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Ambient music mixes for a chaotic world
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Sunday Dec 27, 2020
Sunday Dec 27, 2020
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by Sven Geier - sgeier.net
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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
Sunday Dec 06, 2020
Sunday Dec 06, 2020
“I’ve been sitting on this playlist for more than three years. Never got around to firming it up for a Low Lights mix. It dawned on me just the other day that the eight movies from which these pieces are drawn are all meditations on death and loss. So now seems like a good time to share it. Also, all of these movies were released around the turn of the Millennium, except “Battle of Algiers” (1963) which has one of the most sorrowful themes ever put to music—by the great Ennio Morricone, who died this year.”
Thanks Paul for another excellent mix!
Up next - it's best of the year list time! Cheers!
T R A C K L I S T :
- 00:00 Clint Mansell - The Last Man (The Fountain 2006)
- 05:42 Ennio Morricone - Sorrow in the Casbah (Battle of Algiers 1963)
- 06:33 Ennio Morricone - Ali's Theme (Battle of Algiers 1963)
- 09:38 Mark Isham - Flames (Crash 2005)
- 17:06 Philip Glass - The Hours (The Hours 2002)
- 24:37 Zbigniew Preisner - Van Den Budenmayer Funeral Music (Trois couleurs - Bleu 1993)
- 26:32 Zbigniew Preisner - Reprise First Appearance (Trois couleurs - Bleu 1993)
- 27:02 Javier Navarrette - A Tale (Pan's Labyrinth 2006)
- 28:50 Richard Thompson - Parents (Grizzly Man 2005)
- 32:10 Zbigniew Preisner - Julie in Her New Apartment (Trois couleurs - Bleu 1993)
- 33:48 Zbigniew Preisner - Reprise Flute (Trois couleurs - Bleu 1993)
- 35:50 Mark Isham - Negligence (Crash 2005)
- 38:23 Philip Glass - The Poet Acts (The Hours 2002)
- 42:00 Richard Thompson - Main Title Revisited (Grizzly Man 2005)
- 45:42 Javier Navarrette - Lullaby (Pan's Labyrinth 2006)
- 47:20 Alexandre Desplat - Death Convoy (The Painted Veil 2006)
- 50:00 Alexandre Desplat - Kitty's Theme (The Painted Veil 2006)
- 53:00 Clint Mansell - Xibalba (The Fountain 2006)
- 58:09 end
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
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| image by Thomas Park |
This mix was a lot of fun!
Back in April, Peter van Cooten, of Ambientblog, created the awesome mix, Lockdown. After it posted we talked about doing a collaboration mix. As Peter is in Holland and I am in the States we would send files back and forth to each other adding more tracks with every pass. We had to decide on a theme and a format. In the end the format became the theme.
It worked like this:
We each take 5 minute turns and increase the sample count with each turn. So in the first turn we each start with a 5 minute track. Next turn we each use two samples, next turn 3, then 4...until we get to the final turn where each 5 minute turn contains 6 samples each. When all is said and done we end up with 42 samples used in a 60 minute mix.
Peter is the master of layering multiple tracks or samples to create interesting mixes. I generally don't use quite that number of cuts in my mixes so I knew it was going to be a challenge. I worried that it would turn into a situation where it sounded like a good idea at the time until I had to actually do it.
I think it turned out great! It was really cool trying to match of the outro of the previous segment to my new tracks but still make my own segments unique. Somehow this crazy format produced a fascinating mix.
After finishing the mix Peter came up with the title "Fragmented Dialogue" which fit perfectly with how this beast was put together.
I'm excited to have this mix published in three places at the same time - Low Light Mixes, Ambientblog & Headphone Commute. Both Ambientblog & HC are my favorite places to go for ambient reviews and mixes. Here are their posts about this mix...
https://www.ambientblog.net/blog/2020-07/fragmented-dialogue-mix/
https://headphonecommute.com/2020/07/28/fragmented-dialogue-low-light-mixes-ambientblog-mix/
I hope you enjoy listening to this mix as much as we enjoyed creating it.
Cheers!
T R A C K L I S T : - Ambientblog = Red Low Light Mixes = Green
00:00 Yair Elazar Glotman/Mats Erlandsson - Procession (Emanate 2020)
05:10 William Ryan Fritch - Dream Glitch-Fugue State-Broken Barriers (The Letdown 2020)
09:45 Apparat - Suicide (Soundtracks: Stay Still, 2020)
11:18 Biosphere - You Want To See It Too (Departed Glories, 2016)
15:00 Ashlar - The First Saturday (Saturday Drones 2012)
18:45 echospace - Fallen Tribes Reduced (echospace [detroit] presents echoes in space 2014)
19:31 Sonologyst - Planetary Warning (Unexplained Sounds (New Edition), 2020 )
20:26 Michael Begg & Clodagh Simonds - Witness 3 (Witness 3, 2020)
22:36 Alva Noto - Xerrox Apesanteur (Xerrox 4, 2020)
24:55 Max Richter - Encounter (Ad Astra 2019)
25:38 Mono-Poly - Maanreflectie(Hainbach remix 2020)
27:21 cinchel - porch swings (A House Once Lived That Never Was 2014)
29:30 Carmen Villain - Affection In A Time Of Crisis (Affection In A Time Of Crisis, 2020)
31:18 Stephen O'Malley - Géante 4 - Layer 5 Mix (Géante 4, 2020)
32:30 Abul Mogard, Quiet Dreams (Above All Dreams, 2018)
33:35 Black Glass Ensemble & Friends - Be Mine In Patience: An Embrace in B Minor (Be Mine In Patience: An Embrace in B Minor, 2020)
34:55 Halftribe - Fader (Archipelago 2020)
36:20 Radio Bulgaria
37:03 teleferick - i.history favours the winners (sixteen frames 2017)
38:15 Test Card - Monochrome Dreaming Softened The Broadcast (Music For The Towers 2020)
39:40 Michel Banabila - Scripts of the Lagoon (Scripts Of The Lagoon - Exploratorium, 2020)
41:04 Kamila Govorcin - Rito De Muerte (Anima, 2020)
41:15 Chris Watson - Gobabeb (Touch Isolation, 2020)
43:04 Gia Margaret - Body (Mia Gargaret, 2020)
43:10 Aleksi Myllykoski with Tapani Rinne - Lost Marbles (Dark Days, 2020)
44:48 Masaya Ozaki - subtlety in reverse (Fluid And Dreaming Of Stripes 2015)
46:12 Andrew Pekler - Nocturne 3 (nocturnes, false dawns & breakdowns 2004)
47:05 The Focus Group - Hazy Time (Stop-Motion Happening 2017)
48:00 Les Halles - K (World 2012)
49:24 Sonmi451 - Umi Bear (Eilean 100 2019)
49:50 Radiomentale - Gotlander (I-Land (Redux), 2020)
51:54 Ian William Craig - Comma (Red Sun Through Smoke, 2020)
52:50 Sylvain Chauveau - Q (Life Without Machines, 2020)
53:29 Sample, THX 1138 (THX 1138, 1971)
53:34 Elegi - Lys & Lykte (Gap In Time, 2020)
54:26 The Future Eve feat. Robert Wyatt - 04.02 (Kitsune / Brian the Fox - Kitsune Ring Version, 2019)
55:00 The Insects - This is Where You Say Goodbye (DEVS soundtrack 2020)
55:30 Seabuckthorn - Unforeseen (Other Other 2020)
56:21 Alva Noto - Xerrox Voyage (Xerrox Vol. 4 2020)
57:10 Laurie Anderson - Life Lived Backwards (Heart of a Dog 2015)
58:21 Laurie Anderson - The Cloud (Heart of a Dog 2015)
59:01 Helios - All You Are (Remembrance 2016)
60:00 end
Sunday Jul 19, 2020
Sunday Jul 19, 2020
This mix came about from an idea by a listener, Kevin. He suggested a mix based on artists from Japan. I asked for track recommendations and Kevin came back with an entire list. That list fills out most of this mix. I added tracks by Hiroshi Yoshimura, Geskia!, Sawako and Akira Kosemura.
Kevin also suggested the title - "Not seeing is a flower" which means that reality can't compete with imagination. The mix itself is a fairly straight forward mix of ambient tracks from Japan.
Thanks to Kevin for doing all the heavy lifting on this mix. I think it turned out great.
Cheers!
T R A C K L I S T :
- 00:00 Minamo - Zeitraum
- 05:58 Takashi Kokubo - Memory of summer
- 12:36 Yoshiaki Ochi - Ear Dreamin'
- 16:59 Fumio Miyashita - See The Light(Abridged)
- 19:48 Hiroshi Yoshimura - Water Copy
- 22:54 Geskia! - Lampland
- 27:52 Sawako - Incense Of Voice
- 32:00 Takahiro Kido - Rust Summer in Tokyo
- 37:25 Mokyow - Small Small Flag
- 44:20 Chihei Hatakeyama - Starlight And Black Echo
- 48:54 Hakobune - Letter Forgotten
- 53:35 Masashi Kitamura & Phonogenix - Variation III
- 56:27 Satoshi Ashikawa - Still Space
- 58:08 Akira Kosemura - Hicari
- 60:00 end
Sunday May 03, 2020
Sunday May 03, 2020
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I can always count on Paul for a good palate cleanser. After the bizzaro world of DEVS & the continuing covid crapola, I think everyone is in need of a little positivity.
Paul and I have talked often about how a lot of ambient music has a melancholy vibe. I know I definitely gravitate toward that end of the spectrum. Paul figured we could use something hopeful in these strange days. Here's what he says about this mix:
“I think authenticity is a precursor to authentic redemption. Thus, we honor our grief and fears and all the losses of this time we’re living through. There is pain alongside, not canceled by, the tranquility we seek. And there is a mysterious grace that gives us the strength to remain clear-eyed and truthful as we embrace hope.”
Thanks to Paul for another well-thought-out mix. Thanks to the folks at Kaya Project for letting us use the artwork from their latest album as the cover art for this mix. That art is from Suzybee - https://www.suzybee.buzz/ . And thanks to all the artists that continue to crank out lovely music which helps us through the quarantine.
Cheers!
T R A C K L I S T :
- 00:00 Shoshana Michel - Quietly, Gently, Peacefully ( Impressions 2020)
- 04:16 Eguana - Deep Sleep (Invisible Civilization Vol. 3 2019)
- 11:05 Tonepoet - The Grieving Soul Begins To Awaken (Kaleidoscope 2020)
- 15:15 Kaya Project - Finding Balance Ambient MIx (body.mind.soul 2020)
- 20:00 Sigesmundsen & Gregory Paul Mineeff - Forgotten Borders (Crrossing Worlds 2020)
- 23:55 Darshan Ambient - A Day Within Days (A Day Within Days 2010)
- 28:25 Slow Meadow - Clouds, Not Clocks (Clouds, Not Clocks / Rara Pluma 2018)
- 32:35 Kit Watkins - Tranquility (This Time and Space 2008)
- 36:20 Jeff Pearce - Sun On Frost ( From The Darker Seasons 2017)
- 38:30 Endeleas - Forgotten Shore (Forgotten Shore 2019)
- 42:12 Bruno Sanfilippo - Unity (Unity 2018)
- 50:45 Slow Dancing Society - How Life Was Meant To Be Lived (The Sound of Lights When Dim 2020)
- 58:46 end
Sunday Apr 05, 2020
Sunday Apr 05, 2020
I like to think that I put a lot of thought and effort into these mixes. Hopefully, the mix as a whole is greater than the sum of its parts. But what I do is nothing compared to the transformative touch that Peter Van Cooten brings to his mixes.
Each mix is a unique work of art. Peter rarely lets a track play in its complete form. Instead, he uses smaller samples and deftly weaves the tracks in and out of each other. Sometimes 2,3, or 4 tracks play simultaneously, creating something new from different elements. In this mix, he uses an incredible 41 tracks! Here's what Peter has to say about using so many short samples:
"Sometimes I feel a bit embarrassed about using such short samples and/or editing the tracks (of these 41, only 8 are used in their complete form). It's a bit like cutting up the Mona Lisa to create a landscape patchwork with the fragments ;-) But on the other hand, this is what I feel makes these mixes unique. Taken out of their context and in relation to other fragments, the music sometimes tells a different story."
This mix is a bit darker than most of my mixes. But it's dark in an interesting way, not in a droney, dissonant way. The mix has a very cinematic feel and combined with the cover art and title I can imagine drone shots of empty streets and newspapers blowing across the square. Peter was hesitant about the name and the cover art. He says -
"It may be too closely linked to the current worldwide crisis, but on the other hand I have tried to think of another name or context but the uncertain times seem to be too dominant to think of another name I could give it. The funny thing is, that if you listen back most of my mixes have a rather dark edge to them. There's always a lot of 'tension/release' to them. But in this case, it seems there's a bit more 'tension' than 'release'. Oh well, sign of the times..."
Peter runs his own ambient music blog called, appropriately, Ambientblog.net. Where in addition to his fine mixes(available in DTS surround as well), he has a ton of good reviews and recommendations. You can find it here...
https://www.ambientblog.net/blog/ He's also on Mixcloud here... https://www.mixcloud.com/ambientblog/
When he creates these extraordinary mixes he posts a pic of the total track layout, layer upon layer of all the music used. Here is the map of this mix...
Peter does his tracklist a little differently than I do. He gives listeners more info about each track, including start time, sample length, artist, title, album title, year and record label.
Thanks to Peter Van Cooten of Ambientblog.net for such an excellent mix. Hopefully, I can talk him into doing another one in the future.
Cheers, and stay safe.
T R A C K L I S T - Start time - Sample length - Artist - Title
Album Title, Year, Label
00:00 03:23 Fovea Hex - Is
Is Lanza Light and Given (Steven Wilson Remixes), 2019, Die Stadt/Janet Records
01:25 04:35 Maggi Payne - Fluid Dynamics
Arctic Winds, 2020, Aguirre Records
02:03 01:45 Pat Keista - Doppler
Still Of The Void, 2020, self-released
04:17 01:47 Dave Phillips - Phytognosophysiology
Post Homo Sapiens, 2020, Attenuation Circuit
05:10 02:45 Jóhann Jóhannsson and Yair Elazar Glotman - Prelude
Last And First Men, 2020, Deutsche Grammophon
05:42 02:00 Andrew Pekler - Fonseca Winds (Lament)
Sounds From Phantom Islands, 2019, Faitiche
07:29 01:19 Jóhann Jóhannsson and Yair Elazar Glotman - Telepathic Unity
Last And First Men, 2020, Deutsche Grammophon
08:13 03:10 Ben Bertrand - Those Behind Us That We Follow
Manes, 2020, Les Albums Claus
11:08 01:31 Fani Konstantinidou - (Variations)
Moving Music: Sounds From The Rocking Chair, 2020, Moving Furniture Records,
11:58 01:32 Aaron Martin - Overcoming Inertia
Test Subjects, 2019, self-released
12:53 01:51 A Journey Of Giraffes - Gone Is The New Fuji
Kona, 2019, Somewherecold records
13:29 03:30 Robert Haigh - Ghosts Of Blacker Dyke
Black Sarabande, 2020, Unseen Worlds
16:46 02:48 Snorri Hallgrímsson - Fear
Chasing The Present, 2020, Moderna Records
16:53 00:30 Mica Levy - Mensajero
Monos, 2019, Invada
17:40 02:30 Snorri Hallgrímsson - Suffering
Chasing The Present, 2020, Moderna Records
19:22 01:58 Bersarin Quartett - Prolog
Methoden Und Maschinen, 2019, Denovali
20:41 01:09 Ruairi O'Baoighill - Scryer
To See Without Eyes, 2018, Cursed Monk Records
20:50 01:59 I Wound - The Choir Of The Drowned Sings 'Our Demons Are Real'
Homework Year 3, 2018, Taâlem
21:48 03:01 Christine Ott - Comma
Chimères (Pour Ondes Martenots), 2020, Nahal Recordings
24:22 02:34 Ida Toninato - Pour Retourner Au Silence
We Become Giants, 2020, Dragon's Eye Recordings
25:32 03:47 Merrin Karras - Drawn, Quartered
Northwest Passage, 2020, A Strangely Isolated Place
28:27 02:07 Ciro Berenguer - Luna Creciente
Eilean 100, 2019, Eilean Records
29:57 01:47 Yiorgis Sakellariou - B4
Diapsalmata: A Collection Of Short Works, 2018, Tanuki Records
29:57 01:19 Celer - Birds Inside The High Halls Of Hangzhou (06.23.17)
Xièxie, 2019, Two Acorns
30:12 03:18 Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr, Koichi Shimizu - Sharjah And Java
Metaphors - Selected Soundworks from the cinema of Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2017, Sub Rosa
31:24 00:44 Coil - Corybantic Ennui
Stolen and Contaminated Songs, 2019, Cold Spring Records
32:32 01:22 Olivier Messiaen - Quator Pour Le Fin Du Temps III: Abîme des Oiseaux
Olivier Messiaen - Complete Edition, 2008, Deutsche Grammophon
33:54 01:26 Hildur Gudnadottir - Following Sophie
Joker OST, 2019, Watertower Records
35:14 00:55 Ryuichi Sakamoto - Countdown
Black Mirror: Smithereens, 2019, Milan
35:45 03:24 Silent Chaos - Nocturne On Ganimede
Macro, 2020, We Don't Give A Fuck
38:52 04:03 Roger Eno and Brian Eno - Burnt Umber
Mixing Colours, 2020, Deutsche Grammophon
42:38 02:13 Martina Bertoni - Invisible Cracks
All The Ghosts Are Gone, 2020, Falk
44:29 03:30 Eivind Aarset and Jan Bang - Nightspell
Snow Catches On Her Eyelashes, 2020, Jazzland Recordings
46:21 02:13 Jana Irmert - Fog
Cusp, 2020, self-released
47:40 01:36 Fovea Hex - Given
Is Lanza Light and Given (Steven Wilson Remixes), 2019, Die Stadt/Janet Records
48:42 02:40 Frank Makowski - Fliegende Schatten - Canon 1
Canon der Finsternisse, 2019, Diffusschall
49:05 01:12 Michael Begg - Plain Chant
Sonambulo, 2019, Omnempathy
50:40 02:20 A Winged Victory For The Sullen - The Slow Descent Has Begun
The Undivided Five, 2019, Ninja Tune
52:35 04:30 Felix Blume - Horns In Fog Pt. 2
Fog Horns, 2019, Discrepant
55:49 03:02 Max Richter - Ursa Minor - Visions
Ad Astra, 2019, Deutsche Grammophon
58:30 00:40 Jóhann Jóhannsson and Yair Elazar Glotman - The Sun
Last And First Men, 2020, Deutsche Grammophon
59:10 End
Sunday Jan 05, 2020
Sunday Jan 05, 2020
When Paul emailed a few weeks back with the idea of doing a bell themed mix I got all excited. I thought to myself - "Perfect, I have a whole folder of bell tunes I've been collecting." So I go to that folder and there are two tracks in it. That's it. I guess it's the thought that counts?
If Paul hadn't come up with this mix I probably never would have gotten around to it. Maybe there's some sort of lesson for the new year here - Finish what you start. Whatever the lesson, Paul's mix is a perfect way to start the new year and the decade. Here's what Paul has to say about it:
“There’s a certain irony in composing music meant to convey silence. Nevertheless, this seems to be a recurring theme among ambient artists, just as music in this genre is often fused with melancholy. Most of the time that resonates with me—as a very truthful feeling in our age of loneliness, upheaval and uncertainty. But this week I’m focusing on hopeful sounds, to ring in the new year with comfort and reflection.”
Happy New Year & Cheers to a better 2020!
T R A C K L I S T :
- 00:00 Gordon Pigeon - La Voix du Silence (La voix du silence 2009)
- 03:23 Rudy Adrian - Subterranean River (Desert Realms 2008)
- 08:36 Peter Kater - Night's Cavern (Resonance 2016)
- 17:20 Michael Stearns - Monk with Bell (Baraka 1993)
- 19:39 Erik Wollo - Crystal Bells 1 (Crystal Bells 2012)
- 25:12 David Parsons - Urartu to Ubud (Ngaio Gamelan 1999)
- 31:36 Arve Henriksen - Float (Wolrd of Glass 2014)
- 32:30 Jeff Oster - Beautiful Silence (Surrender 2011)
- 36:18 James Hood - Timebomb(Any Minute Now) (Pure Ceremony 2017)
- 40:50 Forrest Fang - Seven Coronas (Letters To The Farthest Star 2015)
- 47:20 Jarguna - Garden of the Mantras (Prospettive Animiche 2019)
- 54:39 Gordon Pigeon - Rêves de carillons éoliens (La voix du silence 2009)
- 60:34 end
Sunday Nov 17, 2019
Sunday Nov 17, 2019
As regular visitors to this blog have probably figured out, I don't really plan things out here. Sometimes it's a mix a week, sometimes it's a month between mixes. The last Blade Runner mix is the perfect example, I wasn't even thinking about that mix until we hit Nov. 2019 which is the month and year of Blade Runner. So I quickly threw that mix together and boom, there it was. So then other mix ideas get pushed back or forgotten about until some other piece of music catches my ear.
So it's not a big surprise that Paul emailed me the tracklist for this mix back in May. Every time I'd think about starting this set something would distract my social media addled brain and the mix would get pushed back. With the end of the year closing in I finally have laid down all the tracks and Mystical Ambience 2: Tactile Ground is here.
This is what Paul has to say about this mix:
"A listener on Bandcamp described a recent Spotted Peccary label sampler as “Not too sweet, not too dark.” Which is the same balance I try to bring to my selections for Low Light Mixes. This one is another journey concept. I’ve always had a special fondness for artists who can sensitively blend electronic and acoustic instruments to create beautiful juxtapositions of textures, and also offers a metaphor for balancing the ethereal and the concrete. In that spirit, this mix includes some slow- earthy, cross-cultural jazz before ending with cosmic tranquility.”
Thanks Paul!
T R A C K L I S T :
- 00:00 Remote Vision - The Glittercliff (Into Light 2018)
- 06:17 Hibernation - Wabi Sabi (Second Nature 2012)
- 11:35 Hibernation - The Uncarved Block (Second Nature 2012)
- 16:00 Marion Brown Jazz Cussion - Naima (Echoes of Blue 2006)
- 22:09 Kaya Project - Forgive(ambient mix) (Ambient Mixes 2 2019)
- 27:42 Jan Garbarek - Cloud of Unknowing (In Praise of Dreams 2004)
- 32:49 Massergy - Phenakistoscope (A Novel Sense of Calm 2015)
- 38:15 Chronotope Project - A Prayer for Tenderness (Lotus Rising 2018)
- 43:20 Hollan Holmes - Prayer to the Energy (Prayer to the Energy 2017)
- 48:45 Northumbria - Sacred Ground (Helluland 2015)
- 52:35 Robert Rich - The Abiding Wheel (Tactile Ground 2018)
- 58:55 Meg Bowles - Chalice of Shadows (Evensong: Canticles for the Earth 2018)
- 63:30 Steve Roach - Spiral Triptych 2 (Texture Maps 2002)
Sunday Aug 25, 2019
Sunday Aug 25, 2019
I've been heckin' busy this summer. First of all, it's summer so beer gardens, baseball games, northwoods vacations, beer gardens, yard work, beer gardens, etc. Plus I've been doing a ton of freelance work. And lastly, my daughter is getting married in a month and I'm editing a video for the reception. I have not been able to get any new mixes going in a while.
So it's Paul Asbury Seaman to the rescue! Thankfully this excellent mix from Paul will fill the void. It's another great collection from my partner in ambient crime. Here's what he has to say about it:
“This is a crossover mix, as the title suggests, and may be the sweetest one I’ve ever done. I’ve kept the emphasis on an atmosphere of tranquility, tailor-made for going-to-sleep music. All of the tracks here are from the fairly-new Heart Dance Records. I discovered this label while looking on Bandcamp for an album recently featured on Hearts of Space. As I dug deeper, and contrary to my stereotypes about “uplifting” (read: new age) music, it became obvious that there was plenty here for space fans to like, or if you’re looking for something calm for meditation. Feel the flow around the stillness. (Cover image for this mix courtesy of Sherry Finzer, from the album LET THERE BE LIGHT.)”
Definitely check out more music from Heart Dance Records here...
https://heartdancerecords.bandcamp.com/
Thanks, Paul!
T R A C K L I S T :
00:00 Sherry Finzer & Darin Mahoney - White Sky In November(Transformation 2013)
04:32 Tom Moore & Sherry Finzer - Star Trails(Sound Currents 2019)
10:05 Paul Horn - Mumtaz Mahal(Inside 1969)
12:20 Ivan Teixeira - Abundance(ALLAYER Project One 2019)
16:37 Monica Williams - Wandering(Journey Of Tears 2018)
22:43 ANAAMALY - A Peaceful Drift(Fileds Of Light 2018)
29:18 Tom Moore & Sherry Finzer - Midnight Mystique(Sound Currents 2019)
34:48 Monica Williams - Love From A Distance(Journey Of Tears 2018)
38:18 Majestica - Aurora Australis(In the Midst of Stars 2016)
48:26 Sherry Finzer - Breathe(Acceptance 2018)
64:47 end
Sunday Jul 28, 2019
Sunday Jul 28, 2019
I can't tell you how excited I am for this mix. Well, actually I'm telling you right now so that first line was bullshit. Suffice it to say I love this mix. It comes from our good friends at Lost Tribe Sound, an amazing record label that is having a hell of a year. Of course, last year was pretty darn good as well.
Ryan Keane, the man behind Lost Tribe Sound, has put together a mix that is interesting and varied. It's cohesive without sounding all the same. This is a wonderful collection of tunes.
Here's what Ryan has to say about this mix:
Rarely do I get the chance to work on creating mixes of music, but I’m definitely more inspired to do so when I can ground the mix in a solid theme or concept. When I was given the chance to create one for the highly-esteemed Low Light Mixes, I figured, it better be decent.
‘The Western Divide,’ my latest mix, is a grab bag of emotions, sort of manic, nostalgic, playful, with the ever-present tinge of dread and uncertainty that really mirrors how I’ve been feeling about life and society as a whole lately. I partly wanted to see how bizarre the music I mixed together could get while still remaining palatable. Honing in on some pieces of music that come across as somewhat otherworldly spaghetti western sounding, I set about juxtaposing them with odd forms of jazz, electronic, hymn-like horn and organ pieces. It may have a bit of that Ennio Morricone score to some dystopian future General Hospital sort of vibe to it.
I’ve been infatuated as of late with unique uses of horns in experimental music, it seems that most of the time horns can easily be a pitfall in many styles of music. Either from overstaying their welcome, riding too long on what I like to call the “Dad Chords,” where it just gets cheesy, or simply becoming too noodly and irritating that the song would be better off without them. So hopefully I’ve combined some enjoyable uses of horns into the mix that avoid these situations, but who knows, I’m quite possibly out of touch.
In full disclosure, I run the label Lost Tribe Sound, so a few of the selections in the mix are from recent or upcoming albums on the label. The opening piece is from a brilliant electro-acoustic Danish trio, Skyphone, which we’ve have the honor of putting out two albums for this August. Kali Malone follows with her perfect use of a church organ as the ultimate drone machine. Next, a very odd find from a Spotify suggestion of all places, Jeremy Krinsley and Greg Heffernan’s only album together, ‘Material Culture 9.19.15’ is some left-field electronica, filled with loads of charming moments.
Next, Hampshire & Foat kick in, their ‘Saint Lawrence’ album from this year is an instrumental masterpiece for those into dim-lit jazz fueled folk. Sailcloth up next, also blew my mind, primarily an experimental upright bassist, the featured selection works more off of a droning horn and subdued bass notes than some of the other more pronounced tunes on the EP, ‘Close Keeping.’ Then, Danny Scott Lane who’s recent album on Shimmering Moods is about as perfectly refined an example as one could hope for from an experimental drone/classical album. Hoera is a mixed bag of tricks as well, bizarre combos of electronics, jazz, ambient and folk somehow fold into a very satisfying whole, definitely recommend all three of their albums. Drombeg, another tasty discovery, thanks to the Thesis label, an intense focus of melody and progression make this breed of classical well worth checking out.
Working in his way slowly into the tail end of Drombeg is a new piece from Ben McElroy, a highly emotive and creative songwriter, his whole catalog is sublime. Mute Forest, a long-time favorite, lent me an exclusive song from his upcoming album for this mix, introducing “The Riven Sun.” Followed that with a rising master of primitive guitar experimentalism, Seabuckthorn, from his new album, “It Can Ashen” is a droning genius. Next up, Spheruleus with his title track from his brand new and highly engaging electro-acoustic album for my label Lost Tribe Sound. Zakè follows with some seriously delicious droning classical string and tape experiments from this year courtesy of Past Inside The Present. Kinbrae’s album, ‘Landforms’ from earlier this year totally destroys me, and is a great example of how to use those horns properly. After that, Federico Mosconi delivers beautiful finger-picked guitar, bathed in the most melancholic waves of static and synths one could ask for!
MALK comes next with ‘Re-treat’ and delivers one of the most offbeat, original albums Lost Tribe Sound has ever produced, just give in to it. The penultimate piece comes from Offthesky, who’s had a hugely impressive year with two new albums that I’d consider among the best of the year. “Future Fire” provides another gorgeous example of how horns can work so beautifully in ambient music. Finally, the mix closes with one of my favorite artists of all time, Geir Sundstøl. Geir’s newest genre-bending album on Hubro, is beyond genius. I’ve got give a special thanks to Hubro, who’ve finally uploaded their entire catalog to Bandcamp, making it far easier to enjoy, definitely go explore the music they put out.
Hope you enjoy these tunes. Thanks for listening and having a read.
Thanks, Ryan!
T R A C K L I S T :
00:00 Skyphone - Les Clouds(Marsh Drones)
04:00 Kali Malone - Sacrificial Code(The Sacrificial Code)
06:56 Jeremy Krinsley / Greg Heffernan - Material Culture 9.19.15, Pt. 1(Material Culture 9.19.15)
08:00 Hampshire & Foat - The Undercliff(Saint Lawrence)
13:04 Sailcloth - Year Long Storm(Close Keeping)
15:04 Danny Scott Lane - Four(How To Empty A Cup)
18:08 HOERA. - Jin(Jaunu)
21:20 Drombeg - The White Raven(Thesis Drive 2/3)
27:52 Ben McElroy - They Told Us Not To Wonder(They Told Us Not To Wonder)
29:50 Mute Forest - The Riven Sun(Riders Storm)
33:20 Seabuckthorn - It Can Ashen(Crossing)
37:20 Spheruleus - Light Through Open Blinds(Light Through Open Blinds)
39:44 Zakè - 000425978 OTS1[pure violet](Orchestral Tape Studies)
42:24 Kinbrae - Meander(Landforms)
48:04 Federico Mosconi - Melody Not Melody(Light Not Light)
51:20 MALK - Re-Treat(WMAIDIT)
54:08 Offthesky - Future Fire(Illuminate)
57:36 Geir Sundstøl - Waterloo(Brødløs)
62:28 end