low light mixes

Arboreal Ambient

 

I am a big fan of the ambient artist Robert Davies. You can find his music here... https://dataobscura.bandcamp.com/

Most of his music is connected to nature which you can see in the album titles such as A Distant Glade, Lakeside Haven, Earthen Burrows, Tide Pools, Forest Mosaic, and on & on. The tracks are immersive, pastoral ambient journeys that sometimes use subtle natural sounds mixed in with the synths. Highly recommended. 

There was an album released in 2022 that reminded me of the music of Robert Davies by Atmøsphäre & Bålsam which was called "Arboreal." I set that album aside in a future mix folder with some of Davies' music and called it Arboreal. Yes, I know, very creative title. After collecting tracks I finally decided it was time to create an arboreal mix.

 

This set is very meditative with slow drifting synths and nature sounds already baked into the tracks. I like how the natural sounds are not obtrusive. They mesh perfectly with the music.

 

Here are the links to all the music used in this mix:

• https://atlantearecords.bandcamp.com/album/arboreal
• https://dataobscura.bandcamp.com/album/solitudes
• https://lontanoseries.bandcamp.com/album/reverie
• https://benseretan.bandcamp.com/album/cicada-waves
• https://neotantra.bandcamp.com/album/every-day-feels-like-a-new-drug
• https://cryochamber.bandcamp.com/album/all-roads-lead-home
• https://aliodie.bandcamp.com/album/coalescent-sketches
• https://gallerysix.bandcamp.com/album/richness-of-the-heart
• https://imaginarynorth.bandcamp.com/album/imaginary-north-transmission-004
• https://dataobscura.bandcamp.com/album/arboreal

 

Cheers!

 

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Atmøsphäre & Bålsam - Blossoming (Arboreal 2022) [Atlantea Records]
• 04:10    Robert Davies - Fragrant Briar (Solitudes 2024) [DataObscura]
• 10:40    Daou - Fireside (Reverie 2023) [Lontano Series]
• 14:19    Ben Seretan - Cicada Waves 2 (Cicada Waves 2021)
• 20:53    Lee Anthony Norris & Porya Hatami - And The Birds Flew In A Different Direction (Every Day Feels Like A New Drug 2022) [Neotantra]
• 28:20    Mount Shrine - Forest Fire (All Roads Lead Home 2022) [Cryp Chamber]
• 34:04    Arborescence & Robert Davies - Bowing Stems (Coalescent Sketches 2022) [Hic Sunt Leones]
• 43:43    Gallery Six - Hogaraka (Richness of the Heart 2024)
• 47:27    Cloud Opacity - Noshine Coast (Imaginary North Transmission 004 2023) [Imaginary North ]
• 50:33    Robert Davies - Arboreal (Arboreal 2012) [DataObscura]
• 60:00    end

SLOW/FORM by Tewksbury

 

 

I occasionally get music submitted for consideration to be used in mixes. I don't seek out submissions but if artists or labels are so kind as to send me some music I will take a listen. Last month I got a totally blind email with a link to a new album from Tewksbury. I fell in love with the album instantly. Well, not instantly as the full album is over 3 hours long. 

Check it out here... https://tewksbury.bandcamp.com/album/floes-volumes-i-iv

Each track is over ten minutes long and they evolve slowly, beautifully as the tape loops, melodies and textures stretch time and space. I liked the album so much that I asked the artist, Douglas Tewksbury, to create a mix and, luckily for all of us, he agreed. 

Here's what Douglas has to say about SLOW/FORM:

"This mix is a collective of slow, organically unfolding music, songs that reminded me of the importance of reflection, of stillness, of contemplation, of change. A few tracks are from my most recent 4x album 'Floes: Volumes I-IV', and the rest are artists who create slowly evolving works with human voices, with synthesizers, and with pianos, culminating with a stunning 19-minute piano work by the incredible Ukrainian pianist, Lubomyr Melnyk. Music can be such a powerful force to reflect on ourselves and the world around us, and here, I wanted to present a moment of consideration and contemplation on what it means to be a listener, investing the time to take the journey in longer works, to invest oneself in the commitment of deep listening."

Thanks to Douglas for creating the mix and for such an excellent album.

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00   Tewksbury - Vika (Self-Released, 2024)
• 10:52   The Beacon Sound - Drone 3 (First Terrace, 2017)
• 15:01   Qasim Naqvi - Ctaphone (Erased Tapes, 2020)
• 16:40   Ian William Craig - Red Gate with Starling (Recital, 2018)
• 19:58   Dorothy Carter - Summer Rhapsody (Palto Flats, 2023)
• 27:02   Hatis Noit - Illogical Lullaby (Erased Tapes, 2018)
• 34:57   Tewksbury - Yaw (Self-Released, 2024)
• 47:17   Yuuki Matthews - Post-Tropical Cyclone (Labels Group, 2014)
• 49:50   Marine Eyes & IKSRE - You'll Grow (Past inside the Present, 2022)
• 54:27   Oneohtrix Point Never - Lovergirls Precinct (Warp, 2012)
• 55:55   Time Wharp - East River Dusk (Leaving Records, 2022)
• 58:23   Lubomyr Melnyk - Pockets of Light (Erased Tapes, 2013)
• 77:38   End

Transforming Sorrow by Paul Asbury Seaman

 

 

It's always a good day when we get a new mix from Paul Asbury Seaman. Not only because it will be a well thought out collection of tunes but also because that collection is different than what I crank out every week. So it's a nice change of pace and good exposure to new artists and styles.

Here is what Paul says about this new mix:

“Seventh entry in my ‘Mystical Ambience’ series, I think this is one of my most spiritual mixes to date. There’s a lot to be sorrowful about these days. We need solace and, just as important, the courage—and grace— to have hope. The program begins with Ladd Allen Doane’s sweet sequencer pattern juxtaposed with slightly dissonant base chords, emphasizing the tension between what we long for and what we actually see and experience. The rest of the set settles into a contemplative tone suitable for meditation and going-to-sleep music.

Recently I was re-listening to Scott Lawlor’s ‘Seven Last Words’ album (2019) and, while I didn’t end up using it here (too long), ‘The Third Word’ from that album was so achingly beautiful it prompted me to get moving on this mix. Thank you to Seb Taylor for his new Kaya Project album, from which this mix takes its title. (Cover image: ‘Stellar Sorrow’ by haidermah, Pixabay.com.)"

Thanks, Paul, for another excellent musical journey.

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

00:00    Ladd Allen - Alpha Circini (Doane Circinus 2024)
04:20    Larkenlyre  - As We Forgive (Psalms & Sutras 2024)
07:15    Kaya Project - This Too Shall Pass(Zheng 24) (Transforming Sorrow 2024)
12:37    Fabio Keiner - misogi purification (okinoshima 2023)
16:22    Scott Lawlor - Awaken to the Invitation of Grace (Awakening Anew In Stillne... 2023)
22:55    Hollan Holmes - A Light Unto The World (Sacred Places 2024)
28:05    Fritz Mayr - Hidden Organism (Aqua World 2024)
31:58    Shoshana Michel - Starlight and Crystal Dreams(Frida's Lullaby) (Storyteller 2024)
35:33    Jeff Greinke - Late Rain at the Station (Oceanic 2024)
40:55    Rudy Adrian - Within the Darkness (Reflections On A Moonlit... 2024)
44:12    Syndromeda - Liftoff to Infinity (Liftoff to Infinity 2024)
52:30    Max Corbacho - Primordial Flower (The Delicate Essence of Solitude 2024)
60:00    end

In The Path Of The Eclipse

 

I could kick myself for not planning for this eclipse. I should have booked a room in Austin, TX two years ago. But I did not, so I'll be here in Wisconsin with a still pretty good 90% eclipse and a sketchy forecast.

No matter where you are for the eclipse, you'll need a good soundtrack. As with past celestial events you can count on Low Light Mixes to provide an accompaniment for your viewing.

The titles tell the story of the eclipse, starting with "Ordinary Moon" and "Edge of Darkness" then as the moon obscures more the sun the are "Gathering Shadows" as "Darkness Descends"  Then as we "Step Into The Void" of the "Solar Eclipse" and the "Umbra" we are "In The Perfect Darkness" while "The Moon Remained Silent." Next we see "Light Among The Shadows" with the "Light Returning" and the "Return of the Sun."

I hope you all have good weather and a view. Enjoy the show and the mix.

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Yoyu - Ordinary Moon (Ordinary Moon 2017)
• 06:40    Bass Communion - Edge Of Darkness (Atmospherics 1999)
• 09:27    O Yuki Conjugate - Gathering Shadows (Equator 1995)
• 13:10    A Produce - Darkness Descends (Black Sands 2005)
• 16:10    Klaus Schulz - Solar Moon (Contemporary Works)
• 18:10    Terje Isungset - Black Moon (Two Moons 2007)
• 18:50    Rhomb - Darkened (Lost And Found: A Foundry Anthology 2002)
• 20:00    Luton - Step Into The Void (We Stayed The Path That Fell To Shadow 2018)
• 22:48    Stellardrone - Solar Eclipse (A Moment Of Stillness 2011)
• 25:25    Damian Valles - Umbra (In The Shadow of The Occluding Body 2010)
• 28:28    Alio Die & Dirk Serries - Without The Light Of The Sky, Time Is Lost (The Chapters Of The Eclipse 2022)
• 34:15    Lammergeyer - In Praise Of Darkness (Borders And Barrens 2005)
• 36:36    SVLBRD - In the Perfect Darkness (How To Disappear 2024)
• 39:39    Ruoho Ruotsi - The moon remained silent (chalak’At’sit 2021)
• 42:58    Erik Wøllo - Light Among Shadows (North Star 2021)
• 47:10    David Cordero & Carlos Ferreira - Almost Light (Silent Articulations 2023)
• 48:35    Christopher Hanlon - Light Returning (Dreaming of Summer in Winter 2022)
• 51:45    Purl, Deflektion - Return of the Sun (Growing 2012)
• 57:30    Boards of Canada - Open The Light (Music Has the Right to Children 1998)
• 61:43    end

Now That's What I Call Ambient - March 2024

 

 

Pretty straightforward ambient mix here. All the tracks in this set are 2024 releases, many within the last few weeks. There are definitely some fine albums in this group, a few of which might make it on a best of list at the end of the year.

Here are Bandcamp links to all the music used in this mix:

• https://sixmissing.bandcamp.com/track/balloons
• https://polarseasrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/at-dusk-hour-the-crickets
• https://shimmeringmoodsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/flowers-of-the-heart
• https://davidcordero.bandcamp.com/album/wild-air
• https://whitelabrecs.bandcamp.com/album/homegrown-apples
• https://quietdetails.bandcamp.com/album/if-all-will-be-lost
• https://ab-andrewheathandmicosaderesistance.bandcamp.com/album/caf-tristesse
• https://ab-odnumlaut.bandcamp.com/album/abandoned-spaces
• https://tonepoet.bandcamp.com/album/scenes-from-the-apocalyptic-bliss
• https://oscarson.bandcamp.com/album/the-lonely-bell-the-absent-years
• https://soundinsilencerecords.bandcamp.com/album/perennial
• https://matthewhiram.bandcamp.com/album/yucca-music
• https://whitelabrecs.bandcamp.com/album/boat

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Six Missing - Baloons (2024)
• 03:50    Kilometre Club - Warmer (At Dusk Hour the Crickets 2024)
• 05:25    Near Lakes - Quiet Desire (Flowers of the Heart 2024)
• 09:37    Ian Hawgood & David Cordero - A Path of No Hiding (Wild Air 2024)
• 14:45    mark david hadley - whimsy (homegrown apples 2024)
• 18:40    Maps and Diagrams - far distant from this land (if all will be lost 2024)
• 23:42    Andrew Heath and Mi Cosa de Resistance - The Absentee (Café Tristesse 2024)
• 27:37    OdNu + Ümlaut - Unforseen Scenes (Abandoned Spaces 2024)
• 34:20    Tonepoet - Infinite Tide of Stars (Scenes From The Apocalyptic Bliss 2024)
• 37:37    The Lonely Bell - The Absent Years (The Absent Years 2024)
• 42:22    SineRider - Fragile (Perennial 2024)
• 45:50    Hiram - First Light (Yucca Music 2024)
• 52:12    Low Altitude - Slow Drift (Boat 2024)
• 56:03    end

Infinitely Small by Htennek Niwhsa

 

 

Thanks to our good friends at Nettwerk Music we have another wonderful guest mix to share. The mix is called "Infinitely Small", expertly curated by Htennek Niwhsa.

Piano is the main instrument throughout this lovely set. I don't listen to quite as much piano music as I used to so it was a great to hear so many track featuring the instrument. This would be a great mix to listen to on a Sunday morning with coffee and the paper.

Ken Harrison and Ashwin Sood are the masterminds behind the Htennek Niwhsa project. I'll them tell you about this warm and inviting mix:

"We’re so pleased to be asked to do a guest mix for Low Light! We’ve spent the last two years soaking in a bath of simple but pure melodies that an unknown composer named Htennek Niwhsa prepared. We’ve searched unsuccessfully for him but, in our quest, have found him to be a patient teacher. This playlist is a reflection of the lesson Htennek taught us about the value of slowing down and noticing the small and seemingly insignificant. Universes contained in a miniature figurine. Symphonies contained in a well thought out melodic phrase. We’ve compiled this mix from other composers who we think shared Htennek’s vision - some of them friends, some of them heroes."

The new EP "The Smell of a Solitary House" by Htennek Niwhsa just came out last week, March 8th. Here's the link - https://htennekniwhsa.bandcamp.com/album/the-smell-of-a-solitary-house  If you like this, you'll like the new EP. Definitely check it out.

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Patrick Watson - Ode to Vivian (rework) (2022)
• 01:35    Joep Beving - For Mark (Hermetism, 2022)
• 06:32    Htennek Niwhsa - Fugitive Words (The Smell of a Solitary House 2024)
• 08:30    Stephan Moccio - Sea Change (Tales of Solace, 2020)
• 11:15    Hiroshi Yoshimura - Sleep (Green 2020)
• 17:29    Haruhisa Tanaka - Byakuya (Byakuya 2024)
• 19:55    Harold Budd, Brian Eno - The Silver Ball (The Pearl 1983)
• 23:12    Htennek Niwhsa - The Smell of a Solitary House (The Smell of a Solitary House 2024)
• 25:20    Htennek Niwhsa - Two Motionless Gondoliers (The Smell of a Solitary House 2024)
• 27:08    Ennio Morricone - Love Theme (Cinema Paradiso 1988) 
• 28:36    Ann Annie - Aviary Reverie - Waltz No. 2 in C (Sweet Coast, 2024)
• 31:24    Stephan Moccio - The Wanderer (The Wanderer, 2024)
• 34:45    Alexandra Streliski - Élegie (Néo- Romance, 2023)
• 38:46    Hollie Kenniff - Eunoia (We All Have Places That We Miss 2024)
• 42:06    Max Richter - Dream 1 (before the wind blows it all away) (Pt. 1) (Sleep 2015)
• 44:35    P-RAM - Arco (Arco, 2024)
• 48:18    NVLP - Elements the Elements (2023)
• 52:00    Arvo Pärt - Spiegel im Spiegel - Version for Cello and Piano (Arvo Pärt : Alina, 1999)

Electronic Music of 1973

 

At last we return to the "Electronic Music of (insert year)" series. That's obviously not the actual title of the series but since I don't have a title that will do for this post. I really enjoyed putting together mixes for for 1970, '71, and '72 but then I got distracted and lazy, and I almost forgot about the series. 

Now we're back to 1973 to continue our journey through the electronic music of the decade. I went down a Tangerine Dream rabbit hole recently and discovered their album Atem, which I had somehow missed. But I was happy to have found it because it fit in nicely with this '73 collection.

I'm already thinking about 1974 so hopefully there won't be so much time between mixes.

Cheers!

 T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Between - Syn (And The Waters Opened)
• 05:45    Fripp & Eno - The Heavenly Music Corporation (No Pussyfooting)
• 16:22    Cosmic Jokers - Galactic Joke (Cosmic Jokers)
• 23:00    Kraftwerk - Ananas Symphonie (Ralf & Florian)
• 28:25    Tangerine Dream - Circulation of Events (Atem)
• 33:45    Vangelis - La Mer Recommencée (Apocalypse Des Animaux)
• 39:09    Klaus Schulze - Symphära (Cyborg)
• 45:58    Jean Michel Jarre - Les granges brûlées (Les granges brûlées)
• 48:48    Bob Callaghan - Noi Due Nel Mondo E Nell'Anima (Instrumental Moog Synthesizer
• 51:27    Neu! - Neuschnee (Neu! 2)
• 55:25    Kraftwerk - Tanzmusik (Ralf & Florian) 
• 61:47    end

DUNE - The Storm

 

 

Denis Villeneuve's eagerly anticipated continuation of the Dune saga has arrived. I am definitely psyched about seeing it this weekend. So ramp up my excitement even more I made an alternative soundtrack mix. This set features tracks that sound like they might fit the film but are not from either of the two actual soundtracks.

There's not much else to say other than enjoy the mix and then go see the film. It's going to be epic.

Cheers!

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Arushi Jain - My People Have Deep Roots (Under The Lilac Sky 2021)
• 03:50    Peter Gabriel - Trills (Passion Outtakes 1989)
• 04:15    Eluvium - Hallucination III (Virga II 2021)
• 07:50    Jaimie Branch - The Storm (FLY or DIE LIVE 2021)
• 10:10    NYX - Deep England (Deep England 2021)
• 13:45    Palancar - The Hand of God (Desert Power 2022)
• 19:30    Abul Mogard - Clouds (In Immobile Air 2021)
• 25:40    Johann Johannsson - To Fold & Remain Dormant (Drone Mass 2022)
• 29:30    Arushi Jain - Richer Than Blood (Under The Lilac Sky 2021)
• 32:00    Scanner - The Earthbound Fox (Struktura Revisited 2022)
• 36:40    Lustmord - Twin Flames (Alter 2021)
• 45:50    Atli Örvarsson - Wolka (Wolka 2021)
• 50:35    Palancar - The Emperor's Blades (Desert Power 2022)
• 51:45    Daryl Groetsch - Desert Serenity (Scenes from Some Planet 2022)
• 57:14    end

Quiet Days by Ann Annie

 

I love hosting guest mixes here on LLM and especially love it when they come at the right time. I have been super busy so this curated set comes at the perfect time. This mix comes to us from Portland-based composer and multi-instrumentalist Eli Goldberg, aka Ann Annie. He has a new album coming out in June and a new single, Cottonwood, out now. You can listen to “Cottonwood” on all digital retailers (((HERE)))

“Annie takes a transcendental approach to ambient country, coaching modular minimalism into a character that interacts with its surroundings.” - Bandcamp Daily

Here is what Eli says about this mix:

" 'Quiet Days' is a collection of some of my favorite artists and songs from the last year. Included are a few unreleased tracks from my upcoming album “The Wind”. I imagine listening to the mix while sitting at the coast on a foggy day."

Thanks to Eli for putting together this excellent mix. Here's where you can find Ann Annie on the web:

Website  |  Instagram  |  Facebook  |  YouTube

Cheers!

 

T R A C K L I S T :

⦁ 00:00    Sawako - April - From Seashell (Bitter Sweet 2008)
⦁ 03:06    Yumiko Morioka - Moon Road (Resonance 2020)
⦁ 07:50    Ann Annie - Opening (The Wind 2024)
⦁ 09:07    Ann Annie - With Violet (The Wind 2024)
⦁ 09:49    Joe Hisaishi - One Summer’s Day (The Best of Cinema Music 2011)
⦁ 14:40    Masakatsu - Marginalia #48 (2018)
⦁ 18:23    Taylor Deupree & Marcus Fischer - Migrations (Lowlands 2017)
⦁ 21:25    Tennyson - Sleepwalk (Telescope EP 2019)
⦁ 24:05    Alaskan Tapes - Who Tends A Garden (Who Tends A Garden  2023)
⦁ 28:30    Ann Annie - Sweet Coast (The Wind 2024)
⦁ 30:58    Gia Margaret - no sleep no dream (Mia Gargaret 2020)
⦁ 32:42    r beny - In the violet and lingering winter dusk (eistla 2018)
⦁ 40:02    Sigur Rós - Heysátan (Takk 2005)
⦁ 44:00    Six Missing - Awake Awareness (Intention II 2022)
⦁ 48:44    Emily Sprague - Piano 2(Mount Vision) (Mount Vision 2018)

APRICITY: the warmth of sunshine in winter

 

Apricity(a-PRIS-i-tee)(n.) - The warmth of the sun in winter.

I stumbled upon this word while doom-scrolling Threads or Instagram last week. I like the idea that there is a word that describes that feeling of soaking of the limited rays of the sun on a winter day. I had already started a straightforward ambient mix and this word just seemed to fit the vibe. 

All the tracks in this mix are new, with most being from 2024. There's not much else to say other than find a cozy spot near a window and let some sunshine warm you up.

Cheers!

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Crows Labyrinth, Perry Frank - Vanishing (Vanishing 2024)
• 02:50    Altus - Waning Landscapes (Solastalgia 2024)
• 11:05    Benoît Pioulard & Offthesky - Fed On Lilies (Sunder 2024)
• 15:10    Logic Moon & Henrik Meierkord - Bortom Skogen (Ewiger Wald 2024)
• 18:45    Isostatic - Arctic Crossing (Beyond The North Wind 2023)
• 25:45    Robert Rich - Dendritic (Waves Of Now 2024)
• 29:40    Rainforest Spiritual Enslavement - Shoreline Procession (Killer Whale Atmospheres 2023)
• 37:57    Gallery Six - Utakata (Richness of the Heart 2024)
• 41:20    David Cordero - Serene Landscapes (Restless Nature 2024)
• 43:30    SVLBRD - In the Deep Ocean (How To Disappear 2024)
• 45:55    Gregory Paul Mineeff - Into A Dulled Reckoning (So Many, Diminishes 2024)
• 49:09    Luis Miehlich - It's Alright (Re-Cartographies 2024)
• 56:40    Robert Davies - Hum of Ether (Solitudes 2024)
• 67:32    end