2012- 2022: Ten years of the ASIP record label

Ten years ago today, we began our ASIP label endeavors.

While it might seem a little self gratuitous to write about a meaningless moment in time, it’s something I personally like to do in order to take stock, and be able to reflect back on in another ten years.

After a few years of blogging about music here on ASIP, we had created a small community of listeners and artists who were of course, looking for a wider audience. It seemed like a natural step for me to begin a label and start connecting the dots. After all, I was getting sent some brilliant music at this point that simply didn’t have a home past artists self-releasing.

It started with The Places Series. A humble, digital-only series that called on artists we knew at the time to submit a piece of music that represented their strangely isolated place. We had contributions from new artists, and friends and even managed to persuade the likes of Markus Guentner, Leandro Fresco and 36 to contribute - all of whom were (are) musical heroes to me. The releases ranged from single tracks, to EPs and full albums. The latter of which, marked our very first release as Kit (Kit Fegradoe) took a punt with us to put Tré em, out into the world - a time-traveling piece of intricate field recordings and diverse musicality that still manages to stand out amongst a crowd.

The Places Series ended up running for 29 releases, with all of them captured in this compilation on Bandcamp for ease (and also available individually) marking the 30th release in the series. At this point, it felt right to step into physical editions, and with limited idea on how or funding to make such a step, I decided to kick-start our very first release. Uncharted Places began with a brief to existing Places Series artists to choose an existing track and remix it. What came back was beyond expectations, as was the support to make the project happen.

Once this project sold out, it left me with the motivation to keep going (and a little bit of spare change to invest in the next release, Europe). This process was also new to me, so I took the time to document it as best as I could, to help others, and take stock of the challenges. Reading back on this now, every single point still stands, ten years later (but now I could write a list of 100 things!)

After these compilations, it became exciting to think of the platform I could now offer artists, many of whom, I wouldn’t have dreamt of approaching prior. Our first few artist releases consisted of Arovane, Hior Chronik, Markus Guentner, and Chymera, all of whom I held in high regard and was honored to work with. This trend, working with musicians I hold in the highest regard, luckily didn’t stop, 30 or so vinyl releases later.

Fast forward to 2022, and we’ve kept a regular average cadence of albums/releases per year, and even managed to launch a little sub-label for 9128.live. Despite our reviews and features slowing down here, due to the label focus, we have managed to keep the blog rolling with mixes and some in-depth features through our Portals series. DJing and mix culture will always remain a passion, and be interwoven into ASIP wherever we can.

I have been planning a couple of things to celebrate the 10-year milestone (and would have ideally had a vinyl release to commemorate the milestone, given our focus), but this past year has been a whirlwind. Look out for a couple of projects which will hopefully see the light of day in the next few months.

A massive thank you if you’re reading this - not just acknowledging us on social media, but taking the time to ready a bit of a back story, means a lot. And of course, thank you to every single person, listener, artist and cog in the big vinyl machine that has been a part of this journey for the past ten years.

There are no lofty ambitious goals moving forward. In a small way, I hope to do more events and be able to support our artists in other ways, perhaps more fun merch, but the focus will always remain the same. Putting out music I love, irrespective of where it lands on the spectrum. And ideally, writing a post much like this in another decade.

~

Photo by Pawel Czerwinski with an edit by yours truly.

Portals: Music For Mindfulness

Mindfulness, is undoubtedly subjective and situational. But one thing I’ve noticed, is that most of the material you hear on this topic often has a stereotypical sound; normally new-age, and often yoga or meditation focused with buddhist chanting, or crashing waves. Sometimes, you might be lucky enough to find a sweet-spot with Brian Eno, and with it, you draw a sigh of relief. 

I've often wondered how (or why) hotels and spa's choose their music and how this 'background style' has become so mistakenly synonymous with ambient music. Ask anyone who isn't familiar with ambient music is and they’ll likely say "spa music" or "meditation/yoga stuff". No digs on that type of music, I mean some elements even find their way in here - it's the root to many ambient concepts, and I could sit and listen to the sound of the sea and waves crashing for years on end. But as with all of these Portals series, I try to find and explore a different perspective where possible. 

The goal of this feature and accompanying mix was to create a journey of escapism and comfort. Whereas the previous Portals feature, ‘Music For Sleeping’ could be deemed very similar, the approach here focused on keeping an attentive layer/s that ended up being more pure to Brian Eno’s definition of ambient music: “As ignorable as it is interesting”, which aligns very well with the definition of what it means to be mindful; "the quality or state of being conscious or aware of something”. 

There’s a lot of ambient music that fulfills this goal, so what’s different here? As I was curating tracks for this mix, I found common themes that resonated with me personally when it came to mindfulness, which I tried to reflect throughout, and ultimately formed a filter for what should be included. Perhaps you’ll identify with one or more and can descend into a rabbit-hole of exploration, or hopefully you'll enjoy it as a whole. 

Nature
Field recordings and the pure sound of the outdoors is undoubtedly calming and reassuring. It’s an escape from our busy lives, and a reminder of what’s good in our world. The mix opens with my favorite field recording from Biosphere that somehow encapsulates the exact sound I used to hear from the field behind my childhood house. Nature sounds are a common theme throughout this mix, whether on purpose or inadvertently as an intro or ending to certain tracks. 

Submersion
The warm, blanket-like approach to ambient music is a favorite of mine, often created through analog equipment, or layers of undulating synthesizers that build, wrap and immerse. Markus Guentner, Donnacha Costello, Marcus Fischer, Heathered Pearls, bvdub, and Billow Observatory are just some of the many moments in here that keep you warm and comforted. 

Subtle/subliminal layers
The KLF’s ‘Chill-out’ album is one of ambient music’s most pioneering pieces, and on paper, it really shouldn’t be. The sound of trains, sheep and Elvis Presley are not the first ingredients that come to mind for relaxation, but the key here, is how they’re interwoven into a moving piece of musical art - an undercurrent of subtle moments that on their own would be distracting, but together form a story. They provide moments of interest and escapism - enough to keep one foot in the door, and one foot in a world of your own. I’ve tried to replicate this approach in this mix, by lowering volumes of certain tracks into the background, or including something a little unexpected in a few places, so if you see something you like in the track-list, don’t assume it will feature prominently. 

Choral sounds
Beautiful, emotional choir singing is pretty cliche, but who can argue against it when it comes to feeling good? Whether it’s the religious connotations, or just the simple realization that the sound you're hearing is coming from a person, is as stunning as it is comforting. Moments from Hammock and Jonsi & Alex provide the highs in this instance. 

String instruments
Whether it’s a slowly drawn cello, a harp, or a lone guitar pluck, there’s something about string instruments when it comes to reflecting positivity (and in the right context, ultimate sadness!) However, I often associate these sounds with light - I have no idea why - but perhaps thats why they feature in here so heavily. Be it the acoustic version of Aphex Twin’s ‘Rhubarb’, Mary Lattimore’s beautiful harp, or Kit’s portrayal of a walk on the beach as fireworks light the horizon. 

Strong-sounds can also go to the other end of the spectrum too, with reverb-laden guitar-haze forming complex palettes that you’d normally expect to come from synthesizers. Examples in here being Manual and to a simpler extent, Neozaïre. 

Repetition
We’re creatures of habits, and the beat of the drum is what makes all music so special. When it comes to ambient music, this often comes to life in loops, or slowly evolving textures that do just enough to keep you intrigued, yet are familiar enough to hypnotize and make you feel comfortable. Given its minimal nature, most ambient music is repetitive, but sometimes it can become more evident in its form, for example, a track here Klimek that anticipates each evolution and movement with a similar instrumental pluck of strings. 

Overall, I have tried to avoid anything that can be seen as daunting, intriguing or so vividly different that you switch into new worlds with every track. You may notice some distinct phases throughout the mix, where similar sounds are tied together, and you may prefer certain phases to others, but eventually I hope you finish on an extremely positive note. Just sat here listening back and writing this, I’m feeling better than I was a few hours back...

Thanks to everyone who commented on the original Facebook post with their own suggestions, a few of which made it into the final journey. 

Download.

Tracklist + links to buy/download:

01. Biosphere - As The Sun Kissed The Horizon [Biophon]
02. Ourson - Mountain, Calm Day, Birds, Saw [Self]
03. Brian Eno, Roger Eno, Daniel Lanois - Deep Blue Day [EG / Polydor]
04. Parks - Forest [Self]
05. Kit - Girl Walking on The Beach Wearing A Skirt [A Strangely Isolated Place]
06. Sage Taylor - Raintime Ten [Cold Fiction Music]
07. Bjorn Rohde - Intentionally Gone [Self]
08. Billow Observatory - Calumet [Felte]
09. Hammock - Now And Not Yet [Hammock Music]
10. Heathered Pearls - Glass Routine [Self]
11. Donnacha Costello - This Way [Ursa/Self]
12. James Devane - Rhubarb (Acoustic) [na]
13. Aphex Twin - Rhubarb [Warp]
14. Marcus Fischer - Arctic 2 [Luxus-Arctica records International]
15. Helios - Halving The Compass [Type/Unseen]
16. Yeter - Dart 2 [A Strangely Isolated Place]
17. bvdub - 10 [Self]
18. Markus Guentner - Express Yourself [Kompakt]
19. Leyland Kirby - Polaroid [Ghostly]
20. Martin Glass - Welcome To The Four Seasons [Kit Records]
21. David Bowie & Brian Eno - Moss Garden [RCA]
22. Klimek - Sun Rise [Kompakt]
23. Mary Lattimore & Jefre Cantu Ledesma - Borrego Springs [Soap Library]
24. Brian Eno - Music For Airports 1/1 [Polydor]
25. Jonsi & Alex - Boy 1904 [XL/Parlophone]
26. Neozaïre - Blue Bell Treasure [Fauxpas]
27. Manual - Azure Vista [Darla]
28. Peter Broderick & Nils Frahm - Sketch 24 [Fugues]

If you enjoyed this, dive deeper into ambient music with our in-depth introduction 'Neither Scene Nor Heard: An Introduction to Ambient Music', or some of the other Portals series, below. 

Mr Frankie - Sunday Morning Session (ASIP tribute mix)

Mr Frankie has been kind enough to put together an ASIP tribute mix, featuring tracks from The Places Series alongside more recent releases such as Europe and Arovane & Hior Chronik.

You can pick up any of these releases, most of them for free, over on the releases page.

Download.

Tracklist:

01. 36 - Heather Spa
02. Yeter - Dart 3
03. Benjamin Dauer - Eight And Forty
04. Textural Being - Vantage Points
05. Enh - Roke
06. Ex Confusion - Before We Begin
07. Levi Patel - Dissociation (Extended)
08. Norge - 165 Minutes With You
09. Halo - The Inner Realm
10. Kit - Girl Walking On The Beach Wearing A Skirt
11. Mig Dfoe - Mares
12. Nobuto Suda - Nobody Levee
13. Dalot - Home
14. Arovane & Hior Chronik - A Day, November 2013
15. Yagya - The North Shore

ASIP001 Kit -Tre-em

 

Inspired by time spent travelling to, and through Vietnam, “Trẻ em” captures a journey of introspection and contemplation; of excitement, contentment and considered observation. 

Imbibed with a deep appreciation of the country’s sights and sounds, Kit’s affection for the people and places that unknowingly contributed is tangible in its warmth, richness and character. The breadth and depth of these tracks eases through a wealth of shared experiences, the weight of history and the often brutal reality of the world in which we live. Heart-breaking and heart-warming, perhaps the most wonderful thing about “Trẻ em” is its unerringly honest dichotomy. 

An album that effortlessly transports and eases you into the heart of the experience, the tremulous “Girl Walking on the Beach Wearing a Skirt” takes you to an idyll of white sands and picturesque isolation - a place where the sun's kissing the horizon and the breeze whispers through the trees casting black silhouettes against a burning amber sky. It’s a track that evokes and transcends, sighing with the tide, truly content in its beauty and natural simplicity. 

“Tunnels” is a dramatically different beast, its minimal heartbeat determined in its power. Alive with nervous tension, it’s an invitation to delve into the darkness, crawling towards the infinite, co-existing with the choke of claustrophobic fear and volatile gunfire as the walls close in on a space of dead air and defiance. But even trapped in a place as foreboding as this, fuelled only by adrenalin and a clamouring sense of freedom, there’s still a flicker of optimism in the unknown. 

In album closer, “I Grew Up Here” you have the perfect bookend, a warm, swelling piece tinged with longing and sadness but one that flourishes into something warm and wide-eyed. It’s comforting in its reminiscence and warmed by the thought of being welcomed in a place you didn’t call home before but now, will always consider it to be.