low light mixes

Always Autumn by Paul Asbury Seaman

 

 

Autumn seems perfectly suited to ambient music, especially ambient with a tinge of melancholy. I was thinking about doing an fall-themed mix when Paul approached me with his fully curated mix for autumn. Perfect!

Here's what Paul says about this mix:

“Dedicating this one to my sister, Miriam Walter, professor of nursing at Chico State University in Northern California. Her birthday is today, September 19th.

This turned out to be mostly guitar and piano, although I always (and still) intended it to be a going-to-sleep mix. Like most of my playlists for LLM, it starts out moderately slow and gets progressively slower and quieter. Just a bunch of beautiful tunes, with a touch of melancholy that I always associate with fall, and surrendering into tranquility.”

Thanks for another excellent mix, Paul!

 

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Peter Chilvers & Jon Durant - Always Autumn (Always Golden Sands 2020)
• 05:10    Will Ackerman, Jeff Oster, Tom Eaton - The Golden Hour (Brothers 2021)
• 09:52    Jeff Johnson & Phil Keaggy - Mosaic 7 (Ravenna 2021)
• 16:27    Between Interval - The Tides Of Time (Autumn Continent 2006)
• 20:50    Uman - Somewhere On Earth (You Are Here 1999)
• 24:41    Ken Verheecke - Falling Leaves (Autumn Reflections 2011)
• 28:23    Jeff Pearce - A Walk Through The Leaves (From the Darker Seasons 2017)
• 32:15    Calm Whale - Blue Moon Wind Chimes Meditation (Blue Moon Meditation 2017)
• 39:30    Altus - Green to Gold (Autumn Breeze 2005)
• 46:09    Beltone - Autumn (Blind Concert 2017)
• 50:52    Chinmaya Dunster - Sight Meditation (Meditation Ragas 2014)
• 57:45    Astropilot & Kaya Project - Wind of Change, Pt. 2 (Wind of Change, Pt. 2 2021)
• 62:13    Cousin Silas - Lost In Autumn (Blue Ice Beyond 2019)
• 68:15    Kamal - The Quiet Earth (The Quiet Earth - Dusk 1993)
• 72:14    Ron Boots - Lingering On (Autumn Moon 2016)
• 76:28    end

 

Vantage - Curated by Time Rival

 

 

I love guest mixes because they expose me to tracks I might have otherwise missed in the monthly deluge of new releases. This new mix comes to us from Michael Southard(Time Rival) of Triplicate Records. I've included a few Time Rival tracks in mixes over the years so I was excited when Michael agreed to put together a mix of some of the best his label has to offer.

Here's a blurb from Michael about this guest mix:

Triplicate Records is an artist run independent record label founded in 2018 by Michael Southard (Time Rival), Bryan Kraft (BVSMV), and George Ernst (Suncastle).  We cover a lot of ground in regard to genres, but mostly stick to electronica, ambient and experimental.  “Vantage” is a collection of music from our back catalog that highlights the softer side of what we do.  Mixed and curated by Time Rival and featuring phenomenal new music from Ian Hawgood, Belly Full of Stars, Chris Randall, and much more.

All of this music is available through our Bandcamp page:  https://triplicaterecords.bandcamp.com/ 

 Thanks for an excellent set!

Triplicate has also made a small run painted CD - R version of the mix available at their bandcamp page... https://triplicaterecords.bandcamp.com/merch/vantage-limited-edition-painted-cd-r

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• Ian Hawgood - Flutter Echo Refrain – 0:00:00
• Belly Full of Stars - Pattern 4 – 0:05:20
• Time Rival – Beech – 0:09:37
• Belial Pelegrim – Subtext – 0:12:53
• BVSMV, Running in Slow Motion - Memory to Media – 0:18:00
• Acef Stripe - Image 7: Dagobah – 0:22:20
• Suncastle - The Rooms in Here are Enveloped – 0:24:51
• Chaircrusher – Insular – 0:32:22
• SURVEY CHANNEL - Outside the Coding Region – 0:39:02
• Crest of the Syndicate – Lattermath – 0:44:58
• Station Zero - Numb Hand - 0:46:34
• Minimal_Drone*GRL - Raspberry Ripple – 0:50:24
• Chorchill - Tea Bags – 0:52:46
• Chris Randall - Synthetic Instinct – 0:54:59
• End – 1:00:00

Mystical / Train - by Paul Asbury Seaman

 

                              "Then he leaves the platform/For the sleeping car that's warm

                                      You realize, he's only advertising one more shelter

                                      And it comes to you, he never was a stranger"

                                                                         - Leonard Cohen, "The Stranger Song"

 

 

I have been lucky to have a bunch of excellent guest mixes this year. After this one there are 2 more coming soon. But let's talk about this one first. This is another great collection from the mind of Paul Asbury Seaman. It's appropriate that "Mystical" is in the title as his mixes generally are more "mystical" than the ones I crank out. Which is why Paul's mixes are always a breath of fresh air for me.

 

Here's what Paul says about this set:

 

“In ancient times, the meaning of  “astrology” and “astronomy” was almost synonymous. Today we view space as a metaphor for the mystical—and vise versa. Both the physical universe and mystical concepts confront us with the unknown, the mysterious and the infinite, stimulating a desire for exploration and stretching our potential. Many things are more connected than we realize, and discovering such unexpected connections can be both illuminating and delightful. So this mix features koto and sax along with sequencers, trumpet, marimba and emotional guitar leads, getting slower as you go deeper.”

 

Thanks Paul, for another transcendental mix.

 

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Kitaro - Wonderland 2 (An Ancient Journey 2001)
• 03:06    Pharoah Sanders - Kazuko(Peace Child) (Journey to the One 1980)
• 08:55    Thom Brennan - Chasing the Rain Part 1 (Chasing the Rain 2021)
• 17:10    Jon Durant & Stephan Thelen - Fractal 5.7 (Crossings 2021)
• 24:16    Jean-Luc Ponty - Mystical Adventures Part V (Mystical Adventures 1982)
• 28:55    David Wright - Transylvanian Lullaby (In Search Of Silence 2011)
• 36:06    Germind - Subway Of The Future (Reincarnation 2012)
• 42:08    VAAST - LBV (Eta Carinae 2018)
• 46:28     Esmerine - Walking Through Mist (La Lechuza 2011)
• 49:55    Jon Durant & Robert Jürjendal - Reflective Sea (Across the Evening 2020)
• 55:48    David Wright - Sanctuary Reprise (In Search Of Silence 2011)
• 57:20    Max Corbacho - Starlight Grace (Nocturnes II 2018)
• 61:31    Alice Coltrane - The Hymn (Translinear Light 2004)
• 64:30    Ryan Herr & Jesse Hendricks - Cusp ( Cusp 2020)
• 74:13    end

 

Aromas from the East - by Paul Asbury Seaman

 

 

I've had a good run lately, posting a lot of mixes. But due to busy schedules and a bit of laziness, I've run out of fresh mixes ready to upload. Then comes Paul to the rescue!

This mix is a breath of fresh air, going in a different direction than any of my recent mixes. Here's what Paul has to say about this excellent set:

“This mix features oud, sitar and koto, moving from the Near/Middle East, across South Asia to the Far East. This is not a Folkways sampler, but focuses on the rich tapestries created when Eastern and Western musical styles and instruments are blended together, with both traditions being equal participants, rather than one used merely as “exotic” embellishments for the other. Such cross-cultural musical experiments go back to the mid-20th century’s jazz /rock fusion groups (e.g., Oregon); early EM pioneers like Kitaro, Osamu Kitajima, Popul Vuh and David Parsons; and visionary new record labels like ECM. Here, I’ve highlighted more recent work, and while the options are much more plentiful now, the Low Lights leitmotif of gentle atmospheres has guided my selection. Even so, a couple of mid-tempo gems—essential to this kind of survey—have snuck into the mix."

Thanks, Paul, for another great contribution to the Low Light Mixes canon.

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Dhafer Youssef - Shaanti 'Atihi Devo Bhava' Suite (Sounds of Mirrors 2018)
• 04:10    Rahim AlHaj - Letter 1 Eastern Love Sinan (Letters from Iraq: Oud and String Quintet 2017)
• 10:41    Sachal Studios Orchestra - Take Five (Interpretations of Jazz Standards & Bossa Nova 2010)
• 16:20    Prem Joshua - Night Rain (Sky Kisses Earth 2001)
• 22:45    Anoushka Shankar - Prayer in Passing (Rise 2005)
• 28:52    Hans Christian - First Light (Nanda Devi 2015)
• 35:20    Al Gromer Khan - I Got Vilayat Khan's Blessing (Sitar Secrets 2014)
• 39:14    Hiroshima - Kototsu-Han (Pbon 2005)
• 44:04    Luna - Tubular Bells (Luna 2013)
• 48:09    Gates of Morheim - Omagatoki (Omagatoki EP 2020)
• 53:15    Kitaro - Shining Spirit of Water (Sacred Journey of Ku-Kai, Vol 2 2005)
• 57:33    Rabih Abou Khalil - Bukra (Bukra 1989)
• 65:25    end

Ambient Folk & Cosmic Roots

 

 

After the craziness of the last mix it's nice to slow down. And what better way to slow down than with a guest mix from James over at The Slow Music Movement. They have a wonderful new album called "Future Folk: Friendly Faces; Different Spaces." 

https://theslowmusicmovement.bandcamp.com/album/future-folk-friendly-faces-different-spaces

After I heard it I asked James to do a guest mix featuring some tracks from that album along with other cuts that fit the vibe. The result is a unique journey through folk-influenced ambient and ambient-influenced folk.

While this mix only has three tracks from the new album they share a similar vibe and outlook. Here's what James has to say about his new compilation:

     "This compilation came about with my increasing interest in folk music after years of focusing on the 25 year old golden age of musical fusion that is still playing out. Having ridden the industry waves and ripples since the MP3 & digital stones were rudely thrown into the music pond, I am constantly fascinated by 20th century holdouts looking back wistfully to the good old, bad old days of smoky venues, hounding newsagents for music magazines, easily damaged vinyl, ancient instruments, terrible sounding tapes, label dependency, photocopied fanzines and stamp licking.
     So I contacted a few of the artists that had lit my folk flame to see what they had to say? Artists that know their roots, but who are keeping their eyes on the road ahead and the world of possibility they now enjoy. Shortly after, from home studios in spare rooms and internet enabled remote collaborations, wildly processed instruments from hazy late night jam sessions, digitally mutated acapellas and 13th century songs covered in an age that the long dead and sadly forgotten writer could never have imagined, started to drift into my inbox.
     Is an evolutionary leap the key to folk’s survival? Time, the whims of the coronavirus gods, the folk community’s response to today’s existential stresses, adaptation to changing media consumption habits, marketing decisions and ultimately, people’s decisions on what style of music suits them best, will decide."

 Here are some important links:

Slow Folk Playlist on Spotify

Future Folk on Streaming Services

Future Folk on Bandcamp

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    El Conejo - Tres Tigres Tristes
• 05:40    Jörgen Kjellgren - Dulcet, 
• 08:32    Adeline Hotel - Reliable Feelings, 
• 11:10    Kerry Devine - Vehicle, 
• 15:43    John Stammers - Waiting Around, 
• 20:00    The Howard Hughes Suite - Smoke from a Future Fire,
• 24:08    Tim Linghaus - You Called it Love, 
• 27:07    Boduf Songs - Unseen Forces and How to Use Them,
• 32:40    Roddy Woomble - Everday Sun, 
• 36:50    Black Brunswicker - Black Grouse Raag, 
• 41:25    M. Grig - Call, (45.50) Lightbath - Insinyur Cahaya, 
• 49:00    Ben McElroy - The Silence Has Spoken, 
• 52:00    Cynefin - Ffarwel I Aberystwyth, 
• 56:00    Burnt Paw - Arthur's Sea, 
• 58:40    Andreas Söderström & Rickard Jäverling - Klockan
• 62:53    end

 

 

Ambient Trumpet: A Jazz-Colored Solitude — by Paul Asbury Seaman

Photo by Alex on Unsplash

 

Back in January Paul emailed me about an album called "Bardo Tank" by Ron Miles playing trumpet in The Tank in Colorado. That email started me off in search of tunes for what became my "Resonant Spaces" mix. Paul went a different direction and sought out tracks for an ambient trumpet mix.

The result is a great collection of tunes that span different styles and old to new, while still maintaining an ambient atmosphere. Here's what Paul says about this mix:

“No musical instrument, at least in the Western world, conveys anguish and melancholy as effectively as the trumpet. One can trace a direct line from Miles Davis’s tender and gut-wrenching solos to the jazz-colored ambience of ECM Records. The signature sound of this European label is both intimate and austere, as reflected in the lonely landscapes of their album covers. There’s a delicate grandeur in the tunes I’ve gathered here. Or sometimes, just the sound of solitude.

For me, the overall effect was surprisingly similar to the tranquil, meditative state evoked by the bell-tone mix I did last December.”

Thanks Paul, for another superb set.

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Arve Henriksen - Patient Zero (Towrds Language 2017)
• 02:02    Paolo Fresu - Se Va La Murga (In Maggiore 2015)
• 06:47    Alaskan Tapes - Leita(Ft. Ryan Svendsen) (Leita/North 2018)
• 10:28    Nils Petter Molvaer - Puri Jati (Buoyancy 2016)
• 14:00    Oystein Sevag - Miles Near (Link 1993)
• 15:35    Jeff Oster - The Lotus Within (Reach 2018)
• 22:27    Ron Miles - Pacem (Bardo Tank 2013)
• 28:49    Miles Davis - The Pan Piper (Sketches of Spain 1960)
• 32:27    Mark Isham - Tibet part II (Tibet 1989)
• 36:14    Arve Henriksen - Migration (Cartography 2008)
• 41:38    Ralph Towner & Paolo Fresu - The Sacred Place(reprise) (Chiaroscuro 2008)
• 43:27    Matthew Halsall - Canopy & Stars (Salute to the Sun 2020)
• 51:04    Ambrose Akinmusire - Roy (On the Tender Spot of Every Calloused Moment 2020)
• 53:26    Jon Hassell - Time And Place (Last Night The Moon Came Dropping Its Clothes In The Street 2009)
• 56:55    Matthew Halsall - Stories from India (Oneness 2019)
• 65:09    Tomasz Stanko Quartet - Tale (Lontano 2006)
• 68:54    end

 

 

 

Guest Mix from Brad Deschamps of Polar Seas Recordings

 

 

This year I've had the good fortune of posting several cool guest mixes and that continues with this excellent collection from Brad Deschamps of Polar Seas Recordings.

https://polarseasrecordings.bandcamp.com/

It's not a mix of all Polar Seas releases, in fact only the opening and closing tracks are from the label. But it is perfect timing for a mix from Brad because Polar Seas is releasing three excellent new albums on Friday March 19th.

https://polarseasrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/luminous

https://polarseasrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/ghost-bird

https://polarseasrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/and-where-are-you-really-from

I love getting guest mixes because there is always great music in them that I have never heard. And that's the case with this one. I think I was familiar with 4 of the 9 artists in the set. So thanks to Brad for exposing me to even more good ambient music. But even more important thanks to Brad for running the great ambient record label - Polar Seas Recordings.

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00 - 03:38    Jeannine Schulz - Rooms and Surfaces I
• 03:38 - 10:53    Laura Luna Castillo - Eight Pounds of Tuberose
• 10:53 - 15:36    Sea Oleena - On Possession
• 15:36 - 20:50    Sachi Kobayashi - Nostalgia
• 20:50 - 29:38    Patricia Wolf - Position From the Sun
• 29:38 - 35:43    Claire M. Singer - Wrangham
• 35:43 - 40:01    Lisa Lerkenfeldt - Champagne Smoke
• 40:01 - 42:53    Sofie Birch - Kandisae
• 42:53 - 46:00    Clara Engel & Bradley Sean Alexander - Ghost Bird Alive, At Dawn

 

Ambient Vaporwave - A mix by Innesti

 

Photo by Nick Reynolds on Unsplash

 

I am so psyched to have another excellent guest mix. This one comes from long-time friend of the blog, Innesti - innesti.bandcamp.com

I have featured a bunch of Innesti music over the years and have hosted guest mixes from him as well. A couple of days ago I got an email asking if I was interested in another guest mix of  ambient vaporwave tunes. Aww, hell yeah, I'm interested. Although I'm not quite sure what Vaporwave is. No worries, Innesti explains it for us:

Vaporwave is a niche genre of electronic music that combines the visual aesthetic of meme culture with the glitched out and stretched sounds of 1980's mall and infomercial music. It is not the kind of music that you would expect to appeal to listeners who enjoy deep ambient soundscapes. Nonetheless, buried deep within this genre are some amazing beatless and atmospheric pieces. I am drawn to these because they capture the kinds of atmospheres that I enjoy, but emerge organically within a completely different musical tradition. This mix represents a sample of some of my favorite ambient vaporwave tracks.

Sounds great!

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    地球  -  ジャングル PART 2
• 07:10    Subaeris - The City In Rain
• 12:50    Lindsheaven Virtual Plaza - Polynomial Voices
• 19:40    Corp. & t e l e p a t h - 進化  - 猫 シ
• 23:12    Corp. & t e l e p a t h - A New Life Awaits You
• 26:07    暗号零 - 我爱你我的孩子 (Mother)
• 30.59    SONYA™ SleepStation - [program b] - sleep
• 36:30    ∑ V ∑ R Y T H I N G - In this forest all of your problems become beautiful birds
• 42:25    Zadig The Jasp - (海の前で-In Front Of The Sea.)
• 52:12    ll nøthing ll - Cycle
• 60:00    end

 

Bell Tone Meditation by Paul Asbury Seaman

 

 

Great minds think alike. Both Paul and I had the idea of doing a "bell" based mix. I, however, am a procrastinator, and after creating a save folder for bell tunes 3 months ago, I have one track in it. So who knows when that puppy was going to get done.

Paul, on the other hand, sought out tracks and compiled them into a perfect playlist that became this mix - Bell Tone Meditation.

Here's what he has to say about it:

“For thousands of years bells, more than any other instrument, have been used to convey a sense of reverence and mystery, to represent clarity, to facilitate both quiet, solitary meditation and communal celebration. And, given the challenging artistic paradox of using sound to express silence, bells are the musical instrument used most often to express that, too. So it’s curious to me that bells (and their various metal/crystal-bowl cousins) are not used more often in ambient music, a genre defined, perhaps more than anything else, by subtle textures and tonal resonance over melody and rhythm.

Bells also have been the most common instrument to express cold and ice. Another reason this mix makes a  perfect midwinter offering.”

Thanks Paul!

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Cousin Silas - Derwent (Submerged 2021)
• 05:36    Andarctica - at rest (buried with the bells 2019)
• 11:40    Robert Rich - Belltone Glass (Alien Zoology - Live Archive Vol 4 2009)
• 15:37    Jack Hertz - Invisible Pyramid (Teoton 2020)
• 19:17    Andrew Lahiff - The Ringing of the Silent Bells (Slow Paths Beyond 2014)
• 25:47    Crown Of Eternity - New Dimensions in Infinite VIbrations (Universal Hum 2018)
• 31:50    The Heart Is Awake - Healing Sound Meditation(Healing Arts reMix) (the Healing Arts reMIXES Vol III 2020)
• 36:00    Steve Roach & Serena Gabriel - Nectar Meditation (Nectar Meditation 2020)
• 45:15    Glenn Sogge - Aether/Or -- A Non-Philosophical Disquisition (Musics for Long Thinkings, volume 4 2016)
• 53:30    jarguna - My Temple (My Temple 2020)
• 1:10:00    end

 

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