low light mixes

More Sunday morning music - this time all the tracks are from the 1970s.  In collecting these cuts I discovered two albums that I somehow missed - Kraftwerk - Ralf & Florian and Cluster - Sowiesoso.  I have plenty of Kraftwerk & Cluster in my collection but I didn't have those two albums &  they are both wonderful.  So thanks to Matt for suggesting those two records.  Also thanks Matt for suggesting the Nue! track.  That one was "new" to me and it fit perfectly. I know the Nick Drake tune was technically not the 1970s but I had already fallen in love with it & put it in the mix before I realized that it was released in 1969.  Oh well. I went back and forth about using the Ralph Towner cut.  It's a bit too pretty, almost new age-like, but I used to love that song.  Along with Eberhard Weber, Towner's Icarus was my introduction into the wonderful world of ECM records back when I was in college.  So I had to include it for nostalgia sake.  I'm glad I did because it really is a beautiful tune. I wasn't able to squeeze in all of the great suggestions from listeners so I'm definitely going to have to do a second mix with this theme.  I really want to work that Kris Kristofferson tune into the next one.  And I didn't get a chance to work in Josh's suggestions of electronic library music.  I sought out the Monkman album & it's so cool, it just has to be included next time.  Too many good tunes left on the cutting room floor!  I better get started on the next mix. Enjoy. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Kraftwerk - Heimatklange[1973]
• 03:31    King Crimson - Peace a Theme[1970]
• 04:40    Nick Drake - Riverman[1969]
• 08:50    Cat Stevens - The Wind[1971]
• 10:22    Ralph Towner - Icarus[1974]
• 16:27    Nue! - Leb Wohl[1975]
• 24:50    Cluster - in ewigkeit[1976]
• 31:25    Miles Davis - Recollections[1970]
• 38:25    Kraftwerk - ananas symphonie[1973]
• 45:30    Brian Eno - Julie With[1977]
• 50:30    Eberhard Weber - Moana I[1976]
• 55:22    Genesis - Horizons[1972]
• 56:55    Loudon Wainwright III - Lullaby[1973]
• 59:45    Steve Tibbetts - The Secret[1977]
• 04:25    Heldon 2 - In the Wake of King Fripp[1975]
• 08:30    Brian Eno - Taking Tiger Mountain[1974]
• 13:20    end

The good folks over at Nocturne Records asked me to do a mix for their podcast. They put out some great music so how could I resist! Most of the time with my mixes I'll stumble upon one or two tunes that spark an idea. In this case I rediscovered an old electronic album that I had in college. It's a compilation called Music from the 21st Century. That album got me thinking about science fiction music, whether it's music used in sci-fi or just tunes that sound like they should be in a sci-fi film. This mix uses two tracks from the 21st Century album along with several other old electronic cuts. A couple of those older cuts are from another college favorite, Synergy - Cords. I loved that album back then & still go to it occasionally for a nostalgia hit.  The whole album definitely has a sci fi movie soundtrack sort of feel to it. The mix isn't totally old electronics, there is also some newer material mixed in. Enjoy. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Vangelis - Blush Response
• 04:00    Synergy - A Presuming to be Modern I
• 06:50    Richard Pinhas - L' Ethique
• 11:20    Lights Out Asia - All These Worlds are Yours
• 13:15    The Black Dog - Lounge
• 14:15    Frank Comstock - On the Dark Side of the Moon
• 16:00    Michael Garrison - Escape (music from the 21st century)
• 18:20    Synergy - Disruption in World Communications
• 22:00    David Bowie - Abdulmajid
• 25:10    Elf Machine - Evolutions Arrow
• 29:00    Underworld & John Murphy - Capa Meets the Sun
• 30:45    Vector Lovers - Girl + Robot
• 32:50    Maps & Diagrams - Skynet
• 35:30    Bruce Courtois - Inside the Black Hole (music from the 21st century)
• 37:10    Vangelis - Longing
• 38:35    Solar Fields - Blue Moon Station
• 45:00    Cliff Martinez - First Sleep
• 47:30    Rena Jones - The Problem of Time
• 49:50    Schengen - Me n' U
• 50:30    Lopside - To the Point of Obscurity
• 55:50    Vangelis - Fading Away
• 59:00    end

Cedar Creeek in Cedarburg, WI.

This mix ended up in a different place than when it started.  I have folder in my prospective mix bin called "just plain old good ambient."  It had a few tracks in it & I sat down with it intending to make a mix with that "theme" in mind. But then when I got to tracks #5, the Jasper, TX track, I started to hear something else happening.  It was the title of track #5, "Rivers Flow," that gave me the idea of where this mix really wanted to go. I listened to the cut already laid down and sure enough they did fit with a river theme.  After deciding on the new direction I sought out a few more tracks and.. TA DA!  A new mix with a flowing river theme. The mix contains some low light regulars like Eno and Maps & Diagrams.  The Kiln track I've been hanging on to for a long time, waiting for the right spot & I think this is it.  The first cut is from Lowercase Noises, an artist I discovered on Bandcamp.  Check him out here...Lowercase Noises. Next up, a Sci Fi mix for Josh at Nocturne Records. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Lowercase Noises - Ambient songs 01
• 05:15    Kiln - Drala
• 07:15    Michael Brook - Mimosa
• 12:40    Filed Rotation - Repetition of History
• 17:00    Jasper, TX - Rivers Flow
• 21:45    Xela - The Only Rose
• 24:10    Gagarin - An Tarbet
• 28:50    Maps & Diagrams - Searching Faraway Places
• 30:50    Brian Eno - Unfamiliar Wind
• 35:10    Benoit Pioulard - If I could possibly tell the difference
• I wouldn't care anyway
• 39:40    The Green Kingdom - Kalimba Sketch
• 43:05    Noto & Sakamoto - By This River (phantom)
• 46:00    Aglaia - On the Banks of a River
• 49:33    Martin Herterich - Silent Fields 2
• 55:15    Brian Eno - Riverside
• 58:37    end

Ambient music will never be a popular genre.  We all know the kind of looks we get from people when they hear some of our ambient tunes.  But over time ambient sensibilities have crept into a lot of modern music.  And artists that normally don't do ambient music have dipped their toes into a droning sea. So that's where this mix takes us, to tunes that are fairly to very ambient, by non-ambient artists.  Many of the artists on this tracklist aren't exactly big surprises, Sylvian, Bowie, Gabriel & Boards of Canada have done many ambient-like tracks over the years.  But they are not known primarily as ambient artists.  I didn't include the Genesis tune that inspired this mix, mainly because it was the featured track in an earlier mix.  But I did manage to sneak in another Genesis tune from the same album. Thanks to everyone for all the great suggestions.  I think 6 made it into the final mix.  I am saving some of the recommendations for the next Sunday morning mix.  Thanks! T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Andrew Bird - Belles
• 02:20    U2 - 4th of July
• 04:00    David Sylvian - Answered Prayers
• 06:39    S. Cary - Rothko Fields
• 07:44    Peter Gabriel - Slow Marimbas
• 10:30    Mercury Rev - Pickup if you're there
• 12:00    Radiohead - Treefingers
• 15:17    Boards of Canada - Over the Horizon Radar
• 16:05    Boards of Canada - Heard from Telegraph Lines
• 17:00    Nine Inch Nails - A Warm Place
• 19:33    David Bowie - Art Decade
• 22:45    Genesis - Ravine
• 24:15    Andrew Bird - Yawny at the Apocalypse
• 27:00    Trespassers William - Just Like This(disinterested remix)
• 31:45    Peter Gabriel - The Nest That Sailed The Sky
• 36:08    Richard Hawley - Last Orders
• 40:55    Unkle - The Piano Echoes
• 45:30    David Bowie - The Mysteries
• 51:50    Peter Gabriel - Powerhouse at the Foot of the Mountain
• 52:50    Laurie Anderson - Walking and Falling
• 54:20    John Martyn - Small Hours(instrumental version)
• 1:04:10    end

I have to be honest.  One of the reasons I've done so many(#5 now) of these Sunday morning music mixes is that they are so popular, especially on Mixcloud.  So I'm a sellout, a ratings whore.  I admit it.  But I like to think that each Sunday mix is a good listen in it's own way. I usually stumble upon a song or two that prompts me to start a new mix.  In this case it was the song "Before My Time" which leads off the mix.  It's the song that plays during the credits of the film Chasing Ice.  When I heard it as the credits rolled it knocked my socks off.  That's Scarlett Johansson singing.  She's got a unique voice,  not one to be used for candy coated pop music.  But absolutely perfect for the beautiful restraint of "Before My Time." I hope this mix is another worthy addition to the Sunday morning music series.  Enjoy. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    J. Ralph & Scarlett Johansson - Before My Time (from Chasing Ice OST)
• 03:33    Sigur Ros - Varðeldur (from Valtari)
• 09:15    Manu Katché - Slowing the Tides (from Manu Katché)
• 14:35    Simon Scott - sealevel.1 (from Below Sealevel)
• 18:25    Kiln - Centrifu (from Thermals)
• 19:40    S. Carey - Mothers (from All We Grow)
• 24:45    Andrew Bird - Night Sky (from Norman OST)
• 28:13    Endless Melancholy - A Song for the Morning Star (from Music for Quiet Mornings)
• 32:40    Schulte & Martin - Frosty Morning (from Treasure)
• 36:10   J. Ralph - Chasing Ice (Croconite) (from Chasing Ice OST)
• 39:05    Max Richter - Winter 3 (from Vivaldi 4 Seasons Recomposed)
• 43:15    Patrick Watson - Noisy Sunday (from Adventurers in Your Own Backyard)
• 45:05    Garth Stevenson - Dawn (from Flying)
• 50:55    Manuell Göttsching - Quasarsphere (from Inventions for Electric Guitar)
• 56:55    J. Ralph - You're No Longer Just a Human Being (from Chasing Ice OST)
• 58:40    end

I love the end of the year because of all the lists that get posted all over the place.  I love discovering releases that I knew nothing about.  The folks over at Headphone Commute have started their mammoth collection of 15 best of lists here. Over at A Closer Listen they have lists for best field recordings, modern composition, experimental, post rock, overall, etc. and guest lists. Secret Thirteen has a ton of guest lists where I found a bunch of stuff I'd never heard of. There is a nice eclectic list over at Textura that is worth checking out. While cruising these list I came across some excellent electronic music.  Some of techno, some idm, some dub.  I found enough ambient/dub stuff to make me want to do a new dubby & dreamy mix.  So that's what this new mix is, a collection slow beats with a dubby feel with some ambient synth washes to keep things dreamy. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Ezekiel Honig & Morgan Packard - Balm
• 02:15    Submersion - Erosion II
• 04:00    Ezekiel Honig & Morgan Packard - Hibernate
• 06:55    Silent Harbour - Descending Radius Curve
• 09:00    Kabana - Reflex
• 13:55    Ghosting Season - Through Your Teeth
• 18:00    DJAx - Machines
• 21:00    Deepchord - Rippling
• 22:00    Arc of Doves - Arabesque
• 24:45    1991 - High-Tech Slow-Life
• 28:00    Andy Stott - Luxury Problems
• 30:30    Deepchord - Theme from Silent World
• 36:40    Alteria Percepsyne - Circumvent
• 39:10    sonmi451 - Vladivostok
• 44:00    Coppice Halifax - Dusk II (axs silent night breathing)
• 49:50    Voice from the Lake - Hgs
• 53:55    Lee Gamble - 3,4 synthetics
• 54:25    Willits & Sakamoto - I Don’t Want To Understand
• 1:00:33    end

The awesome folks over at Headphone Commute asked me to do a special mix for them and of course I could not refuse. The mix is special because it is helping promote a fantastic new compilation they have put together.  It's called "...and darkness came" and you can find out about it here... Headphone Commute ...and darkness came. The compilation features 80 tracks(yes, 80 tracks!) from great artists in ambient, modern classical and experimental music.  Artists like Max Richter, Clint Mansell, offthesky, Julien Neto, Ólafur Arnalds, Dakota Suite, Christopher Willits, Loscil, Lawrence English, Maps And Diagrams, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Nils Frahm, Talvihorros, Bersarin Quartett, Antonymes, Simon Scott, Dustin O’Halloran, Machinefabriek, :papercutz, and many, many, more. 100% of the proceeds are donated to two charitable organizations, Doctors Without Borders and The Humane Society, to help all those affected by Hurricane Sandy. Please head over to Headphone Commute and think about picking up this excellent compilation. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Yuki Murata - Prologue
• 04:34    James Murray - Still Waters Rise
• 08:55    Monolyth & Cobalt + Évo Lüthi - Dust Off
• 13:25    riverrun - Maallinen Kuu
• 16:00    Antonymes - Elegy IV
• 20:05    Julien Neto - Los Cien Enamorados
• 23:15    M.Cadoo - a.m.
• 26:45    Jóhann Jóhannsson - Melodia (iv) (Live at Ancienne Belgique)
• 28:15    Brambles - Reflected Consciousness
• 30:45    Tomoyoshi Date, Corey Fuller, Marcus Fischer and Simon Scott - Quartet(intro)
• 33:20    Simon Scott - For Betty
• 35:15    offthesky - Still Breathing
• 38:50    Dakota Suite - Now I Am Lost
• 44:20    Christoph Berg - Silence
• 46:56    Erik K Skodvin - Amber & Glass
• 49:05    Honig + Templeton - Reginald Cousins
• 52:10    Takahiro Kido - Sweet Silince
• 55:45    Minus Pilots - Illuminating The Dark Fields
• 58:30    Dustin O'Halloran - Fragile #2
• 1:01:15    end

Looking back over the last six years of mixes, the piano has been the featured instrument in many of the the tracks.  I guess it goes all the way back to Ambient #1 : Music for Airports.  The piano is a perfect instrument for the contemplative, ambient music in the mixes found here.

As far as I can tell, I've done four mixes devoted exclusively to the piano.  They are...

1) Piano Mix

2) Piano Mix 2007

3) Antique Sunlight

4) pno 2010

This fifth installment, "asleep at the piano," is very similar to the others.  Although this one may be a bit more ambient in nature.

I was happy to squeeze in two tracks related to Harry Towel, the man behind the brilliant net label Audio Gourmet.  The first by Talvihorros is from the 2011 Audio Gourmet release "Just a Moment" which you can find here...Just a Moment.  The other cut is from Harry's recording artist guise, Spheruleus.  The track, Blueprint, is from his album on Tessellate Recordings called Cyanometry.  You can find that one here...Cyanometry at Bandcamp.  You can find some of Harry's excellent mixes on Mixcloud here...Spheruleus on Mixcloud and here...Groundingsounds on Mixcloud.

Enjoy.

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Sissors & Sellotape - untitled #1
• 01:51    Cepia - Malcesine
• 03:23    Jon Hopkins - water
• 04:20    Cluster & Eno - ho renomo
• 07:45    Ruben Garcia - Rainy Day
• 13:15    Tim Hecker - sketch 1
• 17:20    Tomoyoshi Date - the sound of the moon
• 20:10    Antonymes - 301210
• 24:50    Loscil - City Hospital
• 28:28    Willitts & Sakamoto - Reticent Reminiscence
• 32:00    Talvihorros - Hallowed
• 33:15    A Winged Victory for the Sullen - minuet for a cheap piano
• 36:00    The Beautiful Schizophonic and Yui Onodera - nubian clouds over Saskia
• 41:00    Spheruleus - Blueprint
• 44:25    Janek Schaefer - eyrie of the phoenix
• 45:30    Harold Budd & John Foxx - After all this Time
• 50:25    Sissors & Sellotape - untitled #4
• 52:15    Tape Loop Orchestra - the word on my lips is your name
• 57:25    Jon Hopkins - the end
• 02:06    END

Oops!  It's Sunday night & I'm posting a mix called Sunday Morning Music.  Oh well, play it next Sunday while reading the paper with a cup of coffee. This is the fourth in the Sunday morning series.  It follows a similar pattern - some ambient, some vocal tunes, some jazz - all of it nice & relaxing.  Perfect for a Sunday morning.  This morning I was actually able to sip coffee out on the deck(shown in the pic). Not bad for the 11th of November in Wisconsin. Two of my favorite cuts in the mix are the two tracks(End of the World & The Smallest Piece) from the soundtrack of "Beasts of the Southern Wild."  I'm o very fond of the cuts from Geoffrey Oreyma & Andrew Bird.  The latest release from Andrew Bird will definitely be on my year-end,best-of list. Enjoy. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Brambles - To Speak of Solitude
• 03:30    The xx - Angels
• 06:11    The Boats - The Ballad For The Girl On The Moon
• 09:40    The Bark Psychosis - Pendulum Man
• 16:40    Trespassers William - Believe Me
• 20:46    Yo Yo Ma & Chris Thile - Franz & The Eagle
• 24:20    Geoffrey Oryema - Makambo
• 28:55    Pat Metheny/Steve Reich - Electric Counterpoint
• 32:09    Philip Glass & Nosaj Thing - Knee 1
• 35:35    Charles Lloyd Quartet - Dwija
• 40:40    Clarke - Black Stone
• 42:34    Benh Zeitlin, Dan Romer, The Lost Bayou Ramblers - End of the World
• 44:00    Benh Zeitlin, Dan Romer, The Lost Bayou Ramblers - The Smallest Piece
• 45:25    Andrew Bird - Beyond the Valley of the Three White Horses
• 51:25    Horse Feathers - Summer for Capricorns
• 54:28    David Sylvian - Camp Fire Coyote Country
• 58:00    Nils Frahm - Sol

This is a very slow, droney kind of mix.  All the music has been stretched or slowed down so much that the tunes are unrecognizable from the originals. I used a great little program called Paul Stretch which you can find here... http://hypermammut.sourceforge.net/paulstretch/ It take music and stretches or slows it down dramatically but still keeps it very musical.  I've used the program a few times for mixes in the past but never for creating an entire mix. All the tracks are slowed by at least 10x to 15x.  The slowed down result is perfect for meditation, sleeping or daydreaming.  It's kind of amazing to me how it was possible to create something entirely new from the source material. Enjoy. T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Cliff Martinez - First Sleep
• 05:30    Steve Reich - Six Marimbas
• 12:15    Noto & Sakamoto - By This River
• 21:00    Anonymous 4 - medie noctis tempus
• 21:40    Tangerine Dream - Tangram
• 34:45   Steve Reich - Six Marimbas
• 52:50    Budd & Eno - A Stream with Bright Fish
• 1:00:00    end