It's time for another Psybient mix. First up today is a track by Nick Brennan under his "Tripglitch" alias. Nick is better known to fans worldwide under the "Tripswitch" moniker. As Tripswith he has had numerous releases on popular compilations as well as two studio albums - the brilliant "Circuit Breaker" ( love the tripswitch exiled mana mix track ) of 2005 and the recently released "Geometry" CD. I'm yet to listen to Geometry but hope to soon. From the samples I've heard , he seems to have headed in a bit of a different direction which I guess is to be expected when you have a 5 year gap between albums. The samples sound pretty sweet so check out the "Section Records" website for more info and online media.
Then we have "Fires of Ork" from ambient heavy-weights "Geir Jenssen" & "Peter Namlook". Geir Jenssen, aka "Biosphere" is one of the figureheads of contemporary electronic music. On his albums Microgravity [1992] and Patashnik [1994], both widely acknowledged as records that shaped the ambient genre, he combines found noises, atmospheric layers of sound and trance patterns with dance beats. Jenssen's music is clearly marked by his geographical location: living in Tromsø - about 800 kilometers north of the Arctic circle, his compositions evoke his Nordic natural surroundings through the sound of modern technology.
Pete Namlook , a former jazz guitarist based in Frankfurt, gained renown as an ambient and dance music composer. He ran his own label, Fax +49-69/450464, which used to have an output of about two records a week [all limited editions]. Fax isn't the same beast it used to be these day so it's best to check Namlook's personal website for what the state of the label is now. Namlook records under different guises e.g. 4Voice, Sextant, Air (Air (2)) and also has a nose for finding "partners in ambient": in the past he worked with Mixmaster Morris [The Irresistible Force] as "Dreamfish", with Dr. Atmo as Silence, with Richie Hawtin as From Within and with Jonah Sharp of San Francisco's "Space Time Continuum" collective. In 1993, Under the moniker THE FIRES OF ORK, Jenssen and Namlook combined their talents. During a two-week session in Frankfurt they composed a magnificent self-titled album, a magnum opus that ranges in tone from soothing to haunting, from dark to playful. The title track [appearing in two versions] was also released on a 12-inch which, just as the album, culled rave reviews everywhere. The name "The Fires of Ork" is taken from Roy Batty's monologue at the end of the 1982 movie 'Blade Runner', as sampled on the first album by the duo. Next up is a "Kyoto" [Vitaly Zenkov], a Russian psybient musician and DJ working in ambient and psychill styles. He has one CD on offer titled "Forest Trip" released on "Space Baby Records" last November. It took me a bit of time to get into the Kyoto sound. At first I found it a bit cheesy but the more I listened , the more I understood what he was all about. It's a bit of a sleeper of a CD - give it a chance and you might just come to the appreciate as I have. Definitely someone to keep an eye on for the future.
After Kyoto is Danish psychedelic legend "Ian Ion". Ian has been a recording artist for over twenty years or so, exploring two decades of electronic music in many forms. He has kept an innovative spirit alive with tremendous success within many areas of the music industry, including producing, programming, composing, djing, engineering, mastering, teaching, consulting work, visuals, promotion and sales, besides touring all around the world. He has also worked behind the scenes for Sony Playstation, Roskilde Festival, Bang & Olufsen, Denmark's Radio, TC Electronic, The Danish Music Academy to name a few.
This tune comes from Ian's 2007 debut solo CD "Gringo Locomotion". Here we find him selecting the fruits of ambient works from the previous ten years, exploring deep journeys into sound and experimental creativity. The project was first seeded at the Roskilde Festival in 1998, when he was asked to serve a one hour soundscape for their octaphonic sound system at D-Day. It's a mighty interesting CD with touches of "The Orb" like playfulness mixed with a hint of KLF's "ChillOut" a dash of Eno and then something other , perhaps just Ian. Recommended.
Next is "Akasha Project" [Barmin Schulze] with a tune from "Psychedelic Chilling 2" psybient compilation released on now defunct "Insolation" records. Barmin is a big fan of using music to connect with the vibe of the cosmos. Or something like that. Many people have tried doing this in the past with rather turgid results. Whatever "Sound bathing with the harmonical concert pitch and pure diatonic intervals" actually involves, Akasha Project must be doing something right as his music is top notch !
If you have an interest in that "Cosmic Octave" kind of thing check out his very informative website. You might also like some of the work of System 7 who have in the past composed pulsating psychedelic ambient trance music in tune with human biorhythms and alpha waves.Following Barim is "Izzumm" with the tune "Rogodoov" from the monster "Peace and Love 2" compilation of 2009. Great compilation - don't hesitate to check it out. Boris Solodovnikov - is an ethno-electronic composer and multi instrumental musician, playing live ethnic and modern musical instruments such as tabla, djambe, darbuka, uzbekistan doira, indian chimta, nepali daf, shaman drum, vargans, tibetian singing bowls, guitars and basses, while mixing them with virtual and analog synths and effects. In 2003 Boris joined the band 'Moskow Dub Project' as a sound engineer. Here he met a guitar player - Dmitry Skvortsov aka Skvor - and soon in 2004 they made the live ethno project called 'Waveshapes', where he played tabla, djembe, freetless bass and singing bowls. In 2004 he started to perform as a DJ. He was playing chill-out sets and some times played psy-trance sets - usually in the morning. From 2004 he appeard at lots of parties and festivals. At the same time he was working as a sound engineer and with the band DiDuLa , making more than 400 shows from 2003 - 2005 !! And you think the Stones are busy !! So far he has quite a number of compilation tracks released but no debut CD as yet. Stay tuned I think, can't be too far away with that work ethic.
After that we have a rather special track from the latest ISHQ CD "Sama" that was released just a few weeks ago and I am expecting to top my best albums of the year list [ depending how the new "Younger Brother" CD goes when I get a copy ]. This is a long track - about 15 minutes. It reminds me of the old days when a psychedelic ambient CDs were full of 10-15 minute long tunes ! What I really love about this new ISHQ CD and this track in particular is the inclusion of guitars. I love to hear drifting guitar sounds in psychedelic ambient tunes. Speaking of which, check out this link for some good news - a collaboration between The Orb and David Gilmore !! Holy psychedelic bananas batman ! Awesome !
I've got a lot of respect for "Sysyphe" [Philip Contamin]. When a guy lists the likes of The Cure, Mission, Dead can Dance, Robert Rich and Hallucinogen as influences, I'm all ears. And what a treat his tunes are too ! His debut CD "Running Up That Hill" [2010] is a great mix of psychedelic swirly syths, tribal rhythms , bubbling bass and gated goodness. It proved to be quite popular on release. Check it out if you haven't had a chance yet - I don't think you'll be disappointed. Philip discovered electro sounds with groups like the Orb and Solar Quest back in 1993. After going to a live "The Orb" gig in 95, he was motivated enough to compose in a more ambient style. Listening to his CD you can't hear much of his early gothic influences except for perhaps an overall haunting atmosphere to a few of the tunes. It's an excellent CD anyway which should find its way into my top 10 psychedelic ambient trance CDs for 2010.
Next we have "NOK" [Alexander Dorkian] with a tune from "Relax Mode - Placid Chill Grooves". A bit of a naff name for a CD but has a few nice tunes on it from "Koan" , "Lauge and Baba Gnohm" and "Erot". It was mastered by Tim Schuldt so you know the quality is guaranteed.
Up next in the mix is the curiously named "CaveDave" with an highly original psybient tune from "Time Loop - Beyond Borders" compilation on "Sentimony Records" [ 2010 ]. Dave , David Hall, has been active since 1993 releasing a number of compilation tunes and remixes over the years. I hope we can here more from the Cave in future because this tune is pretty cool. It's always nice to hear a bit of craziness in the psychedelic ambient genre when things seem to be getting a bit too safe and assured. Nice one Dave.
Then we have Neil Ollivierra , a Detroit-born multi-disciplinary artist who composes electronic music as "The Detroit Escalator Co". He first appeared in the early Detroit techno scene as the promoter of The Music Institute [1988-89]; the legendary underground after-hours club that served as the pre-release audio testing grounds for the Transmat, KMS and Metroplex record labels. A growing acquaintance with resident DJ Derrick May led to his employment as the Transmat label manager during the labels' most prolific years [1988-1992], wherein legendary artists such as Carl Craig, James Pennington, and Stacey Pullen first exploded onto the global scene. The first album by The Detroit Escalator Co., entitled 'soundtrack [313]' was released in 1996 on London-based Ferox records. The album, now out of print and rare, is considered a cult-classic. The 2nd album by The Detroit Escalator Co., entitled 'Black Buildings', was Neils' first recording for Peacefrog. Concurrent with the album production, he completed a long-planned series of acrylic oil paintings as part and parcel of the 'Black Buildings' album project. The paintings abstract, monochromatic geometric landscapes were the subject of a solo exhibition at Detroit's Cpop Gallery. Today these paintings hang in homes and corporate environments in Detroit, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Paris and London. In 2000, Peacefrog released a collection of early-era recordings and previously unreleased tracks by The Detroit Escalator Co., entitled "Excerpts." Finally we composer "Sergio Walgood" with the tune "The Dream". Portuguese producer Sergio has been making a name for himself since the release of his debut CD "Chill In Tribe" earlier this year. It's quite a solid debut too. Well worth listening to imho. Visit the rather new and spiffy "Ajnavision" records website for more info on Sergio and upcoming psybient releases.
Track / Artisthttp://psy-amb.blogspot.com
01. Orgone Motor - Tripglitch
02. The Fires of Ork I - Geir Jenssen & Pete Namlook
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Pete Namlook , a former jazz guitarist based in Frankfurt, gained renown as an ambient and dance music composer. He ran his own label, Fax +49-69/450464, which used to have an output of about two records a week [all limited editions]. Fax isn't the same beast it used to be these day so it's best to check Namlook's personal website for what the state of the label is now. Namlook records under different guises e.g. 4Voice, Sextant, Air (Air (2)) and also has a nose for finding "partners in ambient": in the past he worked with Mixmaster Morris [The Irresistible Force] as "Dreamfish", with Dr. Atmo as Silence, with Richie Hawtin as From Within and with Jonah Sharp of San Francisco's "Space Time Continuum" collective. In 1993, Under the moniker THE FIRES OF ORK, Jenssen and Namlook combined their talents. During a two-week session in Frankfurt they composed a magnificent self-titled album, a magnum opus that ranges in tone from soothing to haunting, from dark to playful. The title track [appearing in two versions] was also released on a 12-inch which, just as the album, culled rave reviews everywhere. The name "The Fires of Ork" is taken from Roy Batty's monologue at the end of the 1982 movie 'Blade Runner', as sampled on the first album by the duo.
After Kyoto is Danish psychedelic legend "Ian Ion". Ian has been a recording artist for over twenty years or so, exploring two decades of electronic music in many forms. He has kept an innovative spirit alive with tremendous success within many areas of the music industry, including producing, programming, composing, djing, engineering, mastering, teaching, consulting work, visuals, promotion and sales, besides touring all around the world. He has also worked behind the scenes for Sony Playstation, Roskilde Festival, Bang & Olufsen, Denmark's Radio, TC Electronic, The Danish Music Academy to name a few.
Next is "Akasha Project" [Barmin Schulze] with a tune from "Psychedelic Chilling 2" psybient compilation released on now defunct "Insolation" records. Barmin is a big fan of using music to connect with the vibe of the cosmos. Or something like that. Many people have tried doing this in the past with rather turgid results. Whatever "Sound bathing with the harmonical concert pitch and pure diatonic intervals" actually involves, Akasha Project must be doing something right as his music is top notch !
