Psychonavigation Records is a fascinating label. Based out of Dublin, Ireland, the label was setup in 2000 by Keith Downey, and as of this writing has 68 releases under its belt. Psychonavigation is responsible for some of our favorite releases by artists such as Gel-Sol, Mick Chillage, Lackluster and more. In 2011 Headphone Commute featured a Sound Bytes label profile covering releases by Buckminster Fuzeboard, Cuttooth and the Mindfield compilation. And just a few months ago I reviewed an album by krill.minima (aka Marsen Jules), titled Sekundenschlaf. For today’s recommendation, I am captivated by a beautiful release from Lorenzo Montanà, and Italian composer who has worked with the recently departed and already dearly missed Pete Namlook on their Labyrinth series for the legendary Fax +49-69/450464 label.

Eilatix is Montanà’s third solo album, following Black Ivy (2009) and Serpe (2011) [both on Fax label], but it is billed as a follow-up to his works with Namlook, and in a way I can’t help but feel the ode to the late ambient electronic producer. From his vast catalog and the very first note it is immediately and audibly evident that Montanà is not a stranger to the studio. In fact, his work with the singer Tying Tiffany as T.T.L. (Through The Lens) has landed their song “Deep Shadow” for The Hunger Games movie trailer. So there is a cinematic aspect to his works, but the cinema, of course, is only in your mind.

The music on Eilatix is a mixture of psybient textures, atmospheric ambiance, and glitchy IDM. The rhythms quietly click away while the melodies swirl in the peripheral cocktail of smokey lounges and trance induced sessions. There are lots of glorious synth arpeggios, which would appeal to fans of early electronic space music by the likes of Jean Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze, yet the production quality is neoteric. There is a futuristic air in some of the chord progressions, hinting at the journey’s through the other worlds, beyond our galaxy, inhabited by the dark blue insects and glowing carnivorous foliage. The latter visual is derived from the striking album art, illustrated by Jeroen Advocaat, which adds a delectable mystique to the entire limited edition package. This is where the synthetic becomes organic.

Although I could almost picture this release on something like Ultimae label, I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised to see it on Downey’s Psychonavigation. The name of the label, after all, was inspired by and named after Peter Kuhlmann (that’s still Pete Namlook) and Bill Laswell‘s project by the very same name, which produced five releases within the same titled series. I want to congratulate Downey on this epic achievement, appreciating the full circle that at times our real lives and imaginary stories make up. Well done!

psychonavigation.com

Somewhere on the edge of our drawn maps lies our planet’s southernmost continent, Antarctica. This is a place where temperatures drop to -90°C, with almost all of its territory covered by ice. On the opposite pole of our planet lies the Arctic, a region consisting of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost. These frozen landscapes are the source of inspiration for an Italian label, Glacial Movements, specializing in glacial and isolationist ambient music. The founder and curator of the label, Alessandro Tedeschi, produces and releases his own works under the Netherworld moniker, and Alchemy Of Ice is his tenth full length release; a third for his own label, after Mørketid (2007) and Over The Summit (2011).

For the album, Tedeschi uses some new and previously captured field recordings from underground caves of Lazio, Italy, to create a spacial and textural atmosphere of slowly evolving drones punctuated by the deep rumbling of the subterranean earthly core. The minimal and looped passages echo the sounds of water in all of the molecule’s stages, its pure desolation and absolute void. The track titles hint at the explored seclusion with places such as “Polo Nord dell’inaccessibilità“, which is the northern pole of inaccessibility in the Arctic Ocean, being the farthest from any land mass. Another track, titled “85°50′S 65°47′E” parallels the theme by referencing the southern pole of inaccessibility in the Antarctic ocean. And in between these two points there’s the alchemy of ice.

“The conceptual elements highlighted in the new work of NETHERWORLD are Alchemy – a view from the metaphysical point in both spiritual development and liberation – and the ice, the natural element essential for the achievement of eternity.”

On many of the pieces from the album, Tedeschi approaches my favorite works by Biosphere, William Basinski, Coil, Celer, Loscil, and Stormloop. Indeed, the last three mentioned artists have made an appearance on Glacial Movements along with Aidan Baker, Pjusk, bvdub, and Retina.it. The label is steadily building its reputation among the purveyors of minimal and reductionist ambiance, and its exciting to see that its founder stands tall among the roster of world acclaimed names. For more from Tedeschi be sure to pick up his past releases on labels such as Fario, Angle Rec, Umbra, and Taalem. Recommended for a dark and rainy day…

Stay tuned for an Interview with Alessandro Tedeschi / Glacial Movements Label Profile going live tomorrow!

glacialmovements.com

Hey Alessandro, who are you, where are you, and most importantly how are you?
I’m a 35 year old guy and i was born and live in the eternal city: Rome. And I’m fine, thank you! My main job is to engineer Microsoft and Linux software systems, but my great passion is music.

Let’s start at the very beginning. How did you get into producing music?
I have always listened to electronic music since i was a child, and at the age of 14, i set up a small studio in a room within the furniture shop of my father. I had mixer and turntables, but i felt the need to create my own music, and then i started to buy the first instruments (synthesizers, Roland TB303 and TR909 with a series of multi-effects pedals). At the time i loved Techno and Gabber music, but over the years, my tastes have changed dramatically!

And what is your production setup like now? How do you go about capturing field recordings?
I use few tools, but all analog. My studio is composed mainly of a Roland VP9000 (a sampler with built-in multi-effects) an Akai (another analog sampler whose sound is routed to another multi-fx) 2 synths (Waldorf and ION) and my laptop, that i use only to record the various tracks. The field recordings are recorded on portable minidisc, and then passed through my samplers and multi-effects. For example, “Alchemy of Ice” was composed using only the VP9000.

And how was your moniker, Netherworld, born?
I chose the alias Netherworld because, reading a book of Lovecraft, i was very impressed by the description that the writer gave to this sort of parallel reality or underworld. I soon realized that my music and the idea i had of it, was tied very well with that concept, and i decided then that it was to be my project. And then describe, through sound, the parallel reality and the other “worlds” or reality, i felt inside of me.

It seems that you were always interested in glacial ambiance, since even your first album title is ‘Eternal Frost’. Where does this fascination come from?
You’re right, “Eternal Frost” was my first icy album! It was published in only 99 copies for the Umbra Records of my friend Gianluigi (best known as Oophoi, who passed away this year). The passion for this kind of environments and sound, has always been present in me. When i’m in a quiet and snowy environment, i feel as if i’m eternal. My deepest being is united intimately with nature, and my mind expands towards infinite horizons. It’s a feeling hard to explain in words, i prefer to do it with music. Another reason why i feel deep attraction for the cold, that’s what i’m probably the reincarnation of some inhabitant of the North (an Eskimo? A Viking?). In addition, there is also another reason that is linked to the esotericism of Hyperborea, and the ancient civilizations of the North.

So have you ever been to Norway or any other Scandinavian countries? Would you like to spend some time in the arctic recording and composing music inspired by the glaciers?
Yes, i have been in those places, but also in the Scottish Highlands, and on the peaks of the mountains here in Lazio. During my travels and excursions, i brought with me my minidisc recorder, and i have collected over time, a large library of sounds coming from the glaciers, wind, moving ice, the northern lights and more. My three albums that i produced on my label Glacial Movements, reflect and describe my experiences and how i felt in those places. For example, “Mørketid” was composed predominantly of Norwegian field recordings that i have collected in these beautiful places, while “Over The Summit” represents my feelings and memories related to walking and hiking above the snowy peaks of the mountains in Italy. The approach of my last “Alchemy of Ice” is a little different than usual, it is more esoteric, and tends towards a description of the details that i had never explored so deeply in my earlier work (also the choice of the cover, was made with this concept in mind). All my records are always processed, reworked and manipulated with my tools, with the aim of obtaining from the raw material, the divine spark wich is my main goal.

At what point did you decide to launch your own label and how did you come up with the name?
The choice to give life to my label took place at the right time. I felt that i had any such qualities to be able to manage both my productions, that even those of other artists. From this point of view i’m a very ambitious person, but i always try to be humble and to have my feet firmly planted on the ground. Within a few years, step by step, i have laid the foundation of GM through intensive work on the choice of the highest quality for each production (by the choice of the artist, graphics, music etc.) of a world-wide distribution of my products, and an international promotion which is a fundamental element. The choice of the name was very careful. I wanted to relate the concept of frost and cold, and give a global vision. The term “Glacial” refers precisely to the theme and the kind of sound which deals with the label, while “Movements” is the set of all releases, past and future, that make up the catalog. Imagine every work as if it were a piece of a huge mosaic in which its image could be a snow-covered mountain, or an iceberg, or Antarctica… I leave to the listener the choice to choose the most appropriate one!

How do you find the time to compose music on top of running a label and your day job?
I compose my music very sparingly, and i’m not the kind of artist that produce a lot of records (my discography says it all). I find the time during the weekend, or when i’m not at work. I need to be very quiet and have the thought-free mind, otherwise i can not do anything. However i have accumulated over time many sounds, ready to be used for a possible new release, or for a live-set (for example, just yesterday i gave to the staff of the cult-magazine THE WIRE, a new unreleased track ” Sacra Terra Imperitura ” for their download compilation “Below The Radar”).

Talk about the the process of releasing your very first compilation. How has that changed over the years?
“Cryosphere” was the first piece of the puzzle, and i wanted to “sound out” the ground creating an edition of 300 copies in CD-R. I involved some of my favorite artists (Lightwave, Troum, Aidan Baker, Oophoi) and the end result was beyond my wildest expectations. The compilation was all sold in a matter of three months, even though it was a CD-R housed in a slim case. It received many reviews and appreciations, and this gave me the courage to move forward with my project. I knew i was on the right path, but to make it a step further, i had to improve the quality aspect of the packaging, and publishing official CDs, instead of CD-r.

Who is responsible for all the cover art and design of Glacial Movements releases?
All photos of the covers of GM products (except “Cryosphere”) are part of the catalog of Bjarne Riesto, a photographer who lives in the Arctic Circle in Norway. His photos are very beautiful! The packaging design is curated by Noah Mc Donald, with whom i work now for some years, and with whom i am very well indeed. He always knows the best interpretation of what the artist and me have in mind.

How do you go about selecting music and signing artists to Glacial Movements?
It’s a matter of heart and feelings. Usually, i contact the artist i know who can give me what i want to achieve through my label. But sometimes it happened the opposite, in fact in the catalog of GM, there are artists who, through their work, hit my heart and my interest instantly. My intention is to collaborate with artists as diverse among themselves, but working for GM, they have in common the same source of inspiration.

And is there a particular musician that you dream of having on your label?
I think that i’m already very happy and proud to have produced the music of some of the artists that i’ve always loved, for example, Lull (Mick Harris), Rapoon (Robin Storey, co-founder of Zoviet France), loscil and bvdub. However, there are other artists that i love, and whom i’d like to work with (and oh, to be honest, i’m already planning something in the future) such as William Basinski, Teho Teardo, Murcof, and Marsen Jules…

Describe the financial aspects of running your own independent label. Is there a struggle between profitability and staying true to the love of music?
Ah, what a good question… of course what keeps me going more and more, are certainly not the economic returns, but the love and passion that i have for music. However, i can say that i was lucky (and why not, even a little good) to be able to always have a good economic returns, which gave me the opportunity to invest more and more. I am convinced that most invests in a project, the results will be more and more over time. The money that i invest come from my own resources, so i assume (as it should be) all risks of each record release. My policy is to invest money for the physical product (choice of the digipack, original photo to be used for the design of each work, and graphic design), and the promoting.

So what do you have lined up in the future, for both Netherworld and Glacial Movements releases?
I just came out with Netherworld “Alchemy of Ice” therefore for the foreseeable future, i prefer to give space to other artists. In fact, on July 22 I will release in digital format Frozen Thoughts “Calm Before The Storm”, while towards the end of September, i will produce the highly anticipated “Erebus” by bvdub & loscil! The work for the next year are to be determined yet, but there will definitely have to Marsen Jules “The Empire Of Silence”.

Thank you for your time! Any last words for readers of Headphone Commute?
I want to thank you for this nice interview, and of course a greeting and thanks to the entire community of HC, that has always supported Glacial Movements. Thank you friends!!!

glacialmovements.com

In 2009 Ian Hawgood released an album titled Wolfskin on Jonathan Lees‘ beautiful hibernate label. The album contained “a series of sketches inspired by childhood dreams and nightmares.” The inaugural label release billed the work as “a cathartic and cleansing collection of soundscapes, created by guitar and piano…” And it seems that Hawgood wasn’t finished with this project. His latest release, Wolven, subtitled “A Modern Interpretation,” is not just one, but two disks exploring these original sketches even further. Co-published by Hawgood’s yet another label (reserved for very personal works), Koen Music (aka KOMU), the double disk release contains interpretations by, well, his musical friends, while the second disk is set aside entirely to three tracks by bvdub!

More than just a compilation, a remix or a collaboration project, this curated selection of pieces unfolds like a family oriented affair, designed to mix, mingle, and melt the individual contributions into a single cohesive blueprint for a particular state of music in this place and time. On select five tracks featuring Ian Hawgood and Aaron Martin, I am taken away by the elegance of ambient textures and classical cello. It seems that these two have played before. If not, than this could be a teaser for the grace to come. The solo translations and readings into Hawgood’s music by Dag Rosenqvist (aka Jasper TX), Spheruleus, Pillowdiver, y0t0 and Hakobune, offer a glimpse into each artist’s unique aesthetic, tone and color of sound. For example, my favorite piece, Pillowdiver’s “Wolven IV” is a haunting lofi drowning of frequencies in barely breathable white noise. It’s simply stunning!

Which brings me to bvdub. With over an hour in just three tracks, this second disc could have been a separate release altogether. This sort of reminds me of Brock Van Wey‘s 2009 release, White Clouds Drift On And On (echospace [detroit]), where on the second disk Steven Hitchell, aka Intrusion (and member of Echospace together with Rod Modell) contributed his own interpretations of individual tracks, which I often listen to as an entire separate album. The highlight of this chapter is the 30+ minute “Red Rugs Of Infinite Grass (Titans Of Dahlia Hold You To The Sky)” – at this point it’s not even a track but rather a continuous evolution of interwoven layers, elevating the listener beyond the state of aural bliss. Rich harmonies with deeply engraved textures merge together into one enormous chord, and once again, bvdub does his magical bvdub thing, that is better described with sound.

“Wolven doesn’t just portray the original recordings from Wolfskin in a different light – it also takes another look at the concept of dreams and nightmares. This time, the album strives to literally tread the pathways in Ian’s dreams – not without its terrifying moments along the way but always accompanied by a comfort pillow to keep you from harm. The dream-like serenity of Wolfskin remains, joined this time by kaleidoscopic visions of stars, night and never ending bottomless lakes filled with stars, both actual and reflected. Despite the obvious darkness, a child-like innocence prevails.”

It’s appropriate that this release is credited to Ian Hawgood and Friends [although, as I earlier implied, it could have been Ian Hawgood and Family], as the music captures a communal approach of production and consumption of this particular scene’s output. Add to that a mastering touch of Rafael Anton Irrisari and you have a project that spans nearly every continent of the world. For a similar compilation of remixes and reworks, check out Ian Hawgood’s Slow Films In Low Light (Home Normal, 2010) collecting interpretations by The Remote Viewer, Hannu, The Green Kingdom, Library Tapes, Chihei Hatakeyama, Danny Norbury and many others. Highly recommended for followers of hibernate and Home Normal releases, and of course fans of bvdub.

hibernate-recs.co.uk | komu.bandcamp.com

There is a certain sense of pride, which I awaken within, each time a favorite artist steps up in his game. There is a certain sense of nostalgia, which overtakes, when I look back at the earlier memories of discovering a début of the then unknown name. Here it is, the very first vinyl pressing, of the album I cherish. Here he is, playing the piano on a video, or speaking for the very first time. Here he is, in front of me, shaking my hand after a performance, a musician which I’ve watched (and heard) slowly grow over the last five years. Here come his first film score, his first collaboration, his first tour. I feel like I’m living these memories through him, vicariously, empathetic. I feel like his conquests are my feats, his sorrow my pain, his music my soul’s song.

The protagonist in this story is none other than Ólafur Arnalds, an Icelandic multi-instrumentalist who I’ve been following since 2007. With multiple past releases on the independent Erased Tapes Records, this year Arnalds gets picked up by the much bigger label, Mercury Classics, which has been launched in April of 2012 by Universal Music. With this move, Arnalds lands a support of a powerhouse, representing contemporary classical artists such as Andreas Ottensamer, Yundi, Miloš and even Tori Amos. As such, his third solo album, For Now I Am Winter, is backed by an international campaign, global tour, and a full orchestral arrangement by Nico Muhly performed by The Icelandic Symphony Orchestra. Also, for the first time ever, the music features vocals by Icelandic singer Arnór Dan Arnarson (member of the Icelandic band Agent Fresco), taking on a more commercial appeal. The latter I intend to mention with a positive note, as with such reinforcement Arnalds receives an even wider audience, which, after all, has always been the point of this story.

On the album we still find pensive piano keys, gentle atmospherics, sparse electronic treatments, and gorgeous soaring strings. This time, however, the instrumentation feels grander, like a soundtrack to the film of Arnalds’ tale. This metaphor is hardly surprising, since Ólafur’s most recently scored Broadchurch, a British television crime drama, which Mercury Classics has released as well. The pieces still carry sentimental elements, perhaps for something lost, perhaps for new beginnings, perhaps for simpler times of music in a living room. The title track introduces the first appearance of Arnarson’s voice, slightly falsetto, slightly crestfallen, slightly forlorn. My mind skips up on the content of the lyrics and instead holds on to the melodies and chords. And these are ever and eternally sublime.

“My music tends to be quite melancholic and dark, but I always try to never leave a song without a sense of hope. There’s always light after the darkness. Incorporating vocals and especially the lyrics [...] was a challenge for me. Being an instrumental artist, there’s this thing that I really like about the music being open to interpretation. There was a big challenge to balance [the lyrics] and not tell people too much, so we tried to treat the vocal as just another instrument.”

Performing at many sold out concerts, Arnalds is slowly but surely getting the recognition he always deserved. Which, as I mentioned at the start of this article, is where that certain sense of pride comes from. I feel like I’ve been there all along, and now, after numerous listens of For Now I Am Winter, I’m happy I came for this ride. To traverse his journey, I put on Eulogy For Evolution (2007), I play through Variations of Static (2008), I drown in Another Happy Day (2012), and I suggest you do the same. All feel like small and carefully placed steps for the larger leap which is still yet to come. And I can’t wait to bask in all the glory. Make sure you try and catch Ólafur’s live show at the upcoming 10th Annual Decibel Festival [you know I'll be there!] taking place in Seattle on September 25-29, 2013 [Arnalds is playing on the 27th, at Optical 2 with Peter Broderick]. He is also performing in New York on October 8th, at Le Poisson Rouge! And don’t forget to check out Broadchurch!

Stay tuned for an Interview with Ólafur Arnalds going live tomorrow!

olafurarnalds.com | mercuryclassics.com

Hey Óli. I hear you’re on a tour. Where are you now and how was your last performance?
I’m on a plane right now on my way to Chicago. Last night we played in Minneapolis which was one of my favorite shows of this tour. The venue was just great, the people too and we ate good food! That’s all you need for a good show.

How do your live shows differ from the studio recordings?
Currently we are doing shows as a trio (piano/electronics, violin, cello) which is a much smaller setup than what I usually use in the studio, so the songs have been rearranged to work with this setup and feel more delicate and intimate. My philosophy is to not try to recreate live what I do on the albums, because after all its live, it’s not the studio, and different things work there.

Talk a bit about the move from Erased Tapes to Mercury Classics. What are the most immediate differences?
Surprisingly the whole ethic is not too different, in the end I’m just working with wonderful people who love music and believe in me, I’m very lucky in that way. But it’s of course very different in terms of its capabilities when it comes to promotion and distribution and we have been able to reach into new territories that we never could before.

How has the reception been to your newly introduced vocals and lyrics?
Mostly great. It of course opened a lot of doors for me to new platforms and listeners, I guess the only real downside is that some people might think of me as a ‘vocal artist’ now, while I have no concrete intentions of going down that road (although I of course might!). So I have been trying not to put too much attention to the fact that there are vocals on this album and we also tried to write the vocals and lyrics in a way that it is not intruding or becoming a lead element of the album.

How would you say your journey as a musician has evolved over the last five years?
I have been lucky enough to get to try out most of the things I dreamed of doing as a musician and of course learned a lot from that. I love that I’m getting so much into movies now, I have a lot of fun with that and get to work with great people who I can learn from. I guess my music has become mature and more minimal in its writing style now. Like, I am more into delivering drama in a subtle way.

You’re slowly but surely breaking into the film scoring business. What are some of the goals that you set yourself for your musical career.
I just want to be able to choose my projects depending on whatever I am into at that given time. I don’t want to get stuck doing only touring or only film scores, I hope to be able to develop a healthy mixture of it all and just be an ‘artist’.

What are you working on right now and what can we expect next?
Right now I’m just touring for a while, but I have a few film scores coming up early next year.

Read Headphone Commute review of For Now I Am Winter

Photography by Hedinn Eiriksson / Mercury Classics

For today’s equipment review, I’d like to tell you about a portable DAC and headphone amp made by miniwatt. If you’re not familiar with the terminology, DAC stands for Digital-to-Analog Converter, which is a device that translates all those ones and zeros in you digital audio stream to analog signal that drives your speakers and headphones. Every CD and MP3 player has a DAC inside, and so does your computer (it’s called a “sound card”). So why would you want to invest in another DAC? Well, chances are, whatever computer or laptop that you own, comes with a pretty cheap on-board DAC (like $5 cheap). And since analog sound starts at the conversion from its digital counterpart, every audiophile would tell you invest in a better DAC.

“CAS (Computer As Source) is the global trend, and we designed miniwatt n4 for serious audiophiles who listen to music on their laptop while traveling or use digital music source at home with serious audiophile equipment. We believe in minimalist design, and we believe that HiFi equipment should sound great and look good as well.” -Derek Shek, miniwatt

miniwatt is a Hong Kong manufacturer designing state of the art components to be the “heart of your system“. First of all, it’s small enough to fit in your pocket, elegant enough to display on your desktop (many people at work commented at its minimalistic design), and most importantly powerful enough to drive your high impedance headphones while still only being powered by USB! The output features a standard 3.5mm (1/8″ inch) stereo headphone jack, plus a pair of XLR line outputs (for your external sound system). I mostly auditioned the miniwatt n4 through a pair of headphones, and am happy to report that I was very impressed. I already mentioned the sleekness of this 115mm x 74mm x 20mm unit, but seriously, its silver powder-coated aluminum body casing wrapped in stitched leather, with stainless-steel screws and laser etching is incredibly sexy. Don’t you think?

So what about the sound? First, let’s take a look at its compatibility and support on the digital side. The miniwatt n4 supports Windows, Mac and even Linux OS (pay attention to this, Ubuntu and Fedora fans). The data is up-converted to 32-bit / 192kHz (123dB dynamic range) and is able to take in the highest resolution files that you have! The connection to your computer is via asynchronous USB 2.0 (audio class high-speed mode), but it will also take in external digital data via S/PDIF! On the analog output side, the miniwatt n4 will deliver balanced volume over independent left and right output circuits, which is digitally controlled over the two volume buttons (when I press these, they actually move the volume slider on my computer as well, so it’s a fixed-level output). The headphone output impedance is 32Ohm with 100mW, and those are just the technical bits.

Unlike my earlier review of the tube headphone amp, I can’t claim that the miniwatt n4 had that “analog warmth”, but then again, I would never bring my tube amp on the road. This is where the miniwatt n4 already excels [by the way, the company did offer mini tube amps in their S1 and N3 series]. Its ability to drive any pair of headphones that I own off of USB already paints a picture of endless portable sonic bliss. And then, of course, it’s a much better DAC! The sound of the miniwatt produced intricate details with just enough delicacy to make me forget I was playing digital files. The tone is rich with the frequency range well balanced. I can’t complain about the bass, as found it to be fast and punchy. It’s also essentially silent, and boasts an electrical noise immunity via its USB link. Check out the miniwatt’s performance summary for charts on frequency response, dynamic range, intermodulation distortion and all your other favorite geeky stats.

Bottom line, I couldn’t be happier with the miniwatt n4! At 32-bit / 192kHz, it’s one of the best compact and portable high-res DACs on the market [take a look, most USB-powered DACs are only 24-bit]. The sound is thick and smooth, with a pretty wide soundstage, and the unit quickly became the core of my desktop setup as well! I wouldn’t proclaim the miniwatt n4 as a budget component, and at manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $488 USD it certainly is an investment, but it is the true definition of an “investment” that I’m attracted to here, as the miniwatt n4 will continue to offer high quality aural return for the many hours to come.

MSRP – $488 USD
miniwatt.com.hk

Welcome to another Headphone Commute podcast. Today we have an eclectic selection of amazing music spanning over two hours of fresh and classic selection by Cologne (Germany) based jvbr (Kevin Gabriel and Jan Stollenwerk), who curated this vinyl-only session by bouncing the mix back and forth between each other. Take a look at the tracklist and you will see how the mix evolves from ambient textures by Deaf Center and L. Pierre to darker spaces by Raime and Miles to dub rhythms by cv313 and deadbeat, to Demdike Stare and Andy Stott and on and on and on… It’s a beautiful journey [full of delicious vinyl crackle] that is starting off my morning just right, and I’m hoping that you’ll agree! Please enjoy responsibly and support the featured artists!

Artwork by Roman Mihalevitch.

mikrophon.net | soundcloud.com/grey-fury

[ S T R E A M ] | [ D O W N L O A D ] | [ P O D C A S T ] | [ i T U N E S ]

It would be a major understatement to claim that Tomorrow’s Harvest was a highly anticipated release. It seems that ever since the group’s last record in 2005, The Campfire Headphase, the internet would light up with annual gossip of their return, the frenzy spreading fast and wide only to dead-end in another discredited rumor. So it’s no wonder that this time around, when Warp used the incredibly clever marketing campaign of embedding cryptic codes via six distinct entities (like BBC Radio 1, NPR and Adult Swim), I took some time in confirming the announcement’s authenticity. So what’s the big deal about Boards of Canada, and at what point did the Scottish electronic music duo reach this near cultish following? And why did I, along with so many, listened to the premiere of the album via YouTube and then immediately preordered both, the CD and vinyl?

The word is that the two brothers, Mike Sandison and Marcus Eouin, began slowly working on their fourth studio album following the release of The Campfire Headphase. And if it took them almost eight years to produce the follow-up, then it was the eight years worth waiting for. There are many things I can say about the album, but it all boils down to this: Tomorrow’s Harvest is a classic Boards Of Canada album that only Boards Of Canada could make. Recorded at BoC’s own studio, called Hexagon Sun (located in south-west of Edinburgh, Scotland), the duo seemed interested in escaping the urban environment, preferring to work in isolation away from evolving genres and latest growing fads. This is perhaps why the sound of Tomorrow’s Harvest is so timeless, yet imprinted with that one specific point in time when Towism, Hi Scores and Boc Maxima used to dominate my playlists.

“The challenge with this record was crafting the tunes into a specific style and time period we want to reference. [...] In this case there’s a deliberate VHS video-nasty element throughout the record and to get there it wasn’t just a case of processing sounds through old media, which is a given with us anyway, but we even went to the extent of timing changes in the music and the composition of the pieces, in really specific ways to give an impression of something familiar from soundtrack work that was around 30 years ago.” – Mike Sandison ^[1]

The sound is full of lush, rich and deep ambient textures, stretching and warping through downtempo rhythms, like an old cassette tape left in a hot car over a weekend. There are plenty of vintage analog synth sounds and lo-fi treatments with even more subliminal messages and hypnotic layered patterns which immediately bring back the nostalgia of that dear ‘ol Boards of Canada. The title of the album, by the way, is inspired by Deadly Harvest, a 1977 film on widespread crop failures in North America, but that’s as close as the music comes to being post-apocalyptic. What’s even more explicit is the newly confirmed fact that those who’ve tried to replicate the BoC sound have definitely failed, as this imaginary soundtrack to the dusty documentary on ghostly cities is still the strength within their work. And that’s what the brothers have been working on all these years.

There is a lot more that I could say about this record. But as with many critically acclaimed albums I often wonder if I should even bother. It’s not like I feel a responsibility of proclaiming my new discovery to the world and letting you know that this is an album you must own – I’m sure that you already do. It’s not like I must produce a counted amount of words to keep my day job as a critic – I’m sure I’d never write a word. I guess for me, this coverage is more like a statement of an acknowledgment, that yes, I’ve had incredibly high hopes for Boards of Canada, and yes, it certainly delivered! And after more than a dozen plays, here’s to many more rotations to come!

boardsofcanada.com | warprecords.com

[1] Louis Pattison, “Boards of Canada: We’ve become a lot more nihilistic over the years” The Guardian

For today’s Sunday Sound Bytes Label Special we are visiting with the Oakland based n5MD, one of my long-time favorite labels specializing in “emotional experiments in music”. I am very excited about a few upcoming releases on n5MD, especially the long-awaited Arovane release, as well as another gorgeous installment from bvdub. Meanwhile I wanted to cover a few recent favorite albums from Ruxpin, Last Days, Ex Confusion and (ghost), names that should be already familiar to you, since their appearance in some of our Best Of The Year selections.

n5md.com

Ruxpin This Time We Go Together n5MD It’s been about three years since we last heard from Jonas Thor Gudmundsson, an Icelandic electronic musician recording under his Ruxpin alias. If his real name sounds familiar, it’s because together with Plastik Joy‘s Fannar Ásgrímsson they make up another n5MD project, namely Asonat. After five releases bouncing between Elektrolux and its sub-label Mikrolux, Gudmundsson got signed on to n5MD, and kicked off a new series of albums: I Wonder If This Is The Place (2010), Where Do We Float From Here? (2010) and now This Time We Go Together. As with all experiences gained over time, the production became tighter, the concept fuller, and overall more intelligent in design. And when it comes to the IDM acronym, although the ‘D’ is no longer present, the ‘I’ is still an important ingredient in ‘M’. There are many fantastic and fascinating forms on this collection of sixteen pieces. From pensive piano keys over field recordings, to electro infused dropping beats over a buzzing of synths, to glitchy goodness measuring out the fast-paced rhythm over the slow-stretching chords, each explored idea paints a picture of a fantasy world which could be almost reached by our outstretched hands minds. This journey is musically described through a cohesive theme, poetically through the track titles, and subliminally through a hint of abstract vocals on a few pieces by Asonat introduced Oléna Simon and Chihiro Dunn. Given the amount of thought explored in each scene and story I am reminded of The Flashbulb, Lackluster, and Blamstrain.		Last Days Satellite n5MD Another very welcome return to the music scene comes courtesy of Graham Richardson. I’ve been listening to Last Days since his 2006 n5MD début, titled Sea. When I first heard this Scottish musician’s work, I instantly connected with its melancholic themes, nostalgic motifs and more importantly, organic ways. Richardson’s music exists somewhere outside of genres, always exploring the very personal themes of “stasis and flux, escape and acceptance.” Satellite is the fourth album by Last Days, diving deeper into electro-acoustic shoegaze, lo-fi electronica, and cinematic ambiance. This is immediately a more retrospective work, with casual walks down the memory lane, flashbacks to instructional records on good manners, and innocent bed time fantasies of orbiting the Earth in our protective space suits. This childhood dream pinnacles at the eleven-minute track titled “To The Sky” (a favorite on the album), where endless ethereal pads stretch into outer space becoming one with the infinite. With these thoughts I want to run out into the yard, lie on the grass, and stare into the starry sky, looking for the fading echo of long time dying planet. Instead, of course, we’re staring into glowing screens, obsessed with daily tidbits of another person’s life, unable to unplug and really live our own. And although these are only thoughts, they are indeed brought on by music of Last Days, a message well received through simple ways of music. Recommended if you like Eluvium, Porn Sword Tobacco, Slow Dancing Society, Olan Mill, Clem Leek and Deaf Center.
Ex Confusion With Love n5MD Do you know that point in your daily grind when you realize that you just may be surrounded by all the insanity? And have you recognized that you may be just one of the contributing factors? It is during such frustrating moments when I decide to pull myself away, and instead listen to music. Thankfully I can turn to Ex Confusion [how appropriate is that name right now?] to extract my mind away from all the funk, and pacify with purity. I was first introduced to Atsuhito Omori music through his 2012 release on n5MD, titled Embrace, which subsequently captured a spot on Headphone Commute’s Best of 2012 : Music For Withered Leaves And Lonely Fishtanks. In my previous coverage, I’ve compared Omori’s work to nostalgic times “when first touch of love was acute and immeasurable, beyond worldly space and the infinite time.” This time, it seems that Ex Confusion takes on this theme even further by directly titling the album With Love. Somewhere between solo guitar shoegaze, ambient tenderness, and soft piano keys my mind begins to slowly melt, and I forget about all the lunacy that somehow made some sense ago. On his third full-length album, Omori perfects the warm palette of textures, smooth soundwave curves, and generous reverb to give you that floating feeling through the pastel fields of sun, sky and grass. The resulting calmness is reminiscent of organic serotonin reuptake inhibitors, giving you that uplifting feeling of well being and ease.		(ghost) Departure n5MD Oakland (California, USA) based n5MD continues to treat us to new discoveries. Back in 2009, when I interviewed the label’s founder and curator, Mike Cadoo (aka Bitcrush and Dryft) for the n5MD label profile, I asked him for advice on starting and running a label, to which Cadoo responded with: “Be true to what YOU want for YOUR label,” and that’s the rule he’s sticking with, because n5MD is consistently unlike any other. For the latest tiny gem, n5MD digs up Brian Froh’s alias (ghost), a Connecticut-based project exploring hazy electronica with just enough IDM rhythms to whet your thirsty whistle. Inspired by acts such as Proem and Boards of Canada, Froh creates captivating spaces lightly sprinkled with influences by Edgar Allan Poe and Stephen King. But these are not such scary stories. In fact, most of the pieces are somewhat major in scale, with speckles of piano notes, synth pads, and glitchy drum machines. The melodies are comforting and reassuring, like a small glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel towards which the soul will surely rise. Although Froh has previously recorded music together with a group of friends, Departure is his solo début, focusing on music that is described by the label as “a bridge between emotions felt in everyday life and a story of fantasy.” Recommended for long summer drives with windows down and the sun visor up. Fans of label mates, such as Another Electronic Musician, Lights Out Asia, and Port-Royal will enjoy.

I bet that some of you are occasionally wondering: with all this music that I go through (perhaps a dozen or more albums per week) how can I possibly still enjoy it? Well, I’m happy to report that I still derive an immense pleasure from the experience of closer listening and further sharing via Headphone Commute. If anything, I’ve become even more intimate with the sounds. It takes me numerous listens of each album before I actually sit down and recommend it. My relationship with music has slowly turned into a one way conversation with the person behind it. And some times that conversation feeds back through these simple words. It is the least that I can do to thank the artist in return. These individual entries on albums that have served as a soundtrack to my daily life are as much for you as they are for me. It’s something that I reflect upon on more than one occasion.

Enter Lubomyr Melnyk, a Ukrainian composer and pianist who is now in his mid 60s, credited with pioneering “Continuous Music” – a process of fast note series drowned in a sustain pedal, creating ambient-like textures, harmonic overtones, and beautifully dense hues in this “tapestry of sound”. His biographical profile claims Melnyk to hold the world record for the fastest pianist – “sustaining speeds of over 19.5 notes per second in each hand simultaneously,” as well as the world record in the most number of notes played in one hour, a total of 93,650 individual notes in exactly 60 minutes. This remarkable technique involves an incredible physical and mental control which is “unprecedented in the history of the piano“. To say that this music is hypnotic is an understatement. To label it ‘transcendental’ is a little bit closer.

“Melnyk has shown a remarkable devotion to the instrument, always striving to discover new ways of composing music in the continuous mode. His focus is on the actual sound of the piano as much as the harmonies and melodies of the music. Using rapid and complex note patterns, Lubomyr’s virtuoso piano technique forms overtones that blend, collide or even create new melodies in rare moments, and thereby shape the composition beyond its original form.”

I begin by paying attention to the pianist’s audible fingers on the keys [expertly mastered by the one and only Nils Frahm], and the slowly building arpeggios of notes, only to awake five minutes later into the same piece when Peter Broderick‘s voice suddenly breaks through the opaque soundscape “with pockets of light / chasing the night.” All of a sudden the nineteen-minute track feels short and I never want this melody to end. Broderick later appears on his violin, but by then I am transfixed by the music, suspended in air between the tiny moments of time. Between the hammers and the strings. Between the inward breath and outward. And time stands still…

Although Melnyk’s discography goes back to 1979, it is with the support of Erased Tapes that this amazing artist is first introduced to our ears. With numerous self-released albums, on his very own Bandura Records, Melnyk is quickly gaining recognition among his contemporaries and fans. Important Records has already snatched a collaboration between James Blackshaw and Lubomyr Melnyk, titled The Watchers (2013), a live improvisation between to artists recorded in January of 2012. Perhaps the only thing that can top this recorded music is an experience of watching Melnyk live – something I’m really looking forward to witnessing one day! Highly recommended!

lubomyr.com | erasedtapes.com

Hi Graham. How did you meet Richard Linklater and eventually became involved with the project?
In Austin everyone calls him Rick and I met him in bits and pieces over the years. Once you’re working in music, theater, and film here it becomes a pretty small town and we inevitably ran into each other. He first asked me to work on a short featuring Speed Levitch called “Live From Shiva’s Dance Floor”. It was a simple piano score and seemed to work as an unofficial audition. Next up was the full rotoscoped feature “A Scanner Darkly” and we’ve been working on projects ever since. When “Before Midnight” came up it was unclear whether it would need any score at all. The first two films didn’t have score and worked perfectly well without it. But in the end, he decided we should try it and I got to work.

The soundtrack (and the film) features a lot of Greek themes. You were born in Frankfurt, Germany and are now in Austin, Texas – how did you traverse the geographical boundaries and implement them in the score?
My dad was in the U.S. Army and stationed in Germany. I moved to the states as an infant so whatever German roots I have are subtle. We went very light on the Greek elements and decided not to use any regional instruments. The cinematography is beautiful and the landscape speaks for itself and we didn’t want to hit it too hard. When we wanted the Greek music to be overt we placed actual Greek music in.

So how did you go about selecting specific traditional Greek pieces which are included on the soundtrack?
Rick came back from shooting in Greece with a CD full of songs people had given him. Favorites from that collection ended up being the placed music.

Talk a little about the process of composition for this specific film.
The first part of the process was to come up with a theme. So I watched an early cut and started composing. I turned in five ideas, Rick and editor Sandra Adair listened to them, and she reported back which was his favorite. Each cue is a variation on that theme so we were off and running. Instrumentation was keep simple, we wanted the music to have a light touch. Piano and guitar supported by a bit of bass and vibraphone.

The film revolves around conversations about life and the meaning of it. How would you say music in general can add to this topic of discussion?
Very delicately. The music in the film is not invisible, you do hear it, but that’s because it rarely underscores dialogue. It serves as a frame for the discussion rather than a driver of it.

And what about your particular journey through life with music? How has it shaped the world around you and made you the person you are today?
That’s a huge question! Music dominates my life and I’m involved with it deeply every day. On the other hand I am passionate about a lot of subjects and I easily could have had a different career. What it came down to was my teachers. Up until college my most gifted, giving, and inspiring teachers were consistently my music teachers, both in public school and in private lessons. That’s how I ended up in music. Had my best teachers been scientists I’m sure that’s what I would have become.

You mentioned that you usually have multiple projects going on at the same time. What are you working on right now?
All sorts of things. Another Linklater project, plus a play with songs by the Rude Mechs going to the Lincoln Center next year, also a dance piece featuring the lineman and trucks of Austin Energy power compnany with Forklift Danceworks, and finally a multi-year commission from Ballroom Marfa in West Texas which starts with a country music suite for a 13-piece western swing band, a solo layered piano site specific performance, and a Tex-Mex chamber opera set on the US-Mexico border. Quite a few other things really. I like to keep busy.

Read Headphone Commute review of Before Midnight OST

grahamreynolds.com

New Zealand musician Rhian Sheehan is a gifted composer of ambient and modern classical works. Friend of my favorite star-gazing band, Hammock, his sound parallels their sonic achievements. Like Hammock, Rhian’s music is an immersive experience. You cannot merely sit there and listen passively, nor can you remain detached. I dare you to listen to “A Thimble Full of Sorrow” and not be unmoved. He first draws you in with gorgeous opener, “Sileo”. As soft as the breaking summer day, piano droplets fall around you, gradually increasing in volume as the sun skirts the horizon. Embrace the dawn, and love this music, for surely it is fit for the gods. The world wakes up and voices pierce through your morning drowse as this perfect opening track winds to a close.

In “Upper Sky”, my mind skates across clouds as strings and horns bloom around me, lifting me even higher with their sonic waves. Rhian also employs a music box on “La Boite a Musique”, and adds layers that wind around the tiny chimes of the instrument at the song’s center. I especially enjoy the drumming here, which makes me think of toy soldiers marching smartly along to the beat. “Creation Myths” revisits the jewel box theme and stutters along for a short distance before melting into the aforementioned “A Thimble Full of Sorrow”.

“A series of enchanting instrumental works, Stories From Elsewhere is Rhian Sheehan’s most evocative album to date – an excursion into a soundscape of tender ethereal textures, brooding cinematic string arrangements, and playful experimental lullabies. Sheehan has encapsulated a world of serenity and melancholia within this 12-track album. Stories From Elsewhere is a musical landscape to get lost in.”

“Nocturne 1985” is quite a bit noisier than other tracks, but no less gorgeous. Like all the best composers of sonic landscapes, Rhian makes you feel every note. And oh gosh, “Nusquam” is one of the most beautiful pieces of ambient music I’ve ever heard. The strings are both eerie and lush, bolstering the edges of this song with a delicate web. “Imber” is a tad darker, but no less sparkling with the addition of triangle to a string section. The rest of this release is equally beautiful and profound, and I cannot recommend it enough. For those who like Hammock or anyone on the n5MD label, you will most likely adore this.

rhiansheehan.com | darla.com | loop.co.nz

Review by Elizabeth Klisiewicz exclusively for Headphone Commute.

Vatican Shadow is one of many aliases of Dominick Fernow. He’s been cranking out releases under this moniker for years now, but this is one of the first ones admittedly that I’ve actually picked up. (I’m pretty sure he’s made more than a few since this album came out.) The aesthetic of Vatican Shadow releases is fairly consistent, with militaristic imagery and titles that suggest politics and power struggle; in this sense, it reminds me of Death in June or perhaps even NON, although the music itself is fairly different. Fernow has recently been signed onto Modern Love, but Ghosts of Chechnya, along with countless releases on cassettes by Vatican Shadow, Prurient, Exploring Jezebel, and Rainforest Spiritual Enslavement appear on his very own Hospital Productions.

The sound is rather looped; once a track starts, it doesn’t change much. So chances are that if you don’t like the first 30 seconds, you won’t like the other 2 to 6 minutes that follow. The aesthetic sometimes runs the risk of falling into the cassette-hiss ephemera of Not Not Fun, but it stops short (which is a good thing). By contrast with some of the label’s other output, the sound here is fairly clean, despite all of the various effects and reverb that soak many elements. “Peace Rage” is appropriately named with an aggressive tempo and rhythm section, but its reverberation and airiness emphasize the contradiction of its title. That almost soothing atmosphere comes through on “Voices Came Crakling Through A Motorola Hand-Held Radio” as well, despite its crisp drum programming, and on “He Held The Victims Responsible,” which recalls the dreamlike atmosphere of vintage John Carpenter scores.

The notable thing about Ghosts of Chechnya is that Fernow is really increasing the contrast between the clarity of his rhythm section and the reverberation of his synth arrangements; “Chechnya’s Ghosts Loom Large in Death of Foreign Spy” has a startlingly clear electronic kit in the foreground while the supporting, more washed out arrangements float behind it like the ghosts its title references. It’s yet another entry into Fernow’s ongoing musical statement about the brutality of war and politics of strife, well worth a listen. If you’re a follower of Vatican Shadow then by all means pick up It Stands To Conceal, a triple vinyl edition collecting Jordanian Descent, Ghosts Of Chechnya and Atta’s Apartment Slated For Destruction.

hospitalproductions.net

Review by Matthew Mercer of Ear Influxion.
Republished on Headphone Commute with permission of the author.

On today’s podcast I am honored to host a mix by Gabe Koch, sharing his selections under the DJ Merck moniker. If you don’t know who Gabe Koch is, you really should! In January of 2000 Koch started the now legendary Merck Records, which seriously  shaped my music taste with revolutionary sounds by Machine Drum, Proem, Lackluster, Secede, Tycho, Malcom Kipe, Helios, Deru, Ilkae, Kettel, Quench, Blamstrain, and way too many others to list here! It would not be an understatement to say that Merck Records still holds a very special place in my heart (and on my record shelf), and that I feel incredibly obliged for all the work Koch put into the label, even if after over 50 releases the label closed its doors in 2007. So without further ado I present you with ambient selections by Gabe Koch!

gabekoch.com

[ S T R E A M ] | [ D O W N L O A D ] | [ P O D C A S T ] | [ i T U N E S ]

Hey Rhian, I hear it’s winter down in New Zealand now. What have you been up to this past weekend?
Well like most of my weekends recently I’ve had my head down in my home studio working on a soundtrack job. I juggle this and 3 kids, but I did manage to get out with some friends to a local beer tasting festival this weekend.

I really like the cover art by Kieran Rynhart. How did that come about?
Kieran is a very talented individual and also an extremely humble guy. He also lives here in Wellington. I was aware of his work, but I guess around a year ago I stumbled on one of his prints in an art gallery. I bought it immediately. There seemed to me to be some very powerful yet random connection between his work and mine. I approached him not long after about collaborating on the album art for Stories. I had a pretty clear idea of what I wanted the artwork to convey. He sketched out some ideas and the whole process was very fluid. I really love the result.

You’ve done a lot of work for film and television. How do you go about slotting away a some motivation for personal albums, and how different is it from your ‘other’ work?
My soundtrack work is very different from my own personal work. I guess the music I make and release is the music that flows out of me in a more natural and organic way. But soundtrack work is an entirely different writing process. You can’t be too precious, writing soundtracks is purely about complementing a story line and helping guide the narrative, and often this involves stepping into new musical territory and taking risks. This is what I enjoy about writing music to picture. It’s always a challenge, and is a very different art form than writing songs. It’s a constant learning experience for me, but it’s such a great feeling when you get it right and everything connects.

The music is often described as ambient post-rock and compared to bands like Hammock, M83 and even Coldplay. How would you describe your music to someone not familiar with genres?
Well Hammock are a big favorite of mine. They have an incredible ability to draw the listener in to their musical world, take you to a beautiful place. I guess I enjoy writing music for the same reasons; writing pieces that engage the listener emotionally in some way or another. I’m not a song writer, so for me writing a piece of music is 100% about conveying a feeling; emotional imagery. I don’t have the lyrical talent or voice to back up a chord progression, to tell a story, so my lyrics are musical arrangements, my melodies and sonic tinkering. It always becomes apparent to me how difficult it is to define my music as a genre when I see my albums in a music store. One of the largest music stores here in Wellington have all my albums in the “Dance” section which I find strange considering I predominately write and record ambient music made with electric guitars and string sections, but I guess that’s because my early pre 2005 releases were on more of an downbeat electronic tip and I haven’t been able to escape that pigeonhole with the past 3 releases. American radio producer John Diliberto recently described Stories From Elsewhere as “ambient chamber music” which I think fits pretty well.

I believe that Stories From Elsewhere is also cinematic in nature. What is the story of the protagonist of your album? What is his world like?
The album is all about escapism. There is a certain playful naivety to some of the tracks. I liked the idea of making children’s musical toys sound like they were gaining consciousness and coming alive. But there is also a more sensitive, ethereal and filmic nature to the album which I really enjoyed writing. It is by far my most experimental album to date, and I mainly used real world instruments or objects rather than computer generated sounds.

Not counting all of the instruments you played yourself, the album features quite a few performers – how do you know all of them, and how did the recording come together.
I sketched out pretty much all of the ideas myself. Once I had most of the parts down and some pretty good rough mixes I worked on some tracks with Jeff Boyle (of post-rock instrumental band Jakob) and my wife Raashi. Another friend of mine Andy Hummel played some additional guitar textures on a few tracks, and I worked with Lee Prebble on mixing the core of the tracks. We ran all of the sting section parts through his old 1960′s plate reverb which seemed to help get that nostalgic idea across a little more.

I’m always curious about geographic music boundaries and their effect on music propagation. How would you say your audience has changed since New Zealand based LOOP licensed the album to the American Darla Records?
I’ve been with LOOP since the release of my first album. They’re not just a record label, but also promoters, so the relationship is one that extends to live shows and the media that needs to happen around them to get people sitting on seats. They’re very good at what they do. The new album is actually released on 3 different labels around the world. Darla in the US and UK and Preco Records in Japan. I self released my 2011 EP Seven Tales of The North Wind which Preco then released as a beautiful box set including my 2009 album Standing in Silence. The response in Japan for the new album has been amazing. The larger music chains, as well as the boutique stores in Tokyo were extremely supportive of the release and fronted it in their stores on listening posts etc, support I’d be hard pressed to find here in New Zealand. I’d love to take my live show there at some point. We are actually performing the new album live for the first time here in Wellington on November 2nd at the Opera House with a 16 piece string section. I enjoy playing live immensely, but unfortunately it doesn’t happen nearly enough as the shows are large setup and cost money to put on.

Anything specific that you’re currently working on at the moment and would like to share?
I’m currently deep into writing and recording a soundtrack for a UK/US produced Planetarium Dome show. This is the 6th Planetarium film I’ve written the score for, but by far the most challenging. I’m recording real orchestral element, including a full string section. The soundtrack is big and emotive. It has been a real learning curve, but exciting to step up to the challenge. I’m a big astronomy and space nut, so working on these projects is a real dream job for me. I’ve also just been offered a feature length film which should happen this year all going well. Oh, and Stories From Elsewhere will be released on 2xLP vinyl soon with some bonus tracks and remixes, so I’m gearing up for that.

Be sure to read Headphone Commute review of Stories From Elsewhere

rhiansheehan.com

The second album from Mount Kimbie coincides with a lateral move from Hyperdub to Warp Records. Upon first blush, that change makes perfect sense — it’s an extremely different beast from Crooks & Lovers (2010). That debut was irregular and odd and disjointed in ways that felt both magical and of the time; somehow aligning with trends while refusing to conform to them outright. But then I have to remind myself that it’s already been three years (!) since the release of that debut, and much has changed in music since then.

Cold Spring is a pop album by comparison, using the term loosely. As seems to be a common trajectory for underground acts like this, they may be keen on crossing over into a wider audience with proper songs with vocals and refrains. This is not to say that they’ve cashed in on RedOne-like anthems by any means, but there is certainly a more accessible vibe to this set of tracks that lends itself to radio play more readily. When the Kimbie boys aren’t handling their own vocals, they’ve recruited outside help from King Krule on a couple songs; no doubt the opinion of this collaboration will be mixed. In any case, I applaud the Kimbie fellows taking a chance and actually diving into hip hop more overtly, since their music has always felt streetwise and like it owed its framework, however disassembled, to hip hop’s roots.

“Recorded in their South London studio, Dominic Maker and Kai Campos have expanded on the sound of their first album, incorporating live instruments both in the studio and on stage.”

Still, I can’t help but feel relief when the rolling rim shots of “Made to Stray” start up, anchored by an up-tempo four-to-the-floor bass kick. In this context, their vocals are both unnecessary but also put a different spin on the music that isn’t unwelcome. One other noteworthy aspect of Cold Spring is that that they’ve really branched into other instrumentation, adding bass and guitar and more live-sounding percussion. Normally I cringe when I hear of a previously electronic project expanding into more of a band format (at least in sound, in this case), but it works. “So Many Times, So Many Ways,” for example, is a far cry from the digital editing of Crooks & Lovers, but it’s quite good. It’s not entirely an about-face, though; “Lie Near” sounds like classic Mount Kimbie with some spruced up arrangements and details to unify it with the rest of the album, as does “Sullen Ground” with its cleaner, more synthy palette.

But even amidst the vocal tracks and guest appearances, there’s one total curveball in “Slow,” with its clunky, almost retro drum machine sounds and goofy organ melody, an oddly abrasive set of sounds that are plunked in the center of the album’s final half. So with all of this newness, how do I really feel about it? I like it, quite a bit. I was originally surprised or even taken aback by how different it sounds, but then again, their Maybes EP sounds very little like the one that followed, which is very different from their first album. So despite all the changes, Mount Kimbie strike me as genuinely restless and musically curious, and in that sense this new album is simply an altogether different extension of that.

mountkimbie.com | warp.net

Review by Matthew Mercer of Ear Influxion.
Republished on Headphone Commute with permission of the author.

I listen to the second album by Moderat until I wake up in the morning with the lyrics and melody already playing in my head. And there are tracks on II that from the very first rotation will appeal to a modern electronic music connoisseur, not to mention an occasional FM listener. That means that you can listen to this music with your friends, and they won’t cringe their noses because your music usually sounds like “buckets falling down the stairs” or “squeaky rats scurrying across the highway“. Add to that vocals by Sascha Ring himself, and you’d be surprised not to hear these tracks on the radio. In fact, as of this writing, the album has already made the German top ten album charts. Whatever the commercial temptation of Moderat may be, I still consider the album to have enough experimental edge and top-notch production values to keep this music addict happy.

Sascha Ring, better known as Apparat, and one half of Moderat, has recently released Krieg und Frieden (Music for Theatre) on Mute, which has immediately piqued my interest, as the album gravitated more towards the cinematic and modern classical compositions that I often crave. The second half of the project is of course the German Modeselektor duo, consisting of Gernot Bronsert and Sebastian Szary. These two have been dropping bass heavy beats since 2005, with releases mostly on Ellen Allien’s BPitch Control, until Modeselektor launched their very own, Monkeytown Records in 2009. The second release by the collaborative moniker Moderat makes an appearance on Monkeytown once again; there’s also a double CD version featuring a continuous mix of “A Couple Of Favorites During The Production Of II“, including tracks by Jon Hopkins, Dark Sky, Head High, Anstam, and Atoms For Peace.

“We have known each other for 12 years now, and during that time we haven’t really changed that much: We are still three guys mostly talking about hi-hats and tape machines while hanging out in the studio.”

The music on II is an evolving marriage between dance-floor broken rhythms and well-conceived song writing, all consistent in quality and allure. There are plenty of instrumental pieces on the album, but it manages to stay cohesive throughout, even when the vocals come in again. The overall atmosphere is extremely textural, and I keep on discovering many fascinating sonic details after repeat listening sessions on various sound systems and headphones. The album opens with a short interlude, echoing growling bass echoes, like distant thunder in the summer rain. The forthcoming second track, “Bad Kingdom” introduces the vocals, announcing the sweeping intent of the album, setting up the listener for all the things to come.

On “Let In The Light“, one of my favorite tracks on the album, Moderat uses pitched up and down vocals in unison over minor chords and syncopated chords to create a new direction in sound, attributed in the past to innovative approach of Burial‘s treatments. On “Milk“, the longest track on the album, approaching ten minutes, the extensive buildup slowly sucks all the air out of the headroom until the bass modulates the tonality and the song begins to unfurl. Finally, on “The Time“, Moderat ties in thick synth lines with spacial elements to create an ethereal feeling of a helium flotation device, concluding the journey with a soft airy fade out.

Although I think it would be unfair to compare this effort with work by Thom Yorke [who, by the way, has previously collaborated with Modeselektor on a few EPs], it would be legitimate enough to state that II would be recommended for fans of that particular combination of EDM meets lush lyrical sound. Overall, I keep on returning to the album, playing it for my family and friends during long car rides, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Moderat showed up on many ‘Best of 2013′ lists, when the world will heave their selections in December. Highly recommended – I can’t stop nodding my head!

moderat.fm | monkeytownrecords.com