low light mixes

flickering moments passing - a halftribe guest mix

 

 

I've been a fan of halftribe(Ryan Bissett) ever since he approached me about doing a guest mix roughly 6 years ago - whoa, blows my mind that it was that long ago. Whether it's deep & dubby or straight up ambient, halftribe has released some of my favorite albums over the last 5 or 6 years. So I was excited when Ryan agreed to do a guest mix. 

Here's what Ryan said about the mix:

"It's been a little while since I put a mix together as I've been mostly just working on my next album. It's even longer since I did a mix for someone else's show, so this mix really just showcases the types of sound that are floating my boat at the minute."

 

Don't forget to check out halftribe music here... https://halftribe.bandcamp.com/ 

https://archivesdubmusic.bandcamp.com/album/daydreams-in-low-fidelity 

https://archivesdubmusic.bandcamp.com/album/luxia  

https://synphaera.bandcamp.com/album/patterns-of-sync 

https://dewtonerecordings.com/album/shells    

https://silkmusic.bandcamp.com/album/memory-module

And check the halftribe Mixcloud page... https://www.mixcloud.com/Halftribe/

 

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T:

• 00'00 Jens Pauly - Fairge
• 06'03 Tapes & Topographies - Pulse Of Durations
• 10'00 Andrew Heath - Signals And Beacons
• 14'55 Carlo Giustini - A Letizia
• 19'49 Jogging House - Air
• 24'07 Moss Covered Technology - Untitled Quiet Loop #6
• 31'01 Max Ananyev - Images In Time
• 36'02 Halftribe - Flickering Moments Passing
• 41'13 Caught In The Wake Forever - The Houses Here Have Changed Lately
• 47'24 John Hays & Maxy Dutcher - Arch Dance
• 52'22 Innesti - Compelled By Indifference
• 1'00'00 SineRider - Lapis

 

The Silence of Snow

 

 

I was fishing around for an idea for a new mix and mother nature helped out by dropping some fresh snow overnight so that became the theme - The Silence of Snow. I took the picture above on a morning walk through a local nature preserve.

 

The first draft of this mix had several piano based pieces. I think piano tunes do a nice job of conjuring up snow but I decided to pull them and save them for an all piano snow mix for later in January or February.

 

Cheers to a better 2021!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Marcus Fischer - Antarctic 2 (Arctic / Antarctic(version) 2020)
• 05:52    Offthesky - Snow Filled Summer (We Like Ambient 2013)
• 10:07    Altus - Soft Space (Trailhead 2020)
• 14:43    Kenji Kihara - men (ten sen men 2018)
• 22:34    Tonepoet - kalos eïdos skopeïn(an ending) (Kaleidoscope 2020)
• 25:30    anthéne - hollowed out (infinity lines 2020)
• 31:02    Moss Covered Technology - Quiet Loop #6 (Quiet Loops 2020)
• 37:37    Federico Durand - Flor imaginaria (Flor Imaginaria 2020)
• 41:19    Aglaia - day one (Gravitational Change 2020)
• 44:12    Test Card - Four Zero Five Line Rewind (Music For The Towers 2020)
• 47:45    SineRider - Zero Return (Fahrenheit 2017)
• 51:00    The Humble Bee - Off station, at little afternoon, amidst the saltwater marsh (Daymark 2020)
• 57:04    end

 

Stillness Within Motion

 

by Sven Geier - sgeier.net

We end the year as we began - with a mix from Paul Asbury Seaman. And a fine way to end the year it is. All of the music in this set is from 2020, making it an appropriate way to say goodbye to this tumultuous year.

Here's what Paul says about the mix:

“Stillness within motion is a concept that comes from Zen Buddhism and the martial arts. It always seemed to me a good way to try to live ordinary life as well. This program is an effort to expressing that concept musically: slow sequencers mixed with Sufi-infused sax, table and harp and electric guitar. Mixing genres a little, while still within ambient sensibilities.”

I'm not sure what 2021 will bring but I'm sure there will be plenty of music to help us get through it. And I'll continue to crank out mixes that will keep us centered while also taking us on inner and outer journeys.

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Kirsten Agresta Copely - Surya (Aroud the Sun 2020)
• 05:44    The Rosen Corporation - Stasis (Tales From Earth 2020)
• 09:22    Ariel Kalma - Dancing Goddess (My sax, my love 2020)
• 12:51    Sam Rosenthalk & Jarguna - Evening market of the petal fields pt 3 (Sunwashed Evening Fire 2020)
• 17:03    Vaast - Coma Berenices (Afterlife 2020)
• 19:20    Hibernation ft. Jello Vibes - Jello & Jaice Ambient Jazz'n'Glitch Mix (Jello and Jaice EP 2020)
• 23:44    Fritz Mayr - Winter Silence (Winter 2020)
• 28:25    Christel Veraart - Asterope (Pleiades 2020)
• 33:17    Thom Brennan - Night Lights Part One (Night Lights 2020)
• 41:15    Sequentia Legenda - Beyond from the Beyond (Beyond the Stars 2020)
• 62:07    end

 

Best Ambient Albums of 2020

 

I always label these lists and mixes as "Best Ambient," but with so much music released each year, coming up with a true best list is almost impossible. So this is really more of a list and mix of my favorite ambient albums of the year. Best of 2020 just sounds better.

I don't about you but I bought a lot of ambient music this year thanks to Bandcamp Fridays. Through regular purchases and special deals, where one could get a whole discography for like $10, I think I bought about 250 ambient albums this year. Yikes! Then add in releases that labels and artists send my way and it amounts to one hell of a lot of music. 

Thanks goodness for all that music though. I've been stuck working from home for almost 10 months and would have lost my mind without music to get me through it. One of the treats that got me through the year was Whitelabrecs excellent Home Diaries series. It featured music recorded and released during quarantine. I couldn't pick just one release so I cheated and put the whole series in my top 15 list.

It's hard to narrow down that much music into 30 or 40 favorites. I know I will miss things. But this list has a bunch of styles so it gives a nice representation of what I listened to this year. My favorite album this year was actually an easy choice, it's Mindful Movement by Clariloops.

Clariloops is Australian clarinetist, Ruby Lulham. She experiments with looping and pedals to to produce beautiful music that takes my breathe away every time I hear it. The folks at The Slow Music Movement put it best when they said, "producing music with a purity & simplicity that is both charming & striking." Please go check it out.

 

 

Here is the full list of my favorite ambient albums of 2020. I came up with a top 15 releases and then the next 30 favs are listed alphabetically.

 

1. Clariloops - Mindful Movement [self-released]
2. 36 & zakè - Stasis Sounds For Long-Distance Space Travel [Past Inside the Present]
3. Echoflex - Echoflex I - III [SeeHear Recordings]
4. Alva Noto - Xerrox Vol. 4 [Noton]
5. Vieo Abiungo - At Once- There Was No Horizon [Lost Tribe Sound]
6. The Chi Factory - AI-18 - Travel in Peace [Astral Industries]
7. Tapes and Topographies - Inoculations [Dronarivm]
8. Night Sea - Still [Silent Season]
9. Mary Lattimore - Silver Ladders [Ghostly International]
10. Mute Forest - Riderstorm [Lost Tribe Sound]
11. Andrew Heath - The Alchemist’s Muse [Discogecko]
12. Christopher Bissonnette - The Wine Dark Sea [Dronarivum]
13. Anthéne and Andrew Tasselmyer - Progressions [Constellation Tatsu]
14. Moss Covered Technology - Quiet Loops [Dewtone]
15. Whitelabrecs Home Diaries series 

 

Andrew Heath - A Trace of Phosphor [Discogecko]
Ben Salisbury- The Insects- Geoff Barrow - Devs Soundtrack [Invada]
Christopher Bissonnette - Wayfinding [12k]
Ecovillage - Arrived [Dronarivum]
Evan Caminiti - Varispeed Hydra
Flexagon - 7 Nocturnes East
Fluxion - Perspectives [Vibrant Music]
glåsbird - norskfjǫrðr [whitelabrecs]
Halftribe - Archipelago [sound in silence]
Heavenchord & Infinity Dots - light, water and silence [secret domain]
Innesti - Parenthetical
Jogging House - Be [Seil]
Johann Johannsson & Yair Elazar Glotman - Last And First Men [Deutsche Grammophon]
Loneward - Moongate
Luke Carbon - Brightest Threads [Made Now Music]
Mathieu Karsenti - bygones [Slowcraft]
Michael Grigoni + Stephen Vitiello - slow machines [12k]
Michael Scott Dawson Nowhere, Middle of [We Are Busy Bodies]
MNO - Ambient Marimba - MNO Sleeps
Mount Shrine - Shortwave Ruins [Cryo Chamber]
North Americans - Roped In [Third Man Records]
Olafur Arnalds - some kind of peace [Mercury KX]
Raymond Richards - The Lost Art Of Wandering [ESP Institute]
Roméo Poirier - Hotel Nota [sferic 2020]
Sibling & Heavenchord - Sounds Of Silence [greyscale]
SUSS - Promise [Northern Spy Records]
Thom Brennan - Night Lights
William Ryan Fritch - Sodium [lost tribe sound]
William Ryan Fritch - The Letdown [lost tribe sound]
Yagya - Old Dreams And Memories [Small Plastic Animals]

 

 

Cheers!

 

 

- - - T R A C K L I S T - - -

• 00:00    Clariloops - Mindful Movement [Mindful Movement]
• 05:50    Vieo Abiungo - At Once, There Was No Horizon [At Once, There Was No Horizon on Lost Tribe Sound]
• 09:36    The Chi Factory - Travel in Peace Part 1 [Astral Industries]
• 14:45    Mary Lattimore - Sometimes He's in My Dreams [Silver Ladders on Ghostly International]
• 17:55    Mute Forest - Return [Riderstorm on Lost Tribe Sound]
• 21:22    Ecovillage - She Walks In Beauty [Arrived on Dronarivum]
• 24:24   Andrew Heath - The Alchemist’s Muse [The Alchemist’s Muse on Discogecko]
• 31:36    Moss Covered Technology - Untitled Quiet Loop #1 [Quiet Loops on Dewtone]
• 34:23    Tapes and Topographies - Always The Last Time(SineRider Remix) [Inoculations on Dronarivum]
• 37:28    Anthéne and Andrew Tasselmyer - Progressions, Pt 1 [Progressions on Constellation Tatsu]
• 41:48    36 & zakè - Stasis Sounds for Long-Distance Space Travel Stage 2 [Stasis Sounds for Long-Distance Space Travel on Past Inside the Present]
• 47:30    Night Sea - Manila [Still on Silent Season]
• 54:00    Evan Caminiti - Radio Rome [Varispeed Hydra on Dust Editions]
• 56:21    Sibling & Heavenchord - Spacechord [Sounds Of Silence on Greyscale]
• 1:05:20    Alva Noto - Xerrox Voyage [Xerrox Vol. 4 on Noton]
• 1:08:33    Echoflex - 50°20'17"N 4°11'50"W Veering NW [Echoflex 1 on SeeHear Recordings]
• 1:12:55    Christopher Bissonnette - See With Eyes Closed [The Wine Dark Sea on Dronarivum]
• 1:17:31    Mathieu Karsenti - Upwards [bygones on Slowcraft]
• 1:21:38    Adrian Lane - We Glance Outside [Home Diaries 23 on Whitelabrecs]
• 1:23:57    Mount Shrine - Subtotem [Shortwave Ruins on Cryp Chamber]
• 1:30:24    Flexagon - La Crocq Pier 5am [7 Nocturnes East]
• 1:38:22    Jogging House - Yours [Be on Seil]
• 1:42:09    Halftribe - We Are Dust [Archipelago on Sound in Silence]
• 1:45:35    William Ryan Fritch - Movement XVIII [Sodium on Lost Tribe Sound]
• 1:49:58    end

 

Wind in Lonely Fences - A Farewell to Harold Budd

 

 

2020, you unrelenting bastard. Now you've taken Harold Budd from us. An icon in ambient music.

There's not much I can say right now except that I love his music. I have about 25 albums by Harold Budd. His music has been with me for more than 40 years. When I heard the news I knew the only tribute I could do was a mix. So here it is an hour-long mix that barely scratches the surface of his output.

Godspeed Harold, your music remains in our ears and on the wind.

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Harold Budd & Brian Eno - Wind In Lonely Fences
• 03:39    Harold Budd - Ice Floes In Eden
• 06:51    Harold Budd & Brian Eno - An Echo Of Night
• 08:53    Harold Budd & John Foxx - Coming Into Focus
• 13:15    Harold Budd - As Long As I Can Hold My Breath
• 20:07    Harold Budd & Zeitgeist - Emboldened-My Dreams Perish
• 22:16    Harold Budd - Tong War
• 27:40    Harold Budd - The Serpent in Quicksilver
• 31:00    Harold Budd - The Radiant Bride
• 34:33    Harold Budd - Sandtreader
• 39:32    Harold Budd - Down the Slopes to the Meadow
• 46:54    Harold Budd - Bismillahi 'Rrahman 'Rrahim
• 56:40    Harold Budd - Mars And The Artist
• 58:10    Harold Budd - The Pearl
• 61:04    Harold Budd - Olancha Farewell
• 63:20    end

 

 

 

 

The Stars Appear Like Diamonds

 

 

As is well documented in this blog, I am a space nerd. Over the years I have posted a ton of mixes related to the cosmos. Whether it's a stargazing mix or a celebration of the discovery of the Higgs Boson particle or a requiem for a dying space probe, ambient/electronic music is the perfect companion for turning your gaze to the heavens.

Over the last couple of months we've been treated to beautiful views of Mars, Jupiter & Saturn. Mars has been visible just after sunset in the eastern skies and has looked terrific with it's red/orange color easily setting it apart from the rest of the celestial objects.

Jupiter and Saturn are headed for a "Great Conjunction." Jupiter is usually one of the brightest night objects, but in recent months it has stood out even more than usual because of the presence of bright Saturn trailing just off to its left (east).

 

Jupiter & Saturn on Nov. 1, 2020

 

The two planets will continue to get closer and closer until Dec. 21 when they will be about one-tenth of a degree apart, appearing as a single star in the night sky. This will be their closest approach since 1623.

 

I thought about collecting a bunch of tunes with Jupiter and Saturn in the titles for a themed mix but instead I decided to go with a general stargazing mix because I had so many excellent new tracks from this year that fit perfectly. So all the cuts in this mix are from 2020 except for one random track by Altus from 2007.

 

Get outside and watch as the stars appear like diamonds and look for Jupiter and Saturn as they come together over the next month. And be sure to bring some space music with you.

 

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Alva Noto - Xerrox Neige (Xerrox Vol. 4 2020)
• 04:44    Loneward - Ethereal Glow (Moongate 2020)
• 10:25    In The Branches + Bluetech - Celestial (Portals 2020)
• 15:15    Thom Brennan - Night Lights Part 3 (Night Lights 2020)
• 20:01    Machinefabriek - Waqur (To Yemen With Love 2020)
• 23:12    Tatsuro Murakami - Inevitable Silence (Between 2020)
• 28:46    Echoflex - 50°21'40"N 4°09'44"W veering S (Echoflex II 2020)
• 33:55    Pulse Emitter - Winds (Calming Winds 2019)
• 44:50    Lauge - Floating (Latitudes 2020)
• 49:10    Altus - Dust Lanes (The Grand Expanse 2007)
• 55:41    36 & zakè - Stasis Sounds for Long-Distance Space Travel Reduction 3 (Stasis Sounds for Long-Distance Space Travel 2020)
• 64:22    end

 

Stay Inside

 

photo courtesy of https://unsplash.com/@coleito

 

 

I started this mix on a cold, rainy fall day with no theme or plan. The first track I laid down was from Progressions by Anthéne and Andrew Tasselmyer on Constellation Tatsu. Listening to it, the track seemed perfect for a grey autumn day. 

Now I had my theme or vibe. From there I just browsed my new releases folder to come up with an ambient accompaniment for sitting inside with a good book, while outside it's cold and wet.

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

 

• 00:00    Anthéne and Andrew Tasselmyer - Progressions Pt. 5 (Progressions 2020)
• 06:13    Christopher Bissonette - Overature (Wayfinding 2020)
• 09:33    Halftribe - A Clearing (Cloud Dreaming and Shadows 2020)
• 12:15    Andrew Heath - The Night Walker (The Alchemist's Muse 2020)
• 19:30    Moss Covered Technology - Untitled Quiet Loops #6 (Quiet Loops 2020)
• 25:25    thme - until then (that's what it will be like 2020)
• 29:05    't Geruis - 002 (Que tu es belle, au revoir en douceur 2020)
• 32:25    Seabuckthorn - I haven't Seen Tunis Since (Through A Vulnerable Occur 2020)
• 35:47    Hainbach - Before We Break (Light Splitting 2020)
• 39:33    Jörgen Kjellgren - Infinite Portals (Hollawood 2020)
• 42:27    Innesti - Apples Appear in All the Old Fables (Apperception 2020)
• 48:40    Zoltan Fecso - As Much As You Need (Daylight In An Empty Room 2020)
• 52:00    Max Ananyev - Images in Time (Midday 2020)
• 56:27    Wodwo - Suzuki-Miyaura ( Chematica 2020)
• 59:02    Ian Hawgood - Modulations (You Lose Yourself, and That's OK 2020)
• 60:56    end

 

Strange Beauty - 4th Excursions Vol. 2

 

 

 

sounds swim all around

drifting in the warm embrace

of this strange beauty

 

This my second 4th world mix and it's similar to the 2018 version. It still follows the Jon Hassell esthetic of  "a unified primitive/futuristic sound combining features of world ethnic styles with advanced electronic techniques."

Most of the tracks are new, 10 of the 17 tracks being from 2019 or 2020. I was almost done with the mix when an excellent new album from Halftribe dropped on the 24th. Listening to the first track I knew I had to buy it and sneak that cut into the mix somewhere. It fits perfectly.

https://shimmeringmoodsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/cloud-dreaming-and-shadows

The two recordings that got me going with this mix are Andrew Pekler - Sounds From Phantom Islands and Romeo Poirier - Hotel Nota.

https://andrewpeklerfaitiche.bandcamp.com/album/sounds-from-phantom-islands

https://sferic.bandcamp.com/album/hotel-nota

One of my favorite parts of this mix comes at the 24:30 mark. There two tracks playing simultaneously. One from Eli Keszler is mostly percussion and the other by Walt Rockman is shimmering electric piano with under water vibe. I didn't intend on those two going together, I just accidentally left one of the tracks on my timeline and when they played together I knew I had to keep it. 

I don't know if this type of mix works in the middle of autumn but I just couldn't put it off any longer. I hope you enjoy this Indonesian fever dream.

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Andrew Pekler - Hy Brasil (Sounds From Phantom Islands 2019)
• 04:00    Roméo Poirier - Du rocher (Hotel Nota 2020)
• 07:45    Lemongrass - Bamboo House (Papillon 2012)
• 10:40    MNO - Souce (Ambient Marimba - MNO Sleeps 2020)
• 12:35    Wild Card - Under A Steel Gray Sky (Patterns In Cooperative Labor 2017)
• 15:25    Halftribe - Hiking With Eve (Cloud Dreaming And Shadows 2020)
• 20:25    Vieo Abiungo - A Branch Gave Way (The Dregs 2019)
• 22:45    unkown - mbira with drone (2018)
• 24:30    Eli Keszler - Which Swarms Around It (Stadium 2018)
•              played simultaneously with Walt Rockman - reflections under water
• 26:45    Ross Alexander - Albert Plays the Flute (Memorias, Vol. 1 - Bugandan Sacred Places 2017)
• 31:12    Wu Cloud - Weh Island (Pulsa Rimba 2020)
• 34:42    Luis Miehlich - Klock (Currents 2020)
• 38:10    Meitei - Utano (Komachi 2019)
• 41:50    the volume settings folder - i will not go now on the pastures to walk (Home Diaries 017 2020)
• 46:15    Terje Isungset - Float (Floating Rhythms 2000)
• 47:50    Forrest Fang - Water Village ambient remix (Letters To The Farthest Star 2015)
• 55:00    Aglaia - Offline views (Offline views 2019)
• 60:54    end

 

Lighting Out for the Territories

 

This mix came about because I wanted to find a vehicle for some of the great music coming out of Lost Tribe Sound and their Fearful Void series. The bundle of releases includes 15 albums to be released between June 2020 and June 2021. You can find more info here...

 

https://losttribesound.bandcamp.com/album/fearful-void-series

 

Like the website says Lost Tribe Sound "specializes in organic and exploratory music that transcends genre, technique, or trend." The music in this new series is both grounded and otherworldly. I wanted to take that mostly acoustic, organic sound and spread it throughout this mix. There are a lot of wind instruments in this set. I find myself more and more drawn to sound and texture of sax, alto clarinet, oboe, trombone, etc. and this mix presented a great way to include some of that music.

 

The title doesn't really mean anything, I just like the sound of it. It's the title of a Laurie Anderson track on a live album from the 80s. I have it on a list of mix titles I keep in a google doc that I use for ideas and inspiration.

 

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

00:00    Vieo Abiungo - A Cold Calculus (At Once, There Was No Horizon 2020)

06:27    Iñigo Ugarteburu - Tomodachi (For The Unknown 2013)

11:35    Esmerine - Sweet Surrender Be True (If Only A Sweet Surrender To The Nights To Come Be True 2003)

16:16    Seabuckthorn - Clears (Through A Vulnerable Occur 2020)

19:19    William Ryan Fritch - What's Left Unfilched (The Letdown 2020)

21:12    Mette Henriette - in circles (Mette Henriette 2015)

24:30    Clariloops - Part 1 (Mindful Movement 2020)

30:30    Claire Deak & Tony Dupé - the rain (the old capital 2020)

33:55    Michel Banabila & Joshua Samson - Unfinished Business (To Yemen With Love 2020)

38:15    Microwolf - Mara Instrumental (My Cauliflower Ears Instrumentals 2020)

43:53    Laurence Pike - Prophecy (Prophecy 2020)

47:49    Claire Deak & Tony Dupé - from a rooftop (the old capital 2020)

52:18    Spheruleus - Hollow Bloom (Home Diaries 006 2020)

54:54    Wodwo - Karenia (Chematica 2020)

56:11    Brambles - Pink & Golden Billows (Charcoal 2012)

58:30    William Ryan Fritch - Devi's Last Deal (Album: TBA)

 

 

 

Rainfall Meditation

 

 

Sometime in the last couple of weeks we got a good downpour here at Low Light headquarters. As I stood at the front door smelling the rain, listening to the cloudburst, I realized that I had some music playing softly in the background and it blended perfectly with the storm. I stood there for a good twenty minutes taking it all in. This mix is based on that experience.

 

The main idea here is to mix the music below the rain and thunder. Sometimes it is very low so that it sounds like it's coming from another room. Other times the music is more upfront. Some of the tunes already have rain fx in them and others do not. Most of the rain and thunder you hear I added. They came from recordings I did or my son did or from sites like freesound.org. I also snuck in some Blade Runner ambience around the 1 hour mark.

 

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    rain
• 01:40    Segue - Rain Drone
• 05:00    Snufmumriko - Rainfall Diary
• 09:00    Cyber Zen Sound Engine & Matt Borghi - Endless Rain
• 13:22    Echoflex - 50°21'14"N 4°10'12"W Veering ENE
• 21:10    John Luther Adams - In The Rain
• 30:15    Yo La Tengo - Rainy Night In New York
• 32:20    Paul Vnuk Jr. - Silence Speaks In Shadow
• 44:10    Music for Deep Meditation - Wind Chimes, Thunderstorm, and Rain
• 56:50    Robert Davies - Dew-Drenched Hours
• 62:00    Lindsheaven Virtual Plaza - Rainforest Hill
• 75:15    Echoflex - 50°19'11"N 4°12'03"W Veering S
• 85:48    end