Synkro - Hand In Hand EP (Exclusive video)

We're big fans of Joe McBride's work here at ASIP. Over the years we've seen him avoid any genre stereotypes, venturing into cinematic downtempo as part of Kiyoko, and blending drum'n bass, ambient and dub-step with his debut album on the infamous Apollo, titled Changes in 2015.  Switching it up and drawing from a never-ending catalog of influences, it's of little surprise to see Synkro back with another superb release. 

Hand in Hand EP, reflects on some of his early influences from the 80's, particularly UK Library records, lifting samples and sounds from those records into completely transformed masterpieces using equipment such as his "trusted Juno-6 / SH101 / JX8P combo with the addition of drum samples via an old akai S2800".  The result is a far-cry from what you'd expect to come from such records.

EP opener Vanishing Point harkens back to the works of Boards of Canada, and a Hand In Hand synth line takes the same route as retro-analog manipulators like Com Truise. It's not until track 3, Automatic Response, that you hear more obvious 80's influences - a downtempo slow-jam with sparkling pads and Enigma style background vocals. Red Sky, takes things even deeper and a little more mysterious to round off a great EP.

We've got an exclusive new video for EP opener Vanishing Point below for your enjoyment - a morphing 3D affair from director MW. Here's what he had to say about his accompanying creation for the track:

"With ‘Vanishing Point’ I wanted to create abstract, textural feelings of depth and perspective. While experimenting with these ideas I also tried to play with the audience’s perception of scale, producing visuals which could be interpreted as either macro or micro. Beginning with a live feed of a rotating platter containing a mixture of oils, glitter, sequins and basically anything I could find at craft shops, I processed that feed through several video hardware devices with patched internal feedback loops. This was then fed into VDMX software, which introduced audio modulation and processing. The foreground texture was mapped to a sphere while performing image plane displacement to extend the bright areas inwards or outwards based on the audio input, while the background was produced with mirror effects. This was then recorded, and finally assembled in Premiere Pro". - MW.

Hand In Hand EP is available now on Apollo.

Jason van Wyk - Opacity

It's always easy to make comparisons in music, but they come in handy when you find something that mirrors musical styles that are hard to come-by, or moreover, hard to do well.

Jason van Wyk's new album on Home Normal bears a striking resemblance to some of our most recent innovators in the modern-classical space. Combining piano, strings, and soft pads that stretch to a limitless horizon, Opacity reminds me of soundtracks that would come often from the likes of Jon Hopkins, with tracks such as Glow and Beneath, combining poignant backgrounds with very simple piano or string melodies as heard in the likes of Monsters OST. 

Later on in the album, Jason brings more electronics to the fray, and suddenly Nils Frahm-style synthesizers bounce around more gentle piano pieces in For Now, Weightless and the more epic album closer, Eyes Shut. 

The only reason I call out these comparisons, is to urge you to listen. I can either do that, or continue with superlatives detailing how great this is... 

Available on Bandcamp. 

Illuvia - Illuvia

It's easy for me to like Purl's new album as Illuvia. After all, his magical sounds alongside Lav brought us the brilliant A State of Becoming LP. One of the many reasons I took this release on, was because nothing else out there sounds quite like it. The duo managed to create this organic, breathable ambient sound that was meditative, yet full of energy. 

Illuvia, is one of Purl's many follow-ups released under his own label, Eternell and in my eyes, is a perfect continuation of the sound found on A State of Becoming. The organic feel is still present, albeit with less of a purposeful setting than ASOB due to Lav's missing field recordings; but in its absence, Purl replaces 'lean-back' sounds, with 'lean-in' moments.

With a stunning amount of detail, told through beautiful piano moments, drifting pads, and complex drum patterns, Ludvig dances between ambient soundscapes, breaks and full drum'n bass, as heard below in Illuvia (Exaltation). LTJ Bukem eat your heart out.

As Ludvig develops this very unique and distinct sound, I'm continually surprised by the pallet of sounds he pulls from; the combination of styles, and the ultimate end-purity of it all. It's a great example of how ambient music can also be imaginative, detailed, complex and melodic, yet still send you into another world. 

Available on Bandcamp.

ASC - Trans​-​Neptunian Objects

Despite his relentless, high quality output, I haven't done a good job featuring James Clements' music here on ASIP. Sure, he's contributed a great isolatedmix, given us a sneak peak into his Wantlist, and had tracks included in many of our year-end mixes, but I haven't previously singled-out any of his immense ambient full-lengths.

Thinking about why this may be (apart from the fact there's hundreds of releases I will never get around to writing about), I find James' ambient productions hard to write about. Hard to do justice, really. Ironically, describing why it's hard to write about probably does a pretty good job at, well, writing about it. 

ASC's ambient productions have a tell-tale depth and atmosphere to them. There's no doubt a significant amount of influence and inspiration comes from space themes, perhaps harking back to his original Deep Space ambient mix series. But just like the unknown detail amongst the void, James' music comes to life through the minutia, the subtle maneuvers amongst an often ominous density that I've only known the likes of Biosphere, Wolfgang Voigt, and Markus Guentner to perfect. 

ASC's latest release, his first ambient output on his own Auxiliary label after a string of amazing albums on Silent Season, once again highlights his amazing ear for detail. Trans-Neptunian Objects takes you to an unknown place, toying with sonic frequencies, depicting the drama you'd expect from shadows of rocky behemoths, and the overall feeling of insignificance. 

James is also excelling in soundtrack work, (take his Bottom Of The World OST) which probably means the vivid ideas of far-reached planets and asteroid belts that he conjures up here, either borrow from, or help inform the mindset needed for deeper visual storytelling. 

But without calling it a soundtrack, Trans-Neptunian Objects is as close as you'll come to the stories, adventure and the unknown far-side of the Galaxy.

Available on Bandcamp.

Air Texture Volume V

Started in 2011, James Healy has brought together some of ambient and experimental music's finest artists through his unique collaboration series, Air Texture. 

Loscil, Rafael Anton Irisarri, bvdub, Andrew Thomas and Steve Hauschildt are among the names to have graced the series so far, each selecting one CD as part of the two-CD ongoing series. Now for it's fifth edition, James has recruited two very well respected underground acts; from two different eras of electronic music. Spacetime Continuum, known for many pioneering early 90's releases, and Dekmantal's more recent techno duo, Juju & Jordash. 

Despite the years between the curators, Spacetime Continuum and Juju & Jordash have recently come together alongside Move D, to form the new analog supergroup The Mulholland Free Clinic, with some of the tracks on the compilation coming from friends and branches of this new formation. 

Spacetime Continuum (aka Jonah Sharp) is in charge of the first CD. Counting a massive 14+ albums under his belt and boasting collaborations with the likes of Tetsu Inoue and Bill Laswell, Jonah has put forth a series of tracks that capture the very essence of the 1990's. Productions from himself and other classic artists such as I:Cube, Terre Thaemlitz (as Tragic Selector) and Claude Young, round out a long-lost, and early sounding techno vibe. For those that loved the Composure Ambient Techno for Japan compilation, you can't miss this awesome selection from Spacetime Continuum. 

Dekmantel's own Juju & Jordash head up CD2. The duo get their chance to dive into a deep, dark mysterious and more leftfield world that flows nicely after reminiscing the 90's more electronic sound on CD1. More experimental tracks from Max D and Magic Mountain High, sit alongside some beautiful discoveries such as Anto (Hunee), rounded by the infamous Donato Dozzy and re-invigorated ambient maestro Gigi Masin. 

Every track on the compilation is exclusive to the release, which makes it one hell of a production by James Healy, and a must-have collection of forward-thinking electronic music.

Watch the exclusive new video for the release below. And if you're in the mood for more 90's feels like CD1, check out James Healy's mix for Silent Records. 

Available on Bandcamp.