isolatedmix 95 - Sraunus

Dub-techno has kind of fizzled-out for me in the last few years. Not by design, but likely more as a comparison to how much I used to listen and dig for new music in that vein. Back in 2010, I stumbled across Sraunus who epitomized the best of genre with his debut album ‘Out Of The City’. It was a classic ASIP blog find, relatively unknown and deserving of more listens. Since then, Sraunus went on to release several more lovely albums with perhaps his most revered coming on Greyscale in 2017.

For those not familiar with Sraunus, the man behind the controls is Paulius Markutis - a Lithuanian producer originating from the post-industrial town of Panevežys. Sraunus escapes dub-techno clichés by placing his sound in strangely personal narratives that weave field recordings, delicate pop harmonies and darker emotional undertones. Any dub-techno listener, knows how hard it is to stand out in this field and Sraunus has gathered a respectable following for his consistent output over the years. But, as with all producers that dabble in dub-techno, ambient music is never too far away and provides much needed inspiration.

For his isolatedmix, Paulius decided to create an ambient mix, focusing on individual pieces of tracks in a hope to depict something new to the listener, moving from dark moods to bright, layering elements and intros into one rich tapestry - a truly immersive and technically flawless journey.

Download

Tracklist:

01. Takashi Kokubo - 海のつぶやき
02. Iron Cthulhu Apocalypse - Circumference (4 Hz Theta)
03. ULTRA ウルトラ - クレジット u p g r a d e ° 21
04. Latin girl signing
05. Garrett - Awaiting the Light
06. Halftribe - Tuning Out
07. Field recording
08. Laraaji - Ocean Flow (Seahawks Deep Drift Mix)
09. Roberto Musci - Tower of Silence
10. Roberto Musci - Improbably Music
11. Jefre Cantu-Ledesma - Joy
12. Sraunus - Kolonista
13. Baubas
14. Untitled
15. Nouveau Life™ - アンドロイド未来
16. Dominykas Niaura - Gyvenimas ėmė ir prabėgo
17. Roberto Musci - Claudia, Wilhelm R and Me
18. Unknown - 展示
19. Ｖｉｒｔｕａｌ仮想中空（ＶＨＳ）- その日が来るとき
20. Sam Amidon - Lucky Cloud
21. Flaming Tunes - Restless mind
22. Baubas
23. Carlo Giustini - A1. Il Vicino (Si Muove)
24. Terekke - Swim
25. Blue Darkness - A Sleepless Town

Sraunus on Bandcamp | Facebook | Soundcloud | Discogs

isolatedmix 81 - Rich-Ears: Navigator

A welcome return to our Balearic maestro, Rich-Ears, who keeps the dwindling connection I have with the white isle going strong all these years later. Now I’m on the other side of the world, I like to live vicariously through Rich-Ears' mixes, coming straight from the heart of Ibiza (the right side of the island I should add) as he enjoys summer life spinning his notorious samples and blends of downtempo, chill-out and ambient.

I've been a little slow these past few months on the site, so I must apologize to Rich-Ears for sitting on this one for so long, as he prepared it for the summer months and with ASIP’s ten-year anniversary in mind. Well, as the first day of the Autumnal Equinox, maybe there’s no better way to say goodbye to the summer…

Rich-Ears put a set together a few years back for our five-year milestone and was inspired to offer up his skills again for our celebratory ten-year, crafting this beautifully relaxed and calming set titled ‘Navigator’ as he plucks some classics in the form of The Orb, Eno, Midori Takada and Morricone; think of this as your own navigator through some essential ambient and chill listening by one of the finest selectors.

Download.

Tracklist:

01. Keichi Suzuki - Satellite Serenade (TransAsian Express) [The Orb remix]
02. Spacetime Continuum - Floatilla
03. The Orb - Alles Ist Schoen
04. [Rich_Ears_edit_Navigator_ambient]
05. Reagenz - Farewell (Live at Dommune)
06. Kaoru Inoue - A Day Of Radiance
07. Midori Takada - Through the looking glass
08. [Rich_Ears_edit_ambient_psy]
09. Brian Eno - The Real
10. 36 - Shadow Play (After Dark Reprise)
11. Halftribe - Well connected
12. All Into The Mix (ambient short edit)
13. Pink Floyd - Echoes (live)
14. Enzo Cage - Enoference
15. Murcof x Vanessa Wagner - Avril 14th (Aphex Twin)
16. Crossworlds - Sunwalk
17. DJ Food - Colors Beyond Colors
18. Ennio Morricone- La Voglia Matta: Sole e Sogni

Rich-Ears | Mixcloud | Facebook | Instagram

ASIP - Reflection on 2015

This years' ASIP Reflections mix closes out the annual "Advent Calendar" for our friends over at Das Kraftfuttermischwerk. 

Featuring just a few of my favourite tracks from 2015 the mix process is always organic for me, so ultimately always misses out several styles. This one, has focused more on the ambient and techno side of things, and doesn't include some of the many electronica, IDM, shoegaze or softer ambient music we have featured this year.

As a special treat, I've finished the mix with the first listen of a remix coming out on ASIP in January, as part of ASIPV003R.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone who has been reading, listening and supporting ASIP in 2015. We couldn't have had such an amazing year without you.

Download over on Soundcloud.

Tracklist:
01. Hior Chronik - Nest Of Autumn Feat. Sophie Hutchings (Kitchen) READ
02. Offthesky & Pleq - Ashes Of America (Infraction) READ
03. Leandro Fresco - Los Pasos Vacilantes De Los Reyes (Kompakt) READ
04. Heathered Pearls - Cast In Lemon & Sand (Ghostly)
05. Halftribe - Shells (Dewtone)
06. Rafael Anton Irisarri - Persistence (Room40) READ
07. ASC - Deluge of Thought (Silent Season) 
08. Synkro - Your Heart (Apollo) READ
09. Refracted - The Jungle Is Thick (Silent Season)
10. Voices From The Lake - Orange Steps (Editions Mego) READ
11. Martin Nonstatic - Granite (Ultimae) READ
12. Nautil - Mue (Further)
13. Acronym - Letting Go Of It All (Northern Electronics) READ
14. Voices From The Lake - Max (Editions Mego) READ
15. Donnacha Costello - Farewell (Self released) READ
16. Alessandro Cortini - Rimasta (Important)
17. Arovane & Hior Chronik - Day After Tomorrow (AMX) (A Strangely Isolated Place)

Tracknotes

Hior Chronik - Nest Of Autumn Feat. Sophie Hutchings (Kitchen) READ
This album is being heralded as one of the best by many in the past few weeks. My full review summarizes this beautiful piece of work, but this track with Sophie Hutchings is pretty outstanding.

Offthesky & Pleq - Ashes Of America (Infraction) READ
Infraction are one of the most consistent underrated labels out there, and this colab proves it. I'm pretty sure plenty of people skipped this album, but it's one of the most special soundtrack moments of 2015 - a true grower with an emotional climax.

Leandro Fresco - Los Pasos Vacilantes De Los Reyes (Kompakt) READ
Leandro has had a spectacular year, with the release of his dedicated Pop Ambient album and this, a contribution to the annual Pop Ambient compilation. His sound never falters and this is one of his more finer, articulate moments, slightly different to his regular stuff.

Heathered Pearls - Cast In Lemon & Sand (Ghostly)
Jakub's album is another being heralded across the many best-of lists. Body Complex crossed into more of his 'club' sound, whilst keeping his warm textures and this track was the closest to his previous ambient sound we've covered here on ASIP many times.

Halftribe - Shells (Dewtone)
Despite a relatively quiet year for the label, Dewtonw had a few stunners including the Shells EP by Halftribe.

Rafael Anton Irisarri - Persistence (Room40) READ
A Fragile Geography will undoubtedly be known as one of Rafael's best. Power, emotion and delicacy such as this beautiful track, traverse the album to show RAI's ever-growing library of sound.

ASC - Deluge of Thought (Silent Season) 
ASC on Silent Season is a guaranteed combination. His past outputs have been some of the best music of the year and Fervent Dream is no exception. Deep, dark and mysterious, James Clements crafts the finest of details into vivid landscapes.

Synkro - Your Heart (Apollo) READ
I'm a big fan of Synkro, along with his other guises such as Kiyoko. Changes switches between epic synth-laden ambient music and more upbeat electronica, all in a unique new-beat Synkro style that straddles the likes of Burial, the Autonomic sound and Drum'n Bass.

Refracted - The Jungle Is Thick (Silent Season)
Silent Season went deeper than ever this year and Refracted dug deepest. Bubbling, daunting techno that encapsulates and transports.

Voices From The Lake - Orange Steps (Editions Mego) READ
VFTL didn't do anything particularly new this year, but their LIVE album was another reason to fall in love with the duo. Whilst this track wouldn't stand out in its own, it fitted well in the mix and my favorite from the album was actually the below 'Max'.

Martin Nonstatic - Granite (Ultimae) READ
The sounds in this track and across his album are addictive, like an industrial clang of warm dub-techno. Martin's praise for this album is illustrated in the review, so it was no surprise he would have a place in here.

Nautil - Mue (Further)
A relatively overlooked techno release that more-or-less defined a few of the styles I really got stuck into this year, alongside the Refracted track and the likes of wndfrm. Further also had an amazing year as a label and look unstoppable right now.

Acronym - Letting Go Of It All (Northern Electronics) READ
I could have included a host of Northern Electronics tracks in a year-end mix and it was hard enough narrowing it down to this one from Acronym. I've seen the album, June, pop up on a few lists and I'm glad Abdulla Rashim's ever growing techno label is getting some well-deserved attention. 

Voices From The Lake - Max (Editions Mego) READ
This track epitomizes VFTL's album productions and their stray into the ambient world. Melodic, warming and above-all, memorable.

Donnacha Costello - Farewell (Self released) READ
Donnacha's Love From Dust may be my favorite album of the year. An amazing return centered on his spectacular synth work. Donnacha went on to release another album, Stay Perfectly Still, which was just as good.

Alessandro Cortini - Rimasta (Important)
Alessandro continued his yearly Forse analog assault to great effect. Despite being one of the most 'famous' people on this list through his Nine Inch Nails involvement, he was surprisingly my biggest discovery of the year which led to me hunting down all of his previous synth work.

Arovane & Hior Chronik - Day After Tomorrow (AMX) (A Strangely Isolated Place)
A little taster of the next ASIP release - a remix EP of Arovane & Hior Chronik's In-between.