky chord change rung by a bell. Pixelated textures drop in, then out, then back into focus again as Dodovski deftly carries us along on his smooth, humid, watery journey. It’s a gradually, dreamily dissolving picture of serenity. Sounds to submerge yourself in. By track 4, handily entitled ‘IV (Soul)’ I am spellbound by such moments of beauty that I have stopped typing and words have totally evaded me. For several minutes. That’s really not a good thing for a reviewer — but it *is* a recommendation. So. There. Especially if you enjoyed Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith and Suzanne Ciani’s latest joint opus. The rest of the album is equally lush. Even the choral pads and New Age-isms of some of the sounds can’t detract from that. It’s so very tropical sounding, unhurried; I can imagine stop-motion photography of an orchid blooming afresh to each struck note. David Attenborough’s voice optional but not entirely unnecessary.” –Norman Records”
There’s little I can add to my dear friend, the Last American Poet, Shane Beck, and heir to the Berlin-School throne, Michael Brückner, so I will let the gentlemen speak for themselves. You can read further at this release’s Bandcamp site:
In what turned out to be a spontaneous burst of inspiration, poet / lyricist / spoken word artist Shane Beck and electronica composer Michael Brückner created this circle of five pieces together that are based as much around the mystical splendor of nature as on the vast inner landscape of human longing for eternal love, spiritual transcendence and integration of experiences of loss and pain into a transformative and ultimately healing process.
Do take the time to look at the Bandcamp link, as you will be able to read Shane’s poetry there.
Twelve Improvisations For Piano Solo is a solo piano album by Spanish pianist Javi Cánovas from 2016. It’s an elegant listening experience comfortably sitting on a corner where contemporary classical, jazz and new age congregate.
What a tribute from Irmán, a composer from Portugal. From his Bandcamp website:
“Für Eline is a love song, a testimony to my relationship with my wife. We’ve been together for over 20 years, we have a beautiful daughter and we’ve been through many things, both good and bad. Since mid-2020 my wife has been a champion, guiding me and our house while I’m physically unable due to depression. This song is my gift to her.”