Portals: Power Ambient

"Ambient as interesting as it is interesting"

The term Power Ambient is yes, another attempt at putting a badge or genre to a wide-encompassing range of music stylistically, but it’s one that I have often gravitated towards amongst many others when describing a particular style of music we are dealing with here.

When it comes to a spectrum of Ambient music styles, I’m more often than not on the ‘lean in’ side of things, than the ‘lean back’. It’s easy to throw up Brian Eno’s definition of Ambient music “…as ignorable as it is interesting” to help elaborate on what I mean, as essentially within a Power Ambient context, we are removing the desire to ignore it.

To put it another way, Power Ambient is best suited to those who want to immerse themselves in the music; the wall of sound; big movements; rumbling bass; wide frequencies, and layers of dense drones. These are elements that envelope a space in richness; be it soft and all-encompassing like a heavy blanket, or more on the noise spectrum, making your body rattle and the hairs on your neck stand-up on end. But the common output is that you're better off taking note of what's happening, than sticking it on in the background and making a cup of tea.

It’s not a new descriptive term. A 2014 Fact magazine article captured a few artists that seemed to be prevailing in this style, alongside a mix that Chris SSG loosely described as including Power Ambient (now Chris references his style as Big Room Ambient) and more. recently a Bandcamp list (although not sure all that stuff aligns with my own vision for it). There is no doubt in my mind, however, that a powerful style of Ambient music has exploded in recent years (as has the creativity of Ambient music in general, really). Perhaps this style has been more embraced due to a couple of things.

In dark times comes inherent anger and expression, and it’s pretty grim out there right now. For any music culture, this can often send people into darker production spaces. Secondly, I can feel an emerging undercurrent of rebellion for what ‘Ambient’ can stand for nowadays. With a world of meditative apps and ‘Piano Chill’ playlists continuing to give Ambient music a certain reputation, (at least we have moved on from Spa music, right?), I have a feeling this stereotyping is pushing producers, and even listeners to explore new styles of Ambient music, and opening doors into more expressive forms of music that stand out against an all too frequent beige playlist.

Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that Power Ambient is just noise and complexity for the sake of it (it can be) but like all music, there's an art to getting the balance right. For me, Power Ambient can range from relatively quiet, intense soundscapes with a mysterious underpinning, to just short of full-on Merzbow wall-shaking. Call it a version of Noise, Drone, Experimental, whatever, but wrapped in a different guise, it’s still bearable as Ambient music but stops short of becoming too much.

I wanted to highlight just a few of my favorite artists whose broad strokes defined ‘Ambient’ music, has always made me sit up and listen. As with all Portals features, I try to focus on a mix to bring the idea to life and a jump-off/entry point for the artists included. This was harder to mix than a regular DJ set, because of the inherent energy of Power Ambient music. Used consistently in a mix, at some point you're going to get burnt out and it will start to fade into the background just like listening to white noise. In my experience, Ambient tracks with force or energy are best used interspersed in sets to make people lean in and grab their attention, or as part of other styles to continue a certain level of energy (I’ve heard this type of music as an interlude in more heavy beat-driven sets for example). It can also work great as a live show where the listener knows what they are getting into already, of course (earplugs at the ready).

As a 1hr+ mix, I, therefore, had to be considerate of the energy and flow and tried to create a few distinct chapters with peaks and troughs and an easy onramp at the beginning.

I encourage you to use the links below to jump off into each artist’s universe on Bandcamp. Despite it being a relatively well-known list of musicians when it comes to the Ambient enthusiasts, I’ve tried to give a good snapshot of artists that might push into this style within some of their works, especially if any of this music is new to you.

RIP to two influential producers included in this mix, Cesar (Mount Shrine) and one of the greatest noise/experimental artists of our time, Mika Vainio.

Listen on Soundcloud, Mixcloud, Youtube (below), Spotify or the ASIP Podcast.

astrangelyisolatedplace · Portals Episode 11: Power Ambient

Download MP3

Tracklist:

01. James Murray - Second Sight (Home Normal)
02. Ameeva - Die Wellen (9128.live)
03. Faru - Mirror of Consciousness (Self released)
04. Sciama - Subsumed (Auxiliary)
05. Joachim Spieth - Akasha (Affin)
06. Abul Mogard - Against a White Cloud (Self released)
07. Leandro Fresco & Rafael Anton Irisarri - Baja dos Singlos (A Strangely Isolated Place)
08. Mount Shrine - Foggy Deck (Cryo Chamber)
09. Araceae - Gleaming Embers (Faint Music)
10. Markus Guentner - Cavus (A Strangely Isolated Place)
11. r beny - vestigial (Self released)
12. Caterina Barbieri - TCCTF (Important Records)
13. Christina Giannone - Realms II (Past Inside The Present)
14. Christina Vantzou - Glissando for Bodies and Machines in Space (Kranky)
15. Pechblende - Shackles of Time (Auxiliary)
16. Tim Hecker - Hatred of Music II (Kranky)
17. Bana Hafar - Intersecting Voids (Self released)
18. FRKTL - Scene I: Terra Nullius (Self released)
19. KMRU & Aho Ssan - Resurgence (Edit) (Subtext Recordings)
20. Mika Vainio - Kytkenta (Connection) (Touch)
21. Rafael Anton Irisarri - Arduous Clarity (Dais)
22. Mika Vainio - Unessa (Sleep) (Touch)

Also….

Optic Echo Presents – Best Vinyl of 2015

Mike Jedlicka's Optic Echo radio show consistently serves up some of the best ambient, experimental and modern classical vinyl-only selections. In this special edition, Mike has curated some of his favorite vinyl of the year specially prepared for Headphone Commute.

As you would expect from a weekly show trying to summarize a years worth of wax purchases, it was no doubt an arduous task narrowing it downvand the result is a lovely journey through the many styles Mike covers on his show.

Mike's included some of my favorite vinyl of the year too, namely Night Sequels, 36, wndfrm, Benoit Poulard and Inventions, all sitting proudly in my best of 2015 lists. And a big thanks to Mike for also selecting Arovane & Hior Chronik's release.

Check out the Optic Echo Mixcloud page for all of the previous shows and Headphone Commute for full details and all download options.

Download.

Tracklist:
Mountains – Parallel Two – You Can’t Hide Your Love Forever
Kreng – Bargaining- The Summoner
Night Sequels – Siamese Summer – Children of the Night Make Music
Jon Hopkins – I Remember (Nils Frahm Dub Interrupt Remix) – I Remember 10”
Four Tet – Morning Side – Morning / Evening
Max Richter – Space 11 (Invisible Pages Over)- From Sleep
Shuttle358 – Can You Prove I Was Born?
Andrew Weathers – We Will Never See A Cloud Again – Fuck Everybody, You Can do Anything
VA (Marcus Fischer) – Field Works: Progue’s Run
Rival Consoles – Ghosting – Howl
Pye Corner Audio – Quasar II – Stars Shine Like Eyes 10”
Benoit Poulard – Whose Palms Create – Sonnet
36 – Sky Fire – Pulse Dive
wndfrm – Monopole – Formal Variant EP
Christina Vantzou – Stereoscope – No. 3
T.Raumschmiere – 007 – T.Raumschmiere
Inventions – Wolfkids – Maze of Woods
Nils Frahm – Our Own Roof – Music For The Motion Picture Victoria
Arovane & Hior Chronik – Scale – In-between [BUY]
Valet – Transformation – Nature
Anduin – Last Days of Montrose House 10”
Helm – I Exist In A Fog – Olympic Mess
Kamran Sadeghi – The Right Direction is Left
Lawrence English – Antarctica – Viento
Olafur Arnalds & Nils Frahm – Three – Loon
Celer – Distant Misgivings – Jima

Portals: Modern Classical

As described in the Portals introductory post,  this series is an attempt to help everyone explore more, maybe point you to something new, or change your mind completely about a specific style of music. It's a once-click down from the article I wrote on ambient music (Neither Scene Nor Heard...) and will likely go through the many styles described in there as the series progresses. Up first, a style that's taking on the old.

I won't be making an attempt at listing the best Modern Classical artists of today; instead, I will be looking at several artists whose influences or style may relate back to classical music, artists that could be considered as defining or even re-defining what we think of as Modern Classical and tracks that have introduced me to, or led me to explore more of this specific style of music. If you're a die-hard Modern Classical fan, then this post will hopefully help you open up to something more, or different. If you're new to the genre, it may be your way in.

To wrap a loose definition around the term Modern Classical, it's often defined as music whose influences stem from early classical music (the classical music you are probably more familiar with), as opposed to rock, pop, folk, jazz etc. 

This article by  Luke Muehlhauser, provided some great in-depth background on Modern Classical music, but I hope to bring a more ambient/electronic lens as a result of my own personal experiences. I do, however, echo his sentiments surrounding the exploration of the genre; it's pointless trying to make you enjoy all types of Modern Classical music, but I do hope you find something you enjoy, can relate to, and ultimately explore further.

I encourage your comments, recommendations, and experiences in the comments below so we can help one-another explore even more.

~

When I explain to some of my friends or family that I enjoy Modern Classical music, they find it hard to understand. All my years submerged in electronic music - how can I possibly like something like Classical music?! Classical music has connotations of 70-year-old men, dusty record shops with gramophones, or theatres full of tuxedos watching the back of a conductor. Modern Classical and the many artists pioneering it today are breaking new ground, crossing into electronic and ambient music, playing at major festivals, making techno music on the side (or vice-versa), and recruiting a much younger generation of listeners.

Recomposed By Max Richter: Vivaldi - The Four Seasons - Spring 1. (2012)

Let's start as close to the origins of classical music as possible. Max Richter is one of the best composers of the modern age and for many, responsible for defining Modern Classical music.

Richter will come as no stranger to many of us, and the renowned German/Brit is the epitome of Modern Classical music - forging the gap between the old and the new. In no production is this more apparent or beautiful, as Spring 1, taken from Max's reinterpretation of a classical masterpiece, The Four Seasons by one of Classical music's very own legends, Vivaldi.

Spring 1, combines an emotional, soaring Moog synth which juxtaposes the sharp violins paving the way for the introductory piece of the record. It's the Yin to the Yang, the old parallel to the new, and this electronic addition is the most obvious of elements you'll witness amongst Max's many modern and minimal takes on classical music we've heard in the likes of Memoryhouse and Infra.

Watch a video of the entire concert here and a clip of Spring 1, below with Max on the Moog.

Steve Reich - Six Pianos (1974)

Steve Reich is often talked about in the same vein as Max Richter, both namely responsible for the modern-minimalist movement, but in many respects, Reich may be an easier 'in' for many of us - his variations and experimental approaches are more likely to resonate with you at some point along his 40+ year career. 

His track Electric Counterpoint, for example, the source for samples in The Orb's Little Fluffy Clouds, and his most notorious release, Music for 18 Musicians, recently repressed for Record Store Day 2015 and his most celebrated and respected piece to date. 

But it's the 1974 track, Six Pianos which I've chosen to feature here. The repetitive pianos, whilst absent of any obvious emotion we heard in Max Richter's piece, are something I've come to see and respect within performances from the artists of today. The ability to hang an audience on single notes, or these repetitions, for minutes on-end... it takes a special someone to pull that off. 

Ryuichi Sakamoto - Completion (2007) (With Christopher Willits) 

Ryuichi Sakaomoto is another artist responsible for injecting new life into classical music. His extensive list of collaborators ranges from: ambient and experimental visionaries such as Taylor Deupree, (here playing an experimental set at St Johns for 
Boiler Room)  Fennesz (here combining Fennesz's fuzzy electronics in the classic piano track, Amore) David Byrne (here for The Last Emperor Soundtrack) Alva Noto, (here layering keys amongst the static and glitch of Raster Noton's finest) and the track chosen here alongside Ghostly's ambient star, Christopher Willits, combining textures on
Completion. 

Sakamoto may not be down as your most obvious Modern Classical character, but he's a prime example of an artist pushing the boundaries of what we may have previously deemed classical. Starting as a member of Yellow Magic Orchestra and going on to record such infamous piano compositions such as, Merry Christmas, Mr Lawrence (still a big favourite of mine - watch a live recording here), he's brought the piano to the world in as many guises as physically possible.

Nils Frahm - Said And Done (2013) (pictured)

The German is single-handedly responsible for making me fall in love with this type of music all over again and Said And Done is just one example of Modern Classical at its finest. 

The track features three parts which repeatedly sends shivers down my spine. First, the sustained keys - I've seen Nils tease out the audience with this section for what seems like hours on end. Second, this (sometimes aggressive) playing eases into the track's gentle melody, which oozes with melancholy. Until third, the keys are once again pounded with such significance you wonder if Nils is even human - head down, beads of sweat breaking across his brow, arms drawn across the stage... and then it hooks you.

Spaces, his 2014 release, was without a doubt my favourite album of the year and whilst pieces like Said And Done are strictly piano, Nils continues to push the boundaries with his modern take on classical music, combining vintage synthesizers, custom piano builds (the largest piano in the world), dub-remixes for Jon Hopkins, his very own Piano Day, and more recently debuting a motion-picture soundtrack for Victoria.

The below video isn't of Said And Done, because to single-out this track amongst Nil's performances wouldn't do it justice, but if you're familiar with Nils, you probably already know the track. If you're new to Nils, then watch the below and have your mind and ears blown. 

Said And Done begins at around 17 minutes.

Ólafur Arnalds and Alice Sara Ott - Verses - The Chopin Project (2015)

I found the following Youtube comment on one of Ólafur Arnald's videos for his recent Chopin project: "Chopin published the 3rd Sonata in 1844, Arnald's published this is 2015 ... There's 171 years of music in this 4 minute video"...

Just like Nils, Ólafur has been one of the biggest and most talented stars to emerge from this music style, bringing the pure beauty of a piano to the masses of people who now flock to his concerts and shows globally. Quotes like the above really put the gravitas of Modern Classical into context, and go to show that good music never really goes away - it just gets reinterpreted, sampled or built upon for new audiences who are willing to listen and learn. 

Ólafur began his career in a Heavy Metal band and to this day consistently reminds us of the power behind a composition. He integrates powerful vocals in For Now I Am Winter, writes music for Broadchurch, combines classical elements with dance music as Kiasmos, and here, with Alice Sara Ott, reinterprets the legendary Polish virtuoso Pianist, Chopin.

Dustin O'Halloran - A Great Divide (2011)

This entire article could go on to feature many of the stars grown by the brilliant Erased Tapes label. From Germany's Nils Frahm, to Olafur Arnalds' early works, and Portland's Peter Broderick, to more recent label additions such as "the fastest pianist in the world"; Lubomyr Melynk, veteran composer Michael Price and the soaring beauty of A Winged Victory For The Sullen. The latter of which, formed of Adam Wiltzie (of Stars Of The Lid fame) and self-taught pianist Dustin O'Halloran. 

Dustin's release Vorleben, on the brilliant Sonic Pieces record label in 2011, seemed to be a defining piece for the American pianist and label alike. The Berlin based collective, now synonymous with some of the very best modern-classical music, housed early Nils Frahm albums such as Wintermusik in 2009, Otto A Totland's short and minimalist album, Pinô, and the Norwegian dark-ambient pairing, Deaf Center.  Despite playing a modest part of this well-respected label's growth, it's Dustin's work as one half of A Winged Victory For The Sullen which has propelled him, and in many respects, Modern Classical music, forward. 

Whether you prefer your piano blanketed in ambience alongside slow riffs from Adam Wiltzie in AWVFTS (read a live review here), or more classical compositions from Dustin's individual work, productions such as A Great Divide highlight just how accomplished this man is, alone or accompanied. 

Ben Woods - Fond Of You (2014)

Diving deeper into this particular style, I have a long list of ambient artists that could be seen as having Modern Classical influences. I'll create a separate Portals specifically for those artists, and they'll likely creep-in when I focus on Soundtracks, or dive into ambient music specifically, but for now I wanted to just keep it to one track and mention a few should you want to be eased into this softly-lit world. 

Strictly speaking, ambient music tends to go one of two ways for me. Either electronic, synthesized sounds, accentuated by samples or analog instruments. Or, where Modern Classical is concerned, instrumentalists adding textures, or even playing textures through piano, strings or guitar. Sometimes they're classically trained, or as I've learned, in many instances have no training whatsoever, and have simply mastered programs like Ableton. 

There's a whole world of these talented pianists, cellists, guitarists, and violinists that form the back-bone of much of the ambient music we hear today. They deserve to be credited with opening our ears to the powerful and evocative styles behind Modern Classical music; be it hidden amongst textures, or in Ben Woods' case, playing the lead role in the beautiful track, Fond Of You.

This more ambient focused approach can also be found in the likes of: Helios, Brambles, Halo, Hior Chronik, Jacaszek, Arc Of Doves, and when leaning more towards soundtrack styles: Bruno Sanfilippo, Rhian Sheehan, Levi Patel and Luke Howard to name just a few to get you started... Expect more to come on this particular style of music in another Portals.

Christina Vantzou - VHS

I wanted to represent a few different styles throughout this post and Christina Vantzou's VHS does just that. Her experimental and omnidirectional take on Classical music is a refreshing and bold approach to reconstructing music. 

I was lucky enough to witness Christina at Substrata Festival a few years back, where she orchestrated a specially commissioned string-quartet, dancing around on stage bare-footed, her artistic qualities were evident, as are they in VHS, with its haunting 
instruments and hypnotic accompanying video.

Instead of crafting extended, complicated compositions, Christina can be found creating minimal, experimental stories, often focusing on string instruments, but as with VHS, combining a multitude of different approaches, tones, and emotions. 

Christina's albums on Kranky also provide the perfect entry point to explore a further multitude of artists that touch the Modern Classical realm; throughout her self-released remix albums No1 and No2. Loscil, Motion Sickness of Time Travel, Koen Holtkamp, ISAN, and Dustin O'Halloran are just a few artists who stepped up to reinterpret her works.

My favourite track of Christina's may actually be Going backwards to recover that which was left behind, but VHS provides a slightly different perspective to the music featured here. If you're in need of more experimental artists that have their own non-traditional approach, I'd also recommend Hauschka, whose prepared piano is an absolute spectacle. 

Jeff Mills & The Montpelier Philharmonic Orchestra (2005)

You may be aware of Aphex Twin's Remote Orchestra? It received mixed reviews, but his intentions were never faulted and at the very least it gave birth to this rather beautiful remix of Rhubarb. The idea of controlling a 48 piece string section and a 24 strong choir by remote control, using a host of electronics, midi controllers, and remote visual cues wasn't RDJ's finest moment, but it was a stroke of genius, going one step further than anyone else looking to smash down any musical boundaries.

For the techno enthusiasts amongst us you may also remember Carl Craig stepping up in front of Les Siècles Orchestra - another great example of two musical worlds colliding. Or earlier in 2005, another techno legend, Jeff Mills, playing alongside The Montpelier Philharmonic Orchestra.

For anybody my age growing up listening to electronic music, it's easy to recognise the classical elements or instruments in techno tracks; the piano leads of early house music, the Strings Of Life we came to recognize, but it's extremely hard to imagine them ever becoming so apparent. That is, until you witness the natural harmony between electronic musicians on stage backed by a 909 and fronted by an Orchestra. It's hard to not fall in love with what the likes of Jeff Mills, Carl Craig, and Aphex Twin have done for music across the board - irrespective of genre. 

The integration of classical instruments and the world of techno/electronic music can also be flipped completely on its head. From electronic music integrating classical, to classical music mimicking electronic. 

Irrespective of genre or label, these reinterpretations of early electronic music over the past few years have opened up my eyes to how powerful string, wood, and brass instruments can be, even without a kick-drum. In the same way I witnessed Jeff Mills and Carl Craig on stage in-front of an Orchestra, playing some of my all-time favourite tracks in a completely different manner; these performances gave me a whole new-found respect for anybody mastering these instruments.

Alarm Will Sound took on Aphex Twin with their version of Blue Calx (coming the closest to matching RDJ's original), but The Williams Fairey Brass Band may just be your favourite find of the article. Covering early 90's acid-house tracks from 808 State, The KLF, and A Guy Called Gerald, if this doesn't make you want to seek out the potential of a Trombone, then I don't know what will...

Moby - God Moving Over The Face Of The Waters (1995)

Lastly, something you probably weren't expecting: a track that cut straight through a plethora of electronic music during its most celebrated age, a CD full of rave music, a track that many people wouldn't consider Modern Classical, yet if played live would probably be one of the greatest performances of our times without the need for any electronic instruments at all.

God Moving Over The Face Of The Waters by Moby may be boxed as ambient, soundtrack or just simply instrumental, but it has all the elements of an epic orchestral performance. If you ever doubted the use of classical instruments, strings or piano in music, then this track could be your way in, as it was for me back in 1995.

I'm not sure if Moby has ever played this live with an orchestra but there's an amazing similarity between this song and many of the artists mentioned in this article. Moby gets a hard-rap nowadays, but he gets my nod for somehow producing one of the best instrumental tracks in the past twenty years and for being one of the very first people to make me think,"Wow. The strings and piano in this are really something, I wonder what else is similar?"...

~

Portals Episode 1: Modern Classical d/l

Tracklist:

01. Recomposed By Max Richter: Vivaldi - The Four Seasons - Spring 0 & 1
02. Nils Frahm - Said And Done.
03. Willits & Sakamoto - Completion
04. Dustin O'Halloran - A Great Divide
05. Ólafur Arnalds and Alice Sara Ott - Verses
06. Christina Vantzou - VHS
07. Ben Woods - Fond Of You
08. Jeff Mills & The Montpelier Philharmonic Orchestra - Imagine (Blue Potential Version)
09. Moby - God Moving Over The Face Of The Waters
10. Steve Reich - Six Pianos

Neither scene nor heard: a journey through ambient music

**New - Spotify Playlist to accompany this feature**

~

I’ve seen a few articles over the past few years detailing the best ambient albums, the state of ambient or the return of ambient, and whilst they’re often very positive for the genre, the artists and every other person involved in making this type of music, I can’t help but feel a bit empty after reading them.

These articles rarely scrape the surface of a genre that has never gone away, and will probably never “make a comeback” but instead, the genre continues to evolve. Ambient music will always remain a sub-culture of many popular music styles out there, or more to the point of this article, be the hidden undercurrent that’s helped inspire many other styles of music.

Whilst I’m not opposed to the genre getting any more popular (hell, I might get more traffic to the site or sell more records), I can’t help but feel a little annoyed when it’s not represented well, especially when some people have been involved for years and so, so, so, so many styles, producers and labels are consistently overlooked.

It’s a big reason why I created this site back in 2008, and it’s why I’m writing now.

Since the inception of this blog, I’ve focused on those who don’t really get the exposure they deserve and the many hidden talents of not only ambient music, but electronica and to a lesser extent, techno. Why stop now? Whilst this article will dive into the early days and influences on the genre, it will also hopefully offer a different perspective from the more popular journalism outlets and instead, focus on the many styles of ambient music and it particular, the producers and labels that have accompanied me on my journey over the years.

Heads-up, it’s long. So take the time to explore the artists and labels featured and pay it a few visits once you’ve hopped off onto Discogs and Youtube. Every album and artist links out to further information, and there’s a full Youtube playlist at the bottom if you can’t wait. For anyone that really wants to dig into ambient music, I’m hoping here might be a good place to start.

Shit. Where the hell do I start?

Let me make an attempt to cover my own ass from the thousands of very opinionated music-heads first. I got into ambient music late. Very late. And I wouldn’t consider myself an expert, but I do spend much of my life listening to and writing about it, so I think it gives me a little bit of authorisation to talk on the subject.

Secondly, I haven’t listened to every ambient record out there. Like every piece of journalism ever written, this will be a subjective take, based on my own biased experiences. The last thing I want is for this to sound like a Wikipedia article on ambient. We’ll get the background done sharp, talk about how ambient music developed for me in the 90’s and then get into the many styles I experience today as a result of exploring the genre further and further. By the end of this, I hope I’ve done it justice, introduced newbies to an ever expanding landscape of music, and helped the veterans of ambient find some new pieces to enjoy.

BACKGROUND FOR BACKGROUND 

What is ambient music? (No I’m not joking). Seeing as many of my friends don’t even know what it is, this could prove a very helpful entry point. And to take a quote directly from ambient music pioneer, Brian Eno’s ‘Music For Airports’ (1978) liner notes:

“Ambient Music must be able to accommodate many levels of listening attention without enforcing one in particular; it must be as ignorable as it is interesting”. 

Which to most people means, it’s background music. But to dive deeper, a more interesting quote reads:

“An ambience is defined as an atmosphere, or a surrounding influence: a tint. My (Brian Eno) intention is to produce original pieces ostensibly (but not exclusively) for particular times and situations with a view to building up a small but versatile catalogue of environmental music suited to a wide variety of moods and atmospheres”

— Brian Eno

This is where it gets very interesting for me. I’m a big believer in music for different moods, for different times, and different feelings, and this is just one of the reasons why my site/label is inspired by Ulrich Schnauss’ album A Strangely Isolated Place. This type of music transports me to wherever I want to be. It enables me to escape; helps me picture myself somewhere else entirely. And this is often the strength of ambient music – its atmospheres, emotion and the clear intention of depicting different environments.

I listen to ambient music to help me relax and escape. And I’ve now reached a point where I can respect the power of it so much, that I pay attention to the many differences, techniques and subtleties of productions. And that’s why I do what I do, listening to so much, writing about what I love and helping musicians get their own passion of producing this music, out there.

I HEAR 1978?

Well that’s when Brian Eno coined the phrase ambient. I don’t want to dwell too much on the evolution of ambient music, as this is where many other people could tell a better story. It’s my experience. Plus, I wasn’t around in 1978 and wasn’t even listening to music properly until a good fifteen years later.

To give it some context, and in the shortest of summaries, the likes of Tangerine Dream, Vangelis, Jean Michel Jarre, Steve Roach, Harold Budd, Erik Satie, Wendy Carlos, and of course Brian Eno are just a few of the many musicians often attributed as defining the approach we know today, through synthesiser-oriented styles during the 1970’s and 1980’s. And it wasn’t until the late 80’s and early 1990’s that the more electronic styles we associate with today came into play – the style that sparked my love for the genre.

The UK is often seen as the driving force for early electronic ambient music. The Orb will always be referenced for their pioneering work on The Orb’s Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld (1991) helping spur a new approach by combining samples with innovative production techniques, depicting lengthy journeys, often with no defined beginning, middle or end.

The KLF did it one year before in 1990 (with the help of The Orb’s Alex Paterson), and their album Chill Out is often referenced as the best of its kind - and I wouldn’t argue. [Edit - check out my reimagining of the KLF’s Chill out with all new music here]. Hang on, so what’s ‘chill out’ music? Not to diverge too much, but the term was used for the more drug-induced clubbing culture who created ‘chill-out rooms’ and without trying to rile up the genre fanatics, we’re still within the loose term of ambient music – you’ll just notice, as with most genres, there’s plenty more ways to describe styles and send you around in circles.

Back on track (like the Brownsville Turnaround on the Tex-Mex Border), and a beginning wouldn’t be a beginning without Aphex Twin. Richard D James gained much of his respect through his Selected Ambient Works – his debut album (as Aphex Twin) released in 1992, documenting many of his productions from ’85 to ’92. This album is one of the most accessible and enjoyable places to start if you’re trying to understand electronic ambient music. This album was followed by Selected Ambient Works Volume II in 1994, and again continued to define much of the electronic ambient music we here today.

SHEEP LEAD TO BLEEPS

The 90’s are often cited as the good years of both electronic and ambient music, and with this growth came a multitude of takes on the style. Electronic equipment became more accessible and an underground electronic music culture began to grow.

Alongside Aphex Twin, the likes of Autechre and µ-Ziq (Mike Paradinas) pushed the electronic (and in particular) “IDM” sound to new places. Whilst neither are strictly ambient artists, both played their part in creating some of the best ambient music during this period and shouldn’t be overlooked. This recent dedication to Mike Paradinas’ ambient work as µ-Ziq, is a great place to start, and Autechre’s, Amber, whilst not often highly praised, will lead you down some seriously dark rabbit holes to explore. Autechre’s VLetrmx21 remains one of my favourite pieces to date - a dramatic, poignant and thought-provoking piece. Needless to say, record labels such as Rephlex and Warp 
played a big part during this period.

Another innovator pushing the boundaries of ambient music and introducing more urban influences during this time were The Future Sound of London. The Manchester pair are often overlooked unless you dive deep into their discography, but much like The Orb and The KLF, Lifeforms can be seen as one of those all-encompassing electronic ambient journeys.

Global Communication. 1994. Tom Middleton and Mark Pritchard. 76:14 still remains one of the most ‘underground’ ambient albums despite The Guardian listing it within their 1,000 Albums To Hear Before You Die list. With tracks titled according to length, 76:14, continued to expand on the entire listening experience album we grew to love – not just a set of individual tracks.  I couldn’t tell you the title of a particular track, because I nearly always listen to it from start to finish – the way it should be. Global Communication went on to release several other records, but none came close to the prowess of 76:14. For those who’ve dug around Tom Middleton and Mark Pritchard, their work on The Keongaku EP prior to this release is as close as you’ll get to the 76:14 experience.

Biosphere (Geir Jenssen's) 1997 album Substrata is perhaps the modern-day Brian Eno experience, focusing on intimate listening and the very definition of background ambient music. More genre terms come into play with Biosphere (ambient techno for example) but Geir is a true pioneer of ambient music and to this day can be found sampling in the plains of Norway, playing rare live performances and sometimes putting together an eclectic DJ mix. Geir remains an elusive character within my knowledge of ambient music but is no doubt one of the most respected.

It was bands like Slowdive and Seefeel that started to put a spanner in the works. Whilst primarily seen as experimental or shoegaze, Slowdive released records such as the 5 EP in 1993, which focused on synthesised sounds – a first for Slowdive and a style that was very similar to that of Global Communication. In fact, Reload’s remix of Slowdive’s In Mind epitomised the ever-expanding ambient music of 1993 and its impact of styles outside of straight-up electronic. I love the comment on the 5 EP’s Discogs page – “The burgeoning ambient techno scene in 1993 was too much for them to resist…”!

Similarly, Seefeel’s 1993 release Quiqe is a perfect example of the genre-expanding beyond its existing limitations, with steadfast ambient tracks like Signals and more experimental tracks such as Climatic Phase 3.

The late Pete Namlook and his German Label FAX were also significant drivers of ambient music during the early 1990’s (see this 2018 article for a great overview). This is an area which I still need more time to explore, but if you read any best of ambient albums you’ll be sure to find a FAX release in there somewhere. As of August 2005, Namlook and company had released 135 albums –  experience some of them through this tribute mix.

Moving towards the second-half of the 90’s, ’96 witnessed the debut of one of the most instrumental characters in the ambient scene today, Wolfgang Voigt. His self-titled album as GAS, triggered a whole new world of dubby, atmospheric ambient music. Wolfgang is undoubtedly the reason why ambient music still has its place on one of the biggest techno labels of our time (as co-owner of Kompakt) and as a result, a big reason why the genre continues to evolve and make an impact on producers today. Released on the influential label Mille Plateaux label, GAS' releases remain some of the rarest LP’s on Discogs. [Edit - now mostly available again!]

The late 90’s were pretty much reserved for one special duo, Boards of Canada. Iconic releases in ’95, ’96, ’97 and ’98 saw ambient music meld effortlessly with electronica, offering a vintage, warm sound that felt like it had been around for years. The elusive Scottish pairing are solely responsible for the biggest cult of fans within the ambient & electronica genres (second to Aphex Twin maybe). Much like their music, their unique, mysterious ways are still going strong to this day and although many purists would argue until they are white in the face that they aren’t ambient, there’s no doubt they’ve played a massive part in inspiring and making the ambient sound more appealing to others.

Alongside BoC, the late 90’s witnessed Stars of The Lid progress the beautiful drone soundscapes which are so popular in today’s ambient music. Brian McBride and Adam Wiltzie are often included amongst the best-of ambient lists and their pedigree shows to this day with Adam Wiltzie going strong as part of A Winged Victory For The Sullen. The Stars of The Lid sound would end up becoming a big influence on the many guitar manipulations we hear in much of today’s ambient and experimental music.

TRANCE AND THE AMBIENT REMIX

This is where I risk a major drop-off in readers… but the late ’90s Trance era played a big part in my addiction to ambient and chill-out music, so I feel it’s important I cover it here. Perhaps this train of thought is new to many, or some don’t want to be associated with a genre which is now quite frankly, an embarrassment and laughing stock to anyone over 21 years of age. But the true Trance era (say pre-2002) was undoubtedly an offshoot of some of the best psychedelic ambient productions, and helped define the true meaning of chill out before it was commercialised by the likes of Ministry of Sound and Hed-Kandi, and ultimately generalised into EDM.

Rabbit In The Moon, Humate, BT, William Orbit, The Art of Trance, even Tiesto (yes, just listen to his late ’90’s work as Kamaya Painters and Gouryella) and labels such as Hooj, Platipus, Lost Language, and Bonzai were responsible for some of my favourite trance music in the 1990’s and in particular, a trend which emerged to be most relevant to this article; the ambient remix. Whilst this may send shudders down many ambient fans spine, I have no shame in admitting how much I enjoyed some of the remixes to emerge from trance music in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. The ambient remix of Pete Lazonby’s Sacred Cycles (sampling Genesis no-less) and Energy 52’s Cafe Del Mar, remixed by Michael Woods (2000) come straight to the top of the pile and this compilation by Solar Stone (2001) encapsulates some of the best remixes to emerge (ironically including Tangerine Dream’s Love On A Real Train).

I won’t dwell on it here, as you’ll know by now I’m a closet Trance fan, but I still visit the likes of Salt Tanks, Sargasso Sea; Chicane’s, Far From The Maddening Crowds and Way Out West’s debut album on a regular basis. And if you still need persuading on the impact of ambient music on trance, Orion & J.Shore’s isolatedmix does a perfect job elaborating on some of the brilliant music being made in this vein today.

*2021 Edit*, a recent Trance Loops Mix features a lot of classic Trance music in “ambient loop” form that you may find interesting at this point.

I’M STILL IN A TRANCE

Something that’s along the same lines but perhaps more familiar with ambient fans, is the term space ambient or psy-ambient and for me, there’s pretty much just one label responsible for this sound recently: Ultimae Records.

Established in France in 2001 and still churning out quality to this day, Ultimae has become the go-to label for this type of electronic ambient music. Space-ambient is often reserved for similarly trance-like tracks, but can more often be recognised by the expansive pads, washes, atmospheres and futuristic samples each track contains. Whilst I’d be a fool to pigeon-hole Ultimae into this sound, they’ve produced some of my favourite artists in this style, including Carbon Based Lifeforms, Aes Dana (Ultimae co-owner) and Solar Fields.

Perhaps more obvious in design, but another great artist that pioneers this sound, is Lithuania’s Stellardrone (remind me to write an article on Lithuania’s ambient/electronica scene – it’s ridiculous) and randomly, this compilation by an old record store in London called Ambient Soho manages to traverse the ambient-space sound, in particular Innersphere’s Out Of Body, and B12’s VOID/Comm.

Spanning the more trance-inducing side of ambient and hailing from one of my favourite labels growing up, Global Underground’s Electric Calm series is also a well-respected and under-celebrated bunch of mixes and exclusive material that manages to transport you into the ether. Mixed by The Forth, they’re as formulaic as mixes come, but are packed full of great, fairly unknown material.

More recently, the likes of Petar Dundov is pushing the trance-like-ambient sound forward, invoking the spirit of synthesised ambient productions from the likes of Klaus Schulze and Tangerine Dream. And even beat-less reissues from the likes of Hiroshi Watanabe aka Kaito (Kompakt) draw parallels, with epic strings and countless moments of euphoria.

This may also be a good place to introduce Brock Van Wey aka bvdub. Whilst I definitely wouldn’t describe his music as trance, it’s certainly an original take on trance-inducing productions. His pieces are often over ten-minutes long and are a lesson in progressive atmospheres, peppered with techno undertones and more recently, garage-esque beats. He is a pioneer of the modern-day ambient sound and a must for anyone new to the genre, with an outstanding work ethic and an unparalleled output. I’d recommend starting at his 2011 release, Songs For A Friend I Left Behind, and in particular I Would Have Waited. Or, for that truly euphoric effect, try 2012’s, Don’t Say You Know.

AMBIENT ELECTRONICA AND THE BIRTH OF THE SWEET SPOT

Earyl 00's and some of my favourite labels are setting up shop, evolving the electronic sound. Electronica is a largely debated genre and in my eyes can represent a wide range of electronic music which isn’t necessarily meant for dancing, but more for listening. From glitchy IDM based analogue music, to downtempo and ambient drones infused with sparse beats and heavy melodies. This is where I truly fell in love with music. Ambient electronica managed to combine the escapism and relaxation of ambient music, alongside more interesting and complex electronic production techniques. And none can be more responsible for inspiring me more than City Centre Offices.

Beginning with Arovane, Herrmann & Kleine, Bitstream and Casino Versus Japan, it was 2002’s release of Far Away Trains Passing By, from Ulrich Schnauss that really blew me away. Two years later, and A Strangely Isolated Place followed suit, and finally Arovane’s Goodbye Forever on Lillies presented the power of the piano on a largely IDM focused album. Admittedly, these releases were a far stretch from the beat-less soundscapes of ambient purists such as Brian Eno, but for me, they were just as powerful in emotion and escapism.

It was the early 2000’s that unwittingly birthed one of today’s biggest stars of the genre, Jon Hopkins. Released on British Label Just Music, (also home to Echaskech and Honeyroot – two more gems that need more listens) Jon Hopkins began his career with a sublime style of ambient electronica on Opalescent. Both Cold Out There, and Private Universe are essential ambient tracks that epitomised the promising career Jon had ahead of him scoring films (Monsters); being nominated for a Mercury Music Prize; making head-rattling electronica on Immunity and my favourite; sampling the London Olympic Games opening ceremony fireworks on Abandon Window.

Fast-forward to today, and this style has evolved so much it would be impossible to capture the hundreds of brilliant artists making this type of music. Ghostly International is however a decent place to start.

The birth of Tycho’s Sunrise Projector in 2004 was the beginning of his more recent dominance within the Ghostly family; his blissful sun-drenched guitars and live percussion are the closest you’ll come to Ulrich Schnauss’ early work. And whilst the likes of Ghostly’s Lusine and Recondite can hold any dance-floor, their music remains within the realm of escapism and hits home with many of todays ambient fans who need that up-tempo edge every now-and-then.

Dive further into Ghostly’s catalogue and you’ll find the purest of ambient and experimental music sat alongside the more popular electronic functions it’s now famous for. With artists such as Loscil, The Sight Below, Heathered Pearls, Christopher Willits and KILN. For a true round-up of Ghostly’s amazing contribution to modern ambient music, head to their SMM Series.

It’s within this style of music that you also start see the massive impact Boards of Canada have on the evolution of the warm, nostalgic sound. Relatively unknown but highly recommend artists such as Horizon Fire, Northcape, Freescha, Sarin Sunday (Com Truise in his early days) and even ASIP’s Parks do a great job at capturing this beautiful matrimony of synth-laden electronics and blissful euphoria.

Diving deeper and one of my favourite labels, n5MD has been responsible for some of the most interesting ambient electronica of recent years. Loess, Crisopa, (ghost), Ocoeur, and Preghost are just some of the artists coming from this brilliant label. n5MD has also played host to more ‘IDM’ style artists such as Arovane and Proem and the more recent ambient crossover with shoegaze & post-rock (see further below) via port-royal, Lights Out Asia and Bitcrush. 

POP AMBIENT

Whilst his very own Kompakt Records grew synonymous with the emerging minimal techno scene hailing from Germany in the early 2000’s, Wolfgang Voigt (GAS) quietly coined his own style of ambient music – labelling it Pop Ambient. This yearly series is now synonymous with a very certain production style and ethos, challenging the very meaning of ambient music, but always rooted in layered drones, cyclical sculptures and often traditional instrumentation.

Since its first release in 2001, Pop Ambient has established some of the most respected artists in the genre and similarly, re-established some favourites who would have otherwise been lost amongst a myriad of other guises or musical styles on the label. Markus Guentner has been a staple since the very first release and to this day pushes his unique ambient washes and faint melodies far and wide, including releases here on ASIP and Moodgadget (owned by Heathered Pearls).

Marsen Jules, whilst originally releasing on the aforementioned City Centre Offices, also makes regular appearances on Pop Ambient with his intense poems in sound. As does Argentina’s Leandro Fresco, another master of beautifully composed, richly coloured ambient music.  2015’s edition sees Kompakt continue to push into new realms, bringing regulars such as bvdub, Ulf Lohmann, Gustavo Lamas and Leandro Fresco back into the fold alongside newcomers like Thore Pfeiffer.

AMBIENT INTELLIGENCE

As techno music grew and evolved in the 2000’s, ambient music was treated to some of its most defining and innovative moments. Ambient techno is an area so rich, that I still discover new (old) titles every week, but it was the likes of Mille Plateaux introducing us to GAS that kickstarted this evolution. 

More recently, German labels such as Traum Schallplatten and Raster-Noton gathered pace in the 00’s (see the ASIP tribute mix to Traum’s ambient output here) alongside the likes of Mule Musiq/Mule Electronic, artists such as Koss, Minilogue, (Sebastian Mullaert releasing a new ambient album with Eitan Reiter) and Lawrence with his ambient LP A Day In The Life.

One of my favourite releases to define the ambient techno genre of late, was the Composure Ambient Techno for Japan compilation. Put together to raise funds after the Japanese Tsunami in 2011, this compilation includes some of the finest music to grace the term ambient, techno or indeed ambient techno. From here, if you dig further, your world opens up into the multitude of amazing artists included. From following Donato Dozzy, you’ll find his 2010 release ‘K’  and perhaps stray into the sublime ambient techno world of Voices From The Lake.

The Sandwell District, a couple of techno artists who (unfortunately) came together for just one album, will lead you to Feed Forward - another classic approach to ambient techno. And finally, one of my favourite producers, Donnacha Costello – I’ve done all the hard work for you here and highlighted some of his finest pieces to date.

And perhaps one of the most respected and innovative producers in this area, is Germany’s Carsten Nikolai aka Alva Noto. In 2009 Carsten released Xerrox Vol.2, and with it, Monophaser 2. This video does a great job in capturing the sparse, yet emotive composition that sets Carsten apart from the rest.

AIN’T TALKIN ‘BOUT DUB

Given techno is such a wide all-encompassing genre, you can’t blame me for digging even deeper into its ambient half and exploring one of the most recent styles to emerge. Ambient-dub, or dub-techno whilst very similar to the likes of the artists listed above, has seen a particular focus recently, with several producers creating a very unique, deep and bubbly style. It’s often bashed by many as being very boring and repetitive, but when done correctly, it can be as dreamy as the very best beat-less ambient masterpiece.

You can’t mention dub or techno without Echospace and Deepchord. More recently home to the previously mentioned bvdub but more prominently known for releases by Model 500 (Juan Atkins), cv313 and Deepchord himself, the label is a favourite for die-hard techno fans and an innovative outlet for the more atmospheric techno productions that fall into this more ambient style.

Sharpening the ambient side of dub-techno even further, Iceland’s Yagya pioneered his unique style on his widely praised album, Rigning. It came some seven years after his first release in 2002 (Rhythm of Snow), and I can pretty much guarantee that any new fans of Yagya are working their way backwards through his catalogue, especially after his most recent release on Delsin. Despite having earlier albums, it was the sound of rain on your roof, the clap of thunder, emotional, rising pads and a driving dub-techno beat in Rigning that hit home for many. 

It seems as though this style is a thoroughly independent practice at the moment, with most of what I listen to released by the artists direct through the likes of Bandcamp. Finding dub-techno on vinyl is a nearly impossible affair, yet labels such as Dewtone Recordings, and Silent Season, two of my favourites, do their very best in pushing this type of independent music forward. Whilst neither are strictly focused on dub-techno, (or vinyl) both have a rich roster of artists that span this style, alongside straight-up ambient and more experimental sounds. ASC, Edanticonf, Purl, Alveol, Segue, Martin Nonstatic and Adam Michalak come highly recommended. The below track by Textural Being epitomises the slow burning melodies and atmospheres of dub-techno I have grown to love.

#DRONELIFE

Whilst dub-techno added rolling beats to ambient music, there are those stripping away the more obvious mechanics and focusing purely on mood, atmosphere and repeated layers of sound. Drone is one of the more reserved and less accessible styles of ambient music, yet is probably the closest to the genres original conception, and arguably pre-dates Brian Eno through the 1960’s minimalist movement. BUT, they didn’t have a hashtag back in the 60’s.

I remain less familiar with drone music due to the intricacies of its design and origins, mainly because of the appreciation needed for the instruments used in the making of this music. But attending a workshop with Rafael Anton Irisarri aka The Sight Below, (or his Substrata Festival) you begin to see the complexity involved in sound design and the meticulous detail that goes into this style of music. What can seem like one single sound, is often a series of instruments, processors, loops, delays, vocals, samples and hours of hard work. And then sometimes, it’s just a plain and simple improv between the biggest music geeks in the world.

Approaches can vary from the very light and melodic ambient tones of Loscil, through to the legendary tape-loops of William Basinski’s 2002 Disintegration Loops. And further along the spectrum, the haunting wall of noise coming from Tim Hecker.

Any mention of drone or experimental music usually throws up one of the best labels in the business – Kranky. Not only home to Tim Hecker, this label has also pioneered a wide range of ambient, drone and experimental styles from the likes of Stars Of The Lid, Loscil, Grouper, Windy & Carl, and Pan American. Kranky can also hold part responsibility for the more recent emergence of the modern-classical sound, with A Winged Victory For The Sullen and Christina Vantzou.

THE TANGIBLE EXPRESSIONISTS

Compositions and performances are often meant to be heard, studied and to a large 
extent, watched – the opposite to how we defined ambient music at the start of this article. But recent years have seen such an emergence of brilliant artists that could be considered ambient via their modern-classical success. 

Composers such as Ryuichi Sakamoto played a large part in integrating modern classical into the ambient or techno genres, partnering with the previously mentioned Alva Noto for example, alongside the well-known re-interpretations from Max Richter or the lesser-known (but hugely respected) Murcof. But more recently there’s just one label that’s heavily influenced me: Erased Tapes.

Their unbelievably talented German wizard Nils Frahm has consistently released beautiful piano compositions on the label since the very beginning, but has only recently seen his greatest acclaim with Spaces. And rightly so, this was my favourite album of last year, hands-down and his recent Boiler Room set captures his magic perfectly.

Often alongside Nils is Ólafur Arnalds, the Icelandic multi-instrumentalist. Likewise, Ólafur is a genius with the piano and together the pair have propelled the modern classical genre forward in recent years, simultaneously restoring my faith in the live performance at the same time – spellbinding, magical and utterly breath-taking every time. Expanding even further into the Nordic realm, and Otto A Totland’s Pino, (hailing from the brilliant duo Deaf Center) is another great composer (Pino boasts a beautifully packaged CD to boot).

I’ve also seen a resurgence of young talented composers. The likes of ASIP’s very own Levi Patel and Halo, both under 25 and creating masterpieces that wouldn’t sound out of place in-front of an expectant crowd of hundreds. Their talent never fails to baffle me.

Emerging label Serein recently presented us with Brambles. And Luke Howard’s Sun, Cloud remains a gorgeous yet powerful dose of theatre. New Zealand’s Rhian Sheehan continues to release some of the most spellbinding work I’ve ever heard, often traversing into an ambient guise on releases such as Seven Tales Of The North Wind.

Once I’m down this route, I often find myself leaning towards some of the masters of post-rock too. Balancing the emotion of the modern classical composition; with the raw power of guitars and drums; signed off with subtle ambient undercurrents; this style of music is yet another rabbit-hole of wonders.

The American Dollar, while specialising in post-rock, have recorded several ambient versions of their releases, highlighting the close melodic ties between the two styles. Similarly, Hammock are the true masters in this approach, producing some of the most emotional and climatic pieces of ambient, drone and post-rock you’ll come across. And should you need to dive in any further, I’ve long appreciated Stray Theories and Good Weather For An Airstrike – doing their own independent thing and definitely deserving of more ears.

And lastly, where instruments add depth and character, there are those that use them with subtlety, adding colour to an otherwise calm ambient drone. Keith Kenniff, (or Helios to many), is a great example of this approach, alongside 36 - an independent musician from the UK releasing some of the most powerful, tear-jerking, melancholic music possible. As are the many, many artists that seem to hail from Japan like Arc of Doves, Ex Confusion, Nobuto Suda and the Home Normal collective.

THE NEXT CHAPTER

As I’ve already mentioned with the strength of recent modern classical music, I’m hoping we see plenty more prodigies like Nils Frahm shine. If a young pianist needs any inspiration they needn’t look any further than his Spaces album, or any of his live shows.

There’s a lot of love for what Burial started a few years back and I’m enjoying seeing this type of music evolve, (especially as I absorbed plenty of UK Garage when I was younger!) Artists such as Borealis and Sven Weisemann’s Desolate project nail the fine-line between this urban approach to electronica and the subtleties of ambient atmospheres. It’s hard to come across this type of stuff on a regular basis without it feeling too repetitive, but news of a new Desolate album is sure to keep it moving along nicely.

Similarly, the blissful sparse beats coming from the likes of Kiyoko push a new style forward, along with James Clements’ more ambient focused work as ASC and his label Auxiliary. With drum’n bass influences, productions range from industrial ambient to 170 BPM electronica (the Autonomic sound).

Recently we’ve seen a few artists start to integrate ambient textures and in particular modern classical elements into house and techno music. Max Cooper has been doing this brilliantly for the past few years, mainly through his remixes, and now Erased Tapes’ Kiasmos (Ólafur Arnalds and Janus Rasmussen) are set to show what it truly means to integrate a piano composition into dance-floor-oriented music.

~

There’s no doubt that ambient music is at one of its strongest points for a long time (as FACT Mag politely pointed out recently – and to answer the question I don’t think we’ll ever beat the 90’s!) It would be easy for me to list some releases that are coming up this year that excites me, but that’s one of the main reasons my site exists. Ambient music, drone, and modern classical in its purest form will undoubtedly remain the same, as they aren’t scenes revolving around a place, a movement, or a bunch of people. But I’m always excited by the producers, labels, and artists that are looking to push this type of music further.

 I’m guessing ambient music will always be in the background like Eno meant it to be. It will continue to take many forms, add different perspectives to more popular styles, and appear in places you probably wouldn’t expect it (hell, Zane Lowe may even launch Apple Music with an ambient track ;-)

But that’s the magic of it for me; the modest, fluid and intimate nature of ambient music demands attention, and if it’s given, you’ll be rewarded with some of the best music out there.  

I started this article to help dive a little deeper into ambient music, but upon reflection, I’ve still only scratched the surface. There’s no doubt some subjective inconsistencies, a whole heap of brilliant artists and labels missing, and I’ve probably riled the genre police in every paragraph.

Hopefully, I’ve either introduced you to a new genre, style, artist, or label and from there, you’ll never know where you end up. You may even be inspired to set up a blog, site, or record label after your favorite album…

Below is a Spotify playlist featuring some of my favorite tracks mentioned in this article. It should keep you going for a very, very long time. And lastly, always remember to support the many artists featured in this article, doing their own thing and making our lives much more pleasurable. Thank you for reading this far.

An edited version of this article was featured in the final Substrata 2015 festival program.

Spotlight on Substrata 1.3

After a successful round of funding, Rafael Anton Irisarri’s third Substrata Festival has announced it’s long anticipated line-up. Given many people contributed to this festival without even knowing any performers until now, is high praise for Rafael and his curation skills. But now we’ve got the names, I thought it’d be nice to take a little look into what’s in store.

Some familiar acts for sure, but also some relatively unknown artists that I could do with exploring a bit more and this is the perfect opportunity. I won’t go into too much detail about each of the artists and their background as you can find all of that on the Substrata line-up page. Just think of this as the tip of a very big trove of talented artists you can go away and explore, or even see live this July as part of Substrata.

Grouper

As most of you know by now, i’ve recently moved to Portland, Oregon and before coming here I was fully aware of one of it’s most notorious experimental artists, Liz Harris. I had hoped to see her billed somewhere local but haven’t seen even the slightest of mentions on paper yet, so it was a nice surprise to see her announced as part of Substrata 1.3. I’m no expert of the extensive Grouper back catalogue, but it boasts releases on Type (home of Biosphere) and Kranky (a home to many greats in the past including Loscil, Benoît Pioulard and Tim Hecker).

Liz’s sound is a mixture of ethereal, dreamy vocals and delicate guitars wrapped in warm reverb. Rarely does she stray too far from what she does best, it’s a unique sound that you’ll find many ambient lovers including in their sets as inspirations. Take 36’s or Loscil’s isolatedmixes for example. I’m looking forward to Grouper’s vocals wrapping around the audience of Seattle’s intimate Chapel Performance Space.

Kim Cascone

A bit of digging around reveals Kim Cascone is quite the sound designer. The Substrata line-up page details that Kim’s provided academic studies and developed a sound-art festival alongside his releases on 12K and Raster-Noton. I don’t know much of Kim’s stuff, but going through a few pieces now, it seems like an intimate gig at Substrata is going to be quite the audio experience. 

Jacaszek

Jacaszek is one of those artists that I really haven’t given any deserved attention to on his own. Michał is a regular feature in many ASIP mixes (Bulb’s and Rafael’s for example) and this live snippet gives us a taster of his live electro-acoustic work. His most famous piece is the track, ‘Lament’, cited by many as a big inspiration and a defining example of modern-classical or modern-acoustic music.

Jacaszek is planning to play Substrata alongside Kelly Wyse who recently provided some wonderful piano pieces on Loscil’s recent‘ Intervalo’ EP.

Christina Vantzou

I’m pretty excited to see Christina play at Substrata; she’s another artist who is relatively new to me. With releases on Ghostly and Kranky, her back catalogue, additional projects and her creds on the Substrata festival certainly portray her as one heck of a talent.

Below is a piece of her work alongside Adam Wiltzie (of A Winged Victory For The Sullen) as the duo, ‘The Dead Texan’. Enough said really.

Noveller

Sarah Lipstate sounds like another artist who is set to saturate the Seattle Chapel walls with reverb. “Lipstate summons a sonic palette so rich as to challenge the listener to conceive of how it’s housed in a single instrument manipulated by a solitary performer” as quoted from the Substrata site. I’m looking forward to hearing how that one plays out.

Ken Camden

For a man that plays in a rock-band, tracks like the below ‘Birthday’ paint a nice picture of this man’s talent and music taste. ‘Trance-induced moods’ just about sums this one up, alongside quotes such as”…the psychedelic meditations of 70’s krautrockers Popul Vuh and Ash Ra Tempel – producing a charming ambient”. Charming indeed, and after what looks to be a heavily experimental-focused festival, it’s going to be quite the release to hear Ken’s artfully crafted psychedelic pieces played live on stage.

Yagya

It was a nice surprise to see Yagya announced at Substrata this year. Many of you will know how much of a fan of Steini I am, and for years now I haven’t been anywhere close to seeing him live. I could post any number of Yagya tracks, those from Rigning, or the recently repressed Rhythm Of Snow, but instead i’ll go with an instrumental version of a track taken from his latest album, ‘The Inescapable Decay Of My Heart’. This album was met with mixed reviews after the addition of vocals to Steini’s signature sound, but there’s no doubting just how addictive his productions are when you listen to them at the core and I can’t wait to see what he does live.

Sean Curley

A local from Seattle, I haven’t heard Sean Curely’s productions before, so I’m hesitant to dig into his catalogue too much, as it’s always nice to hear an artist for the first time live. Described as “one of the Pacific Northwest’s most interesting guitarists” tracks like the below have certainly got me intrigued and excited.

Ethernet

Another Portland local, Tim has just released an album on the notorious Kranky that i’m yet to wrap my ears around. Going by the below however, it seems as though im missing out on something seriously special so im about to right that wrong. From what i’ve heard so far, Tim is queued up to be one of my favourites at the festival, crossing the ambient/dub-techno divide which suits me down to a T, and in which case i’ll be tracking him down for a beer or two in Portland to talk even more music!

The Sight Below

Last but by no means least, the Substrata curator himself, Rafael Anton Irisarri. I guess Rafael had to make a decision whether to play as RAI or as The Sight Below (or even alongside Benoît Pioulard as Orcas) but i’m pretty pleased i’ll get to see his more electronic, darker side as The Sight Below. Another artist with just too many favourites to choose from, but here’s one from the vaults with Rafael covering Joy Division’s ‘New Dawn Fades’.

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You can read more on all of the artists featured here over at Substrata. And if you fancy joining me on what promises to be a very special week of music, tickets are also on sale now here.

If you need more of the same, try Rafael’s Substrata dedicated isolatedmix.