36 - Void Dance

It's fascinating to hear and follow an artist's journey in real-time. Imagine how many hours we all spend reflecting on notorious albums; analyzing their sound; when it changed; when it got better; which albums started to resonate; which albums you wished they didn't make. Boards of Canada, for example - a fascinating story of development; from the defining sound of Music Has The Right To Children, to the more psychedelic Geogaddi and the apocalyptic tone of Tomorrow's Harvest; it's the nuances in an artist's sound which help us relate and grow alongside them. But more often that not, it's done in retrospect. 

Some fifteen-plus releases after 36's (Dennis Huddleston) 2009 album Hypersona, I'm still hanging on to his ever-evolving catalog with attentive ears. I'm not sure if Dennis feels the same way about this album, but Void Dance, is, a defining moment for me as a listener and voyeur of his beautiful sound.

Void Dance begins with a very recognizable, yet distinctly more refined 36 sound. The soaring strings of Hold On reminding us of Dennis' Places Series release, Heather Spa - echoing desolation and destruction. The intensity quietens for Equinox, as if the event we just witnessed billows plumes of slowly spiralling smoke, and debris is washed ashore a quiet, yet previously beautiful beach, as you peer down from a tiny window miles above. 

Stasis Eject, taken from the previously released EP Pulse Dive (as is the title track Pulse Dive), marks the beginning of the more electronic sounding tracks; lifted straight from an empty shuttle hurtling around Earth's atmosphere - tension, shrouded in an envelope of silence, slowly growing as your suspected realization quickens. 

An interlude of BoC sounding synths signals a change in horizon - a new earth, a new planet maybe, in Meshi Echelon. The inquisitive and melodic Nova, sparkles and quickens with intrepidation, setting up the majestic Pulse Dive. This track, as mentioned before, was taken from 36's earlier EP and is a shining example of Dennis's new approach. Compare with early Global Communication if you will, it's productions like Pulse Dive that will go on to define Dennis' evolution, and when surrounded a quality album such as this, are given the true space and light to stand-out. 

The new life; the new planet; you paid witness to with Pulse Dive, is brought back down to ground level with Tomorrow's World, again, teasing another special moment in the following title track Void Dance. Featuring significantly more distinct elements than previous tracks, and evolving throughout the six-minutes, the evocative strings and glorious melody pair nicely as significant book-ends with the earlier Pulse Dive.

The first day draws to dusk, and a curtain of Diamond Rain slowly descends into the unrecognizable valleys you're sat beneath, spurring a moment of reflection in Sine Dust, finished with a soft gentle whisper from a fellow traveller, or indeed your inner-self.

As the album comes to a close, so does your journey into this new world as you slowly settle down for the night, and the soft, yet haunting sound of The Last Light, lulls you into a dreary state.

I often find Dennis' work to make for perfect mix endings - his introspective emotion is so vivid, especially in previous albums. Ending Void Dance; Endless, is however, one of his most evocative tracks yet, and a perfect reminder of the 36 power. Gone is the melancholy and instead, a feeling of fulfilment and opportunity, amongst the slowly descending pads and soaring synths, tethering a fine-line between all-out trance and bvdub style euphoria.

As you can probably tell by now from my own personal narrative, Void Dance is a masterpiece in storytelling. The 36 sound we've followed for years has evolved, and with it, born brilliant tracks such as Pulse Dive and the title track Void Dance. But more importantly, Dennis didn't let these tracks sit alone or amongst a sub-par album. Instead, he has crafted an articulate journey that accentuates this new style - the innovative, the norm, the style we recognize and the tracks we don't, into an album worth a thousand visuals. It's one thing crafting a couple of tracks and moving your sound forward, it's another positioning this within an entire record.

Void Dance is available to pre-order on CD and digital now at 3six.net

Thore Pfeiffer - Im Blickfeld

Thore Pfeiffer landed unexpectedly earlier this year with two tracks on Kompakt's 2015 edition of Pop Ambient. It's a compilation that has on many occasions, ended up being the first step into the ambient 'mainstream' for artists such as Leandro Fresco, Markus Guentner and even Donnacha Costello. Seeing Thore's name on this years edition mean't only one thing - Mr Wolfgang Voigt had found a new ambient prodigy to help spearhead the already infamous compilation series. 

Following 2015's Pop Ambient compilation, Kompakt announced that the series would be getting its very own artist album releases. Leandro Fresco kicked things off with a stunning sound that we've loved since his first appearance in 2003 and now it's the turn of Thore Pfeiffer.

Im Blickfeld spans 11-tracks of gentle loop-based melodies that softly roll, tease and lull you closer to Thore's delicate and intricate touch. There's an immediate resonance with most Pop Ambient material that seems to play on this type of approach - it's Kompakt's trademark sound after-all, yet Thore has induced a gentle swirl of folk simplicity compared to previous executions.

The opening track, Allzu Nah, is perhaps the finest example and differentiator from previous Pop Ambient sound. Like watching a black-and-white film of a country fairground, that stalls, stops, and injects new faces in an almost playful yet haunting manner. 

Was Ihr Wolt seems to book-end Thore's gentle approach at the start of the album, with a consistent alluring pulse, backed by subtle keys and a slowly emerging high-pitched detail. This track sets up the second section of the album which goes on to focus more on guitar and strings, with Nirgwendo providing the most energy out of the bunch, akin to a dimly lit moment from an 80's film-score, only to then twist into a more avant-garde approach on Kolibri - where plucked strings take center stage. 

The final third of the album then descends into much warmer territory with Ebene - the stand-out track for me, featuring dark, driving swathes of color, transitioning into Falke - a beautiful airy filtered track that immediately revives the more recognized Pop Ambient sound.

Finishing on the fifteen-minute long Gipfel, the looping strings play ode to the addictive simplicity we find throughout the album. Thore's embrace of the Pop Ambient sound is clear to hear, but after years of tinkering from scratch, he's found a perfectly balanced palette that focuses purely on the distinct Pop Ambient sound. His relatively new approach to music production has perhaps, enabled him to focus on the quality and confidence of his approach instead of complicating, layering and diluting years of work. 

Im Blickfeld is available now on Kompakt.

I had the chance to shoot Thore a few questions below to get to know a bit more about how he came to be, and his approach to production. 

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ASIP: Hi Thore, what are you up to right now?

TP: I'm at home resting in my living room and sure enough,  pleased to answer your questions.

ASIP: How did your relationship with Kompkat come about?

TP: I had conventionally sent a demo to Kompakt. After a while, I had already stopped anticipating an answer then there was an email of Wolfgang Voigt and he asked me if I wanted to be featured on the next Pop Ambient compilation. Of course I said yes.

ASIP: There’s hope for us all! How did you begin producing music?

TP: At the very beginning, Thomas Gwosdz taught me everything I needed to know to make my first steps in producing. Everything further came by self-education.

ASIP: And what or who introduced you to ambient music specifically?

TP: In the Nineties I listened a lot of projects like "GAS","Biosphere" and others. Later on Thomas Gwosdz introduced me to the first Pop Ambient sampler. This stuff really fascinated me and got me hooked. From then on I knew it was this kind of music I wanted to make.

ASIP: So where did you go from there? Has this been your focus since the 90’s?

TP: I am open to all kinds of music and always looking for new styles and sounds. I tend to get bored if I would just concentrate on one music genre.                                                                                 

ASIP: You say that old-skool hip hop and rap were one of your first forays into music - do you still like that kind of music today?      

TP: Yes, right, I still like to listen to old material every once in a while. The more recent stuff is not my cup of tea to be honest. I don’t really follow today’s Rap/Hip Hop scene. The last Rap record I bought was “Hotsaucecommiteeparttwo" by the Beastie Boys which I still like a lot.

ASIP: How would you describe your approach to music production?

TP: Almost every time a sample is the initial point of a new track. I experiment with it and manipulate it until I am satisfied with the result. Next I continue to gather further sounds around the sample.

Recently I use Ableton Live 9, FL Studio, Korg Electribe A and some acoustic instruments such as a Chinese flute. Sometimes when I am abroad I record all sorts of sounds with a mobile recording device.  

ASIP: The album sounds like it features lots of instruments - especially strings. Are they played live?

TP: Most of the material I used on the album consists of samples of ethnical/world music, German "Volksmusik" and classical music. Every once in a while I use Korg Electribe, as well as some field recordings.

ASIP:  “Volksmusik” – can you give us an introduction to this type of music?

TP: It’s a traditional German music with a very unique sound, featuring instruments like the Tuba, Accordion and the Zither. It’s the tone of the instruments which resonates with me rather than the music itself. 

ASIP: I sense elements of "The Orb’s Okie Dokie It’s The Orb On Kompakt” on your album, or at the very least, some Thomas Fehlmann in there… where they an influence on this album at all?  

TP: Funny and interesting question! But no, The Orb album and the stuff by Fehlmann did not influence me, at least not knowingly ;-) But these records are in my shelf and I like them a lot.

ASIP: What are some of your favourite records?

TP: There are several records such as: "The Cure - Disintegration, NIN - The Downward Spiral, Depeche Mode - Violator, Grandmaster Flash - The Message and Elvis Presley - That's The Way It Is" All my records were an important part of my early life.

ASIP: So what inspired the album? You reference art and painting as a big part of your approach - can you tell us a bit more about that?

TP: The total package of a record is very important to me. Music and cover art need to match, it needs to be one piece. While I was producing the recent album, pictures of landscapes flashed upon my inner eye, a hunter on a stand, having his eye on everything. Hence the title  “Im Blickfeld” i.e.  “Field Of Vision”. There’s definitely some sort of interplay of music and pictures within my head whilst producing.

ASIP: What did you have in-mind when producing the individual tracks on the album? Do they represent an approach similar to the artwork?

TP: A movie was running through my brain while producing the track “Kolibri” for example. I saw the bird flying from one blossom to the next looking for nectar. Very quickly it became clear that “Kolibri” would be the name of the track.

ASIP: What do you do outside of music to relax or escape?

TP: I am a passionate amateur chef. I love to prepare delicate food with fresh ingredients. Cooking always has a terrifically relaxing effect on me. It is as remedial to me as music. Plus, on sunny days I love to ease off at the Rhine riverbank having a couple of beers.

Everyday Dust, Girių Dvasios, Virtual Dream Plaza, Yagya

Everyday Dust - Combination Nova

Sparkwood Records have featured in a couple of Passing By features now, through Scyye, and Eyesix if you can recall. Here they return with an multi-disciplined record collating remixes of previously released Everyday Dust records. The floating deepness of John Lemke and the guitars of Zenjungle book-end a rather splendid compilation that will appeal to ambient and dub-techno fans.

Available on Bandcamp.

Girių Dvasios - Ratu

This record has really hit a sweet spot with me. I think it's a combination of the quality dub-techno production that underlays each track, the slightly nostalgic trance-like chants and the complete uniqueness of it all. Girių has combined Lithuanian chanting with dub-techno to form an absolutely brilliant record that will have you mesmerized.

Available on Bandcamp.

Virtual Dream Plaza - Night Lovers

I fell into a untranslatable warp-hole that seems to combine vintage/80's sounds and lush ambient textures, half-an-hour at a time. Virtual Dream Plaza's music is tagged as Vaporwave, which apparently "...sometimes serves as both a critique and a parody of consumerist society, '80's yuppie culture, and New Age music, while sonically and aesthetically showcasing a curious nostalgic fascination with their artifacts" - well ladies and gentlemen, there's something new for us all.

I'm only a couple down from Virtual Dream Plaza's Bandcamp catalogue, but with each one, 30-minutes just washes over me, and those album covers just add to the weirdly juxtaposed animosity and warmth I'm feeling from each record. 

Available on Bandcamp

Joris Voorn - The Wild (Yagya Remix)

Yagya has just turned in this gorgeous remix for tech-superstar Joris Voorn. It's signature Steini, but there's some real up-beat energy amongst the always glorious swathes of pads. There's some other great remixes on this album too, specifically Mathew Dear's and Nobody Home's. 

Available at Beatport. 

Voices From The Lake - Live at MAXXI

I haven't featured Voices From The Lake on ASIP that much, and I have no legitimate reason why really. I was luckily enough to see them play live last year, and individually Donato Dozzy and Neel's albums never leave my most-played pile - Dozzy's 'K' and Neel's Phobos two of my all-time favourites of recent years, and Dozzy's multitude of techno records and Acid Test collaborations are always first in line when I play vinyl out. Their infamous Voices From The Lake guise however, is a more irregular yet always welcoming spectacle. 

After spending hours absorbed amongst VFTL's original self-titled album from 2012, seeing them play live in 2014, and stock-piling as many of their vinyl EP's as possible in-between, I've come to the conclusion that these two are one of the most accomplished duos to grace our ears. They can make a dance-floor shake, they can hypnotise crowds (story for another time) , and on the other end of the spectrum, they create some of the most beautiful ambient music you could wish for. And, yet despite having the talent and skills to unleash infamous tracks one after the other, VFTL currently exist in this 'live' space which ensures that a listen to one of their albums is an unexpected, slow-burning, magical experience, often with one extra caveat...

There's always the one moment or chord change which will hook you forever; that moment of melody amongst a forest of mysterious sound; the appearing light after 30-minutes of progressive, bubbling textures have wrapped you tight.  In VFTL's first album, it was the majestic undercurrent of synth in S.T (creeping in at 1.35 minutes), like a ray of light. For their Live at MAXXI album, the duo restrained to the very last track Max, brought in Brando Lupi for guitar overdubs and unleashed... 

Live at Maxxi is a signature performance with the listeners journey in-mind, and I guess this is what makes these two so special as VFTL. Their appearances together are rare, and their recordings together even more so. But instead of sitting down and jamming in a studio, Dozzy and Neel seem to be true entertainers that thrive as a live duo. They could undoubtedly churn-out studio album after album, but I like it the way it is now - a pure unfiltered live journey with a euphoric ending. This approach made that last track even more special, put the rest of the album into perspective and induced even more respect than I ever thought was possible for the superstar Italians. 

Digital available at Bandcamp, with an LP arriving June 22nd. 

Chasing Dreams, Adverb, Another Fine Day, Arovane & Peter Benisch

Chasing Dreams - Everything Feels Infinite

I'm still in awe of the collaborators that Hior Chronik pulled together on his masterpiece, Taking The Veil, but here we have Chasing Dreams (also known as his previous Need A Name, for his isolatedmix) starring amongst some of my favourite artists including: Moshimoss, Data Rebel Good Weather For An Airstrike and Stray Theories. 

Dario's (Chasing Dreams') style is always hard to pin down exactly, but as you'd expect from such a name and album title, Everything Feels Infinite is an emotional and powerful piece of music. Each song (or idea) that was conceived, was seen through to the end without disregard - a new approach for Dario, along with the 'blind' collaborations. Where many artists will try to balance an album with highs and lows, Dario has created a relentless continuation of beautiful productions, rooted in ambient, but likely appealing to lovers of modern-classical, shoegaze and post-rock. 

Available on Bandcamp.

Adverb - JADI

Etoka Records continue to bolster their already brilliant digital catalogue with Adverb's JADI, their very first CD release. Adverb has been responsible for numerous outputs on the label so far and I'm yet to falter any of them. Textured ambient that plays on it's own simplicity and meticulously manicured textures, you can find something interesting in all of the eight tracks on JADI.

Available on Bandcamp.

Another Fine Day - A Good Place To Be

Another Fine Day, aka Tom Green, is no stranger to many of the ambient/chill-out aficionados. His 1994 album Life Before Land is often placed in the same legendary realms as many of the early 90's ambient pieces we have come to love and Tom is also responsible for playing a part of The Orb's early productions. 

You can tell A Good Place To Be stems from a veteran of the scene, with its timeless feel and quietly confident ploy, each track is based around the piano toying with vivid scenes such as The Spanish Blues, or Child's Play - be it classed as chill-out, downtempo, lounge or simply instrumental, Tom does a great job sticking to the basics and making something great, that will undoubtedly stick around for years to come. 

Available on Bandcamp

Arovane - Woven (Peter Benisch Remix)

Uwe sent me this video recently in lead-up to a new remix compilation for Touched. The label has been releasing some monumental compilations in the past few years with all proceeds going towards Macmillan Cancer Research, and this new upcoming remix compilation is off to a great start with Peter Benisch remixing one of Arovane's previous contributions. Peter Benisch is a Swedish musician who, whilst also making beautiful ambient music, can sometimes be heard prepping electro bangers for Tiga's Turbo Recordings.

Sweeping, epic ambience takes over Uwe's analog plugs, a very similar approach to what you'll hear in Arovane's upcoming release with Hior Chronik. 

You can follow Touched on Facebook to hear news of the next remix compilation.