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How can an album produced and co-written by Flood (The guy behind production of U2 and Nine Inch Nails) in 1995 of really cool electro-ambient have only 2,250 scrobbles (how many times it was played through last.fm users). I think the problem is distribution (I lucked out and found a used copy at the now long gone "Armageddon Records" in Chicago in 1997). I looked for a link for someone to legitimately download the album and I came up with nothing (Anyone with knowledge where to get it through Internet, lemme know). You can, however, listen to most of the amazing E.P. through last.fm (though three bands show up with the same name, and a bad b-w photo of a metal band is the photo). From the first listen, parallels with Henke's "Monolake" and some of the more experimental "Plasticman" come to mind, but then I think about when it was produced and that makes this album all the more appreciative. The first track starts with ominous electronic percussion and then gradually builds with Alien textures and blips and distorted synths. The mastering and "spacial-ness" is nothing but masterful. This is how electronic albums Should sound and what they need to aspire to. The second track Olivine comes in with tubular and bell noises. Reminds me vaguely of the the Nine Inch Nails album "Fixed" with how the frequencies are panned and how the reverb sounds (which makes sense since both albums came out around the same time and produced by same person). The rest of the album is just as well thought out and produced. "Slapback" is more aggressive to the point of it being almost progressive dance music without the four-on-the-floor drum beat. Levy and Propane are similar to the first two with the cinematic approach (each track is 8minutes+). Try and find this album... or at least listen to it on Last.fm.

» album listen @ last.fm
» artist profile @ last.fm

Hecate vs. Lustmord: Law Of the Battle of Conquest

Since my last podcast was based on the darker side of ambient, I decided this review should go in the same direction. I think I made the right choice in picking this album that came out in 2002. These are both definitely prolific artists on their own. Lustmord is known for his organic, creepy textural ambience. Hecate is known for her absolutely brutal programming. Both bring very dark elements to the table and the mixture works so well. The album starts with the usual Lustmord wall of Evil noise followed by tribal distorted rhythms very typical by Hecate. With a lot of music collaborations, you can usually hear more of one artist than the other. This is a definite exception. It almost feels as if it is an extremely well made mash-up. Both artists really stand out clearly, yet the sounds meld so perfectly together. I highly recommend this E.P. if you really enjoy early industrial (Skinny Puppy, FLA, and a lot of the Zoth omog stuff (leaether strip, etc)), beatcore (Venetian Snares), and/or dark ambient in general. By the end of the album, I felt beat up, worn out, yet yearning for more! It looks like you can preview this entire album at last.fm so definitely give it a listen.

» album @ emusic
» artist profile @ last.fm

Weekly Podcast Episode #3 (12-27-2008)

We now have Three Podcasts!!! You can:
» Download It
» Subscribe To It (Feed)
» Subscribe To It (Direct iTunes)

This Weeks Tracks:

» Robert Rich - Prism (Illumination) @ 2.45
» Autechre - Further (Amber) @ 6.00
» Shapeshifter - Propulsion Barriers (Reticulum Flux) @ 14.10
» Murcof - Muim (Martes) @ 20.15
» Lustmord - Undulating Terrain (Stalker) @ 25.35
» Eluvium - Nepenthe (An Accidental Memory in the case of death) @ 29.45
» Aphex Twin - Gwely Mernans (Drukgs) @ 32.35
» Stars of the Lid - Tippy's Demise (And Their Refinement of the Decline) @ 36.40
» relative q - Dredging the River (Beauty and her broken things) @ 43.40
» Richard Devine - Randale (Asect:Dsect) @ 45.00

Max Richter: 24 Postcards In Full Colour

If I had to have someone/band do a soundtrack to my life, my first choice would be Max Richter. This man captures the slightest emotions and moments so eloquently in his compositions. Even though this album was billed as somewhat of a novelty, it is definitely no exception to his other masterful works. What I mean by novelty is that Max, himself, billed this album as a "ringtone" album; making smaller tracks so you can play them as your, well... ring tones on cell phone. I find it to be so much more than just that. I really see them as tiny glimpses of different times, feelings, and emotions that were recorded at just the optimal time. Besides this album being a smaller format than his normal 7+ minute compositions he normally does, there is a wide arrangement of sound (he tends to relagate mainly to strings/piano with very slight ambient washes used sparingly). Some tracks even go into the realm of complete abstract post-ambient, a-la "Tim Hecker". He sometimes brings in both his conservative and avante-garde writing such as the track, "A Sudden Manhattan Of The Mind"; the playing of a single violin over a wash of ambient noise perfectly puts you in the head of this composer. Another good example is "In Louisville At 7"; it sounds as if you are tapping into a radio transmission of that certain moment only to find it lost as soon as you see it clearly. I would draw comparisons with "Goldmund","Johann Johannson","Eluvium", and even "Benoit Piolard", but his stuff really tends to really stand on its own. I can't recommend this album enough. It is a must have for fans of ambient, modern classical and minimal music.

» album @ emusic
» artist profile @ last.fm

Weekly Podcast Episode#2 (12-20-2008)

Just published our second podcast. You can:
» Download It
» Subscribe To It (Feed)
» Subscribe To It (Direct iTunes)

This Weeks Tracks:

» Ulf Lohmann - Because Before 07 (Because Before) @ 3:20
» Tim Hecker - Trade Winds, White Heat (Radio Amor) @ 6:30
» Hench - lastone - (Glittering Prizes and Endless Compromises) @ 9:30
» Off Land - Fog (Blue Narration) @ 13:55
» Below The Sea - Until you call it quits (Endings. E.P.) @ 20:30
» The Human League - The dignity of labour (part 4) (Reproduction) @ 25:30
» Loscil - La Plongeur (Submers) @ 28:00
» Goldmund - The Winter Of 1539-1540 (The Malady of Elegance) @ 34:40
» Yagya - Snowflake 8 (Rhythm of Snow) @ 36:35
» John Beltran - Soft Summer (Ten Days of Blue) @ 44:25
» Delerium - Symbolism (Morpheus) @ 50:15

Off Land: Blue Narration

I am really enjoying stuff from en:peg digital not only because they have decent selection of music but every release is a mere 2 bucks so I can really listen to new artists without feeling like I made a bad purchase. "Off Land" is no exception to their catalog of artists. The first track "Fog" really sets the tone. (This is, by far, the best track on the album). He utilizes a lot of the organic feel of artists like "Biosphere", yet he still spends time with melody and let the sound of their synths actually stay sounding like synths (like early "Ambient Instinct" artists). The second track "Contrails"'s main pad has almost a soft horn quality to it without sounding too cheesy. In the background, throughout the album, you can hear ambient nature noises such as birds. Let me just say that I really don't know what to feel about sounds of birds in the background of ambient music... maybe slightly a little too cliche for my tastes. The third track "Kites" has a very 80s sci-fi synth feel to it (with more birds in the background (I don't get what a sci-fi feel and bird sounds have in common)!!!). This album is a nice listen for those who really love the late 80s to mid 90s electric ambient artists such as "Human Mesh Dance" and "Global Communication". With that said, don't expect anything to innovative or mind blowing. The artist also need to focus more on his main theme... the nature sounds with the cold synthy feel (albeit nice and relaxing) does not go together thematically very well. In my opinion; if the artists wanted an ambient backdrop noise to fill up the space... they could have chose maybe some nice noise generated rhythms like other artists are doing to fill that void and keep the overall tone the same. It has all the characteristics to make it a good ambient album (and mostly, it is), but the varying ambient textures fight against eachother and make it slightly distracting (which goes against Eno's criteria for ambient music (non distracting)).

» album @ en:peg digital
raquo; artist profile @ last.fm

Arc_Lab: The_Nineteen_Floors

I can't get enough of the crop of "Melodic IDM" that has been coming out over the last few years. This release is definitely no exception. The album starts of with "Qwert_Ameliorate" (Why do IDM Artists find it necessary to name tracks nonsensically?), it starts with a really nice conservative slinky bass and the typical sound of plucked synths to create a counter balance to the melody line created by the bass. The drums are less prominent in this album that you might here in other artists along the same vein. It is a nice departure to deviate from the Rhythm heavy sound of this genre and focus more on the melody. In no way does this mean, however, that drums are not utilized heavily. You will notice in the Second track "Sveta" that mid way through the drums are quite aggressive, but they are slightly filtered and lowered in the mix. For the most part the album carries this formula throughout. I don't know what to feel about the track "Slow_Down" on this album, for the entire feel deviates and brings in a sampled acoustic guitar and vocals. The overall sound is similar to what Mum does but with the lush sound of the other (more electronic instrumental) songs and the mediocre voice, I could live without it. Thankfully, he doesn't deviate long and head right back to his much more apt sound in "Process_Blocks" and carries on for the rest of the album.

» album @ emusic
» artist profile @ last.fm

Below The Sea: Endings E.P.

This E.P. starts off with a delayed guitar repeating a simple three note riff, and through the next 5 minutes on the track it builds to a beautiful organic crescendo. The second track, "Until You Call It Quits", has the same guitar tone as before (reminiscent of the softer shoegaze artists such as "Slow Dive" and "Hammock"), and the percussion is a distorted noise rhythm very similar to what "Pan American" does a lot (though much less obtrusive). The feel of their overall sound makes me think that this is what "Ulrich Schnauss" would sound like if he put down the synths and picked up a Guitar and Bass. This album definitely skates on the fine line that is post-modern ambient and post-rock. At times the melodies of the guitars and bass are familiar to post-rock bands such as "Mono" and "Explosions in the Sky". Though the condensed nature of the tracks and semi-abstract flow of the compositions tend to meld this music more in the background than a lot of Post Rock that is out there. My one gripe is that the play time of this release is a quick 22 minutes; I wish that they would have extended the tracks slightly. I can understand why that chose to refrain from longer songs in order to prevent recundancy. This is definitely a recommend to add to your collection if you are a lover of atmospheric music.

» album @ emusic
» artist profile @ last.fm

John Beltran: Ten Days of Blue

I decided today to showcase an album that came out in 1995 by John Beltran. This album really captures what I loved about the mid-nineties Electro-ambient explosion (look at all the Warp and Astralwerks release during this time frame). The first track "Flex" start with the chorded pad reminiscent of "B-12" and "Black Dog Productions" but with a much more aggressive rhythm along the lines of early "Aphex Twin"/"Autechre" work. The second track "Collapse of Dreams" has a sublime plucked intro with more soft pads and leads from that era. The rest of the album goes along the lines of the second track with plucked synths and gentle pads creating alternating melodies. The most 'dancey' of the tracks here is "Deluge" utilizing the "ambient house" sound made popular by Alex Patterson from "the Orb", though the dance beat is used only sparingly in the middle of the track for only a couple minutes before flowing into ambience. For those looking for some nice relaxing electronic music, this is definitely it. As far as production goes, it is not as innovative as what "Orbital" or "Aphex Twin" was doing at that same time, yet the end result is still a really nice listen and worth checking out.

» album @ emusic
» artist profile @ last.fm

Ambient Music Blog

Thanks to Tim over @ www.ambientmusicblog.com to showcase my site as his latest Post. I suggest all readers go over to his site as well.... I found a lot of great music and resources from him over the months. I recommend going through his "Recommended" list. The stuff that he suggests is more of the "Post-Ambient" variety (Goldmund, etc), so you will get a wide assortment of cool music to listen to.

Rosy Parlane: IRIS

This album came out from Touch recordings in 2004. Even though this album consists of three tracks, the end time of this album is around 48 minutes. Unlike some of the reviews I have just done, this artist tends to be much more abstract like other contemporary Drone artists such as "Tim Hecker". Though, unlike Hecker's work, his abstract soundscapes are much more soothing for the most part. The first track, aptly named "Part One" ends with a very calming pad and what sounds like an early computer running through its processes, like noises of an early digital tool working intently on finishing it's calculations. The rest of the album shares that similar softness and "gentle mechanics" to it. The next track, "Part Two", has a much more standard minimal drone to it with a padded chord resonating throughout. "Part Three" is probably the most aggressive out of three, yet it is still calming compared to some of the other Drone contemporaries. Definitely worth a listen, not only because it is a great record, but because if you get it though "emusic", it will only consists as 3 tracks (really great if you have a membership and want to use your alotted "songs" of the month.

album @ emusic
artist profile @ last.fm

Xurba: Eidetic Visions

This release came last year from the net label "Kahvi". From the first listen, you can't help think of artists like "Boards of Canada" since Xurba seems to really enjoy the same chord progressions and blippy analog feel in the backdrop of the album. The album can be slighly inconsistent in terms of production quality. The tracks "Backouter" and "In Darker Places" have a very polished feel (they are my favorites on the album) and then some tracks such as "X-interstruct" and "Ennui" have an almost preset quality to them. Don't think, however, that due to the almost rushed feel of the production that the tracks are not enjoyable to listen to; the structure of the songs and melodies are still really good. One selling factor to give these guys a fair shake is that you can download their album for free (see link to kahvi.org below) so it is a low risk listen. Definitely check out the other artists on the net-label, There is some really nice chill stuff there.

» album @ kahvi.org
» artist profile @ last.fm

Weekly Podcast (12-13-2008)

I placed my first podcast up today!!!! Very Exciting. You can grab the Feed Here Or Simply Listen to the Podcast Here
Tracks Showcased:
» Recue - between stations (between stations)
» Polar - mercurino (light years)
» Portblue - monorail (albatross ep)
» Facil - Same Place (Ambient Systems Compilation)
» Carbon Based Lifeforms - Hydroponic Garden (Hydroponic Garden)
» Max Richter - Harmonium (Songs from Before)
» Colleen - Echoes and Corral (Les ondes silencieuses)
» Beaumont Hannant - Heavenly (Sculptured)
» Subheim - Away (Approach)
» Blackfilm - Mahabharata (Blackfilm)
» Hecq - 0003 (0000)
» Matthew Robert Cooper - Miniature 3 (Miniatures)

I hope you all enjoy!

http://media.switchpod.com/users/djwglpuppy/12132008.mp3

Recue: All the Wrong Places

This album came out in summer 2008 through the Rednetic label. Once you click play (do we "press" play anymore?), it starts with lush, well crafted melodies and textures and doesn't let up at all. The artist, Riku Annala, really has a great grasp on tonalities and full spectrum of sound. For the most part he follows the formula to create good melodic electronic IDM music. Let's go through the list: Glitchy analog beats with sprinkles of 64th beat (really fast) hi hats and glitch in place of hi-hats (check), rolling deep slinky melody driven bass lines (check), ambient pads filling the spectrum throughout each track (check), and interesting counter melodies of the bass played by monophonic leads drenched in verb (check). In other words, if you like artists like "Proem" and "Diagrams of Suburban Chaos", you will not be disappointed in the least bit. The album lacks slightly on innovation, but makes up for really capturing what makes this genre (if you can call it that) one of my favorites to listen to. Standout tracks include "Gbliss" and "Savant". In order to get a copy, you go the label's site for download and then pick the album. You can get his other album (really good too!)Here for free!

» artist site
» album @ rednetic
» artist profile @ last.fm

Loscil: Submers

This Album originally came out in 2002. When it comes to ominous minimal ambient drone albums, this one is truly a must have. The sounds for the most part are synthetic and have quite an analog feel, but with the amount of sustain on the notes and the layer of effects, they come across as quite organic and natural. This artist plays a lot with alternating rhythms pulsing in and out throughout each track. It almost reminds me of "Steve Reich"'s "Music for 18 Musicians" where patterns start phasing in and out of each creating an almost hypnotic feel. Overall it is dark in nature, but in no way does make you feel uneasy (as least for this listener). I would equate it more with "Biosphere"'s moodiness than with some of "Lustmord"'s more Ambient stuff. Every track on this album is a must listen from the minimal house-esque track "Gymnote" to the dubby track "Nautilus". My favorite track on this album is "La Plongeur", it has a beautiful bass line and great harmonies that cascade in and out.

» album @ e-music
» artist profile @ last.fm

Grouper: Dragging A Dead Deer Up A Hill

The album starts off with electric piano saturated in reverb with a beautiful female voice peeking out of the background. The next song comes in with acoustic guitar and same ethereal reverb drenched vocals. The rest of the album goes back and forth with these three elements: vocals, minimal instrument (be it guitar or e-piano) and reverb. I am listing reverb as an instrument because the drone and decay of it creates interesting ethereal harmonies with the rest of the arrangements. Similarities range from the droney feel of "Stars of the Lid", the vocals of shoegaze bands ala "Perfume Tree" and "seefeel", and guitar work reminiscent of 4AD artists such as "Red House Painters". Standout tracks include: "Fishing Bird (Empty Gutted in the Evening Breeze)" and "Wind and Snow"

» album @ e-music
» artist profile @ last.fm