#beatscape

[cluboftigerghost]

16Nov22 :D

[enndisc]

LAYLAND - Ryosuke Nagaoka & aus【AUDIO CD】先行販売のお知らせ。

https://teienonline.com LAYLAND - Ryosuke Nagaoka & aus / FLENN-01【AUDIO CD】の先行販売の予約受付を本日10月30日15時よりTEIEN ONLINE STOREにて開始いたします。また先行販売を記念して同CDを手がけたフランス・ナントのデザイン・チームAtelier Choque Le Goffによるイラストレーションを全面に施したTシャツを限定販売いたします。

・LAYLAND - Ryosuke Nagaoka & aus【AUDIO CD】 Rich beatscapes and solid-yet-dreamy production from aus meets the smooth, sweltering improvisation of guitarist and vocalist Ryosuke Nagaoka in Layland, the pair’s first collaborative mixtape — an experiment in form as much as freedom.Rich beatscapes and solid-yet-dreamy production from aus meets the smooth, sweltering improvisation of guitarist and vocalist Ryosuke Nagaoka in Layland, the pair’s first collaborative mixtape — an experiment in form as much as freedom. 豊かなビートスケープとソリッドかつ夢見心地なausのプロダクションが、長岡亮介の滑らかでうねるような即興と出会う。これは両者が初めて二人の名義でリリースするミックステープであり、フォームと同様に自由な実験を試みた作品です。

TITLE: LAYLAND ARTIST: Ryosuke Nagaoka & aus ITEM: AUDIO CD LABEL: ENNDISC & FLAU MPN: FLENN-01 RELEASE: pre-sale

tracklist 1. Made-Up Mind 2. Candles 3. Mirrored 4. Reverie 1: 5. Hyatt Earp 6. Murmurs

＊2023/10/30-11/13 11:59までの期間を予約受付とさせていただきます。発送は11月下旬〜12月上旬を予定しています。 https://teienonline.com NAGAOKA RYOSUKE https://www.instagram.com/nagaokaryosuke/ aus https://www.ausmusik.com FLAU https://flau.jp ENNDISC https://enndisc.jp

一般発売につきましてはまたこちらでお知らせいたします。

[naviarlab]

naviarhaiku472 – Paper lantern bright

Paper lantern bright, Floating in the dark night sky, Guiding spirits home.

A regular member of our haiku challenge, Stan Magendanz, aka Boson Spin, loves listening to & creating Ambient, Dark Ambient & Experimental electronica (and the occasional beatscape).

Seven days to make music in response to the assigned haiku: to participate visit https://www.naviarrecords.com/about/naviar-haiku

Deadline: 25th January 2023

haiku by Stan Magendanz https://soundcloud.com/boson_spin

picture by Melanie Magdalena https://unsplash.com/@m2creates

[qudachuk]

(XL)The Korean-American singer-DJ examines complex questions of heritage on a debut album proper that expands her beatscape to include moments of graceDJ, producer, remixer, rapper and singer Yaeji is on a mission to destroy limitations. Hammer in hand on...

[dudja]

Boson Spin - Hypnosis [part 6] by Boson Spin 28Aug19 :D

[thesunlounge]

Reviews 359: Imaginária 001

Waves of saxophonic warmth and layers of orchestral ambiance caressing slow and low downbeat zone outs; falsetto serenades, throat singing spells, and colorful scat cascades darting and dashing through woven tapestries of fourth world mysticism, exotic kosmische, and rainforest jazz fusion; and solar tribal chants bookending explosions of Amazonian drumline ecstasy–this is the world of Imaginária 001, a new 12” of re-edits from the mysterious Imaginária crew. Supposedly based in Portugal…though who can say for sure…this group of balearic minded selectors have assembled an adventurous set of sonic oddities, one intended as a “hypothetical sound trip between skyscrapers, wild places, and deep imaginary oceans.” As well, Imaginária 001 is presented in the spirit of sharing and open-minded exchange, with those behind the release reaching into their vast archives to make accessible legendary works that have become prohibitively expensive and, better still, to shine a light on hidden treasures never before released on vinyl (though you might have to work hard to discover the source, as many of these selections definitively outmaneuver the algorithm).

Imaginária - Imaginária 001 (Imaginária, 2020) Melancholic arps descend through oceanic darkness in “State of Mind #3” as hand drums and tapped cymbals fade in from the void. Choirs of the abyss carry subtle shades of sax as the beat takes shape, with slow motion bass notes pounding amidst downtempo drum perfection built from reverb-soaked cymbals, richocheting rimshots, equatorial hand drums, and shaken tambourines. After an extended passage of downbeat drum atmospherica, the choirs and saxophone return…as if mermaid voices and a reed-generated noir jazz purr are spreading ever outwards through an endless sea of ether while synths glimmer like harps made of gemstone. At some point the melodies pull away again, leaving sub-earthen basslines to thump above a slow and low balearic beatscape that is increasingly accented by streaks of FM-synthesis…like alien liquids glowing in strange hues as they repeatedly freeze in place. Then, towards the end, angelic ocean voices resume their new age berceuse as the saxophone leads one last sunset climax before it all descends into silence. Next comes “Vento Caldo,” where waves and wind sit over a peaceful fusion jam, with tight cymbals keeping time, acoustic guitars jangling, bass synths squelching like frogs, and pianos raining down clustered chords and fantasy runs. The mix reduces to a percussive pulse as falsetto vocals counter a seaside maelstrom with cooing lullabies and eventually, the intensity breaks and dreamscape arps begin raining over In a Silent Way-style jazz fusion drum whispers. After an instrumental passage, the vocals resume their saccharine serenade while morphing through subtle psychedelic fx clouds and all around, washes of equatorial synthesis are suffused by sparkling bubble clouds. At some point, the track breaks down into stuttering drum physicality and amorphous angel synthesis while the singer works through sleepy-eyed lyricisms that eventually fade to mist. And as we return to a peaceful balearic stroll, alien laser blasts oscillate, understated rhythmic accents move in counterpoint, vocals filter into a fever dream hallucination, and psychosonic textures of aqueous origin swim around increasingly abstracted piano flourishes.

“Tres Reyes en Toldeo” opens in the jungle with a stream rushing in the distance and birds of paradise conversing overhead. Shakers strike and throat-sung chants flow around a tribal tom ritual, tapped hi-hats open up and hiss fire, and enchanting fourth world melodies swirl in the distance…as if wood flutes from various cultures have been smeared into a meditative breath of rainforest synthesis. Ethereal arps circulate like spiral galaxies, bells and shakers ring chaotically before locking in, and all around, jazz scats and expressionistic vocal rhythms push towards hyperventilation. Layers of dream synthesis billow in and cover the mix with tropical vapor clouds before pulling away unexpectedly, leaving behind sections of vocal psychedelia and tribal drum hypnotism, wherein shamans chant and ritualized polyrhythms ebb and flow in complexity while birds sing softly through the dense forest growth. “Brazilian Trip” closes the show with looping bells and joyous claps while a group of singers lets loose their soulful paean to the Brazilian sunrise. Drums pound across the spectrum, with crazed flams and mutant strokes slowly resolving into a ecstatic dance, and as hand percussions, timbales, and tom toms flail wildly, the background explodes with hypnotic patterns of mystical metal. Ecstatically blown whistles signal sudden transitions, with the track sometimes working into a militant call and response between deep pounding drums and martial shouts while at other times, it devolves towards manic hand drum soloing and bass drum thunderstorming. There’s even a moment where everything starts reversing and whooshing backwards in time…the sonic textures blasting through clouds of reverb before resuming the explosive panorama of tribal booty beats. Towards the end, as whistles signal another dramatic shift, it all breaks down into an molecular slop of rimshots, cymbal bells, and shimmering energetics. Somehow, almost effortlessly, the chanted vocal euphorias then re-emerge to offer a brief respite from the all out onslaught of Afro-Brazilian drum intensity. But eventually, the stormfronts of Amazonian rhythm return, leading to one last stretch of fire dance mesmerism.

(images from my personal copy)

[tarikuta]

(Boson Spin)

[cityjammusic]

New Song - Mishell Ivon - Nameless (POP Music 2022) #061 Genre: POP Style: VOCAL DANCE Location: Germany, Munich We imagined a magazine cover sound with this song. Glam, Fierce, Funky and Fresh. UK/ GERMAN production. Idea behind the song is, we all are famous in our own world we create, drop the mask and be who you are! Playlist Nu funk, Night out,party, groove theory, Driving list. Its super flex. The message is fierce and meant for everyone. Random fact Stiletto heel clicks are incorporated into the beatscape. Much love! 🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢🟢 Get your positive energy on with this channel. We've got the freshest, popular old school music, so you can enjoy new songs whenever you need to listen to good pop music. ♪ ♬♫ ♩ ♬ About This Channel ♫ ♪ ♫ ♩ ♬ We are platform for new and upcoming music and artists. We promote and support new music and new artists across the globe. This is collection of New Songs and New Music - Pop Music, old school r&b, old school hip hop, old school music, old school songs, old school, old school reggae, old school funk. ❤️ More New Music and New Songs: Don Jiggy - Dr. Feelgood (Dancehall, Reggaeton,Old School) https://youtu.be/O4xzilH8Gz0 The ReWd oNeZ - Like I Never Knew (Rock, Blues,Punk) https://youtu.be/hbV3EFOmDz0 Shawna Cupples - Slide the Woo (R'n'B, Soul) https://youtu.be/IzbUawixxTo Evan DeVries - Parental Approval [POP Music] https://youtu.be/MMApcdNPE-A Final Demand - I'm cheating on You [Rock Music] https://youtu.be/utXfRK6QeW0 Jive As Sleepers - Get Up Get Over [Dance, Pop,Club] https://youtu.be/FRPwDrt6FSo Jimmy Reid - Ill Bring You Roses [Old School Reggae] https://youtu.be/GD4N9Kmz_g4 Subscribe to @CityJamMusic Channel for New Music: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvJhXlhYeJKiLWkp3dhBA9g?sub_confirmation=1 City Jam Music is Music Promotion Channel for New Artists. Music submissions, general inquiries: SubmitCJM (at) gmail.com #newsong2022 #bestsongs2022 #newmusic @CityJamMusic

[terrorofrmit]

Two decades of golden pop decadence (1999-2005)

Being one of the finest duo that Bristol has to offer, Goldfrapp has carved out a place for themselves in the history of contemporary music.

Waltzing into the scene in the early noughties with seemingly endless poise and grace, Goldfrapp has been aptly described as “what would have been if Kraftwerk was fronted by Marlene Dietrich”. Consisted of the trip-hop siren Alison Goldfrapp and producer/ composer/ synthmaster Will Gregory, they have conjured up a body of work so great it spans almost all genres of music imaginable and still manage to be ahead of the curve and cutting edge, even after 18 years of constant renovating and persisting in and out of the mainstream.

Felt Mountain (1999)

After years of being a session singer in the once bustling music scene of Bristol that entailed crooning over Tricky's fractured beatscapes, guesting on Orbital's 'Snivilisation' and hanging with Dreadzone, Alison Goldfrapp paired up with Will Gregory and more than made up for lost time with the brilliant, imagery-rich Felt Mountain. 

Alison sounds completely comfortable here, whether when she’s spelunking into her deep and richly dark lower range in “Human” and “Deer Stop” or scaling the impossible operatic heights in the Fascist - referencing “Utopia” and the sweet and dreamy “Pilots”. 

The spotlight lands on the more disturbing and sinister moments, however, which comprises of Alison’s electric theremin wails in the Frankenstein - inspired “Lovely Head” and her disturbing childlike humming in the wordless “Felt Mountain”, considering the sexual undertone that persists throughout the album. Utterly dreamlike and high drama, Felt Mountain is the epitome of trip-hop, a feast of soaring strings, harpsichords, ethereal theremin voice effect and a must-listen for whoever wants to lose themselves in the sonic wonderland of Goldfrapp.

Black Cherry (2003)

If Felt Mountain was the equivalent of a seemingly chaste, reserved, angelic chanteuse, then Goldfrapp’s sophomore effort is said chanteuse having a sexual awakening and falling straight down someone’s face. 

Black Cherry sees Goldfrapp exploring a completely different territory from their debut album - electropop - with a new imagery to match as visual is just as important to them as the music. Album covers, single covers and music videos all feature men and women with wolf heads loitering about, usually topless and with tongues lolling.

The new sound is just as primal and base as the imagery suggests: the singles “Train” and “Strict Machine” are thumping anthem that tell the tales of a girl who was left daft after a brain surgery and sexual pleasure experiments on rats, respectively. “Twist” is an absolutely merciless vocal tour-de-force, with Alison moaning and lusting after a carnival boy. Most of the album sounds like a latex gloved fist straight up the erogenous zone.

There are softer and more subdued moments, however. The opening “Crystalline Green” sounds like a choir of angels cooing over a backdrop of fizzling synths, the cosmic “Forever” beeping like it’s emulating radio emissions from space and the electro-orchestral “Black Cherry” which closes the album with a sense of sweet finality, all of which created a curious duality of this brilliant album.

Supernature (2005)

Goldfrapp continues to expand their horizon with their third release, Supernature - an obvious homage to Marc Bolan and the 70s disco and electroclash scene. 

Still their most well-known album to date, their sound in this era has been cited, blatantly copied and watered down by many fellow songstress like Little Boots, Lady Gaga, Kylie Minogue and most of all, Madonna. So much that people in the industry started snidely dubbing her “Oldfrapp” after the lukewarm, derivative “Confession On The Dance Floor”.

A less hormonal and lusty fare than the previous album, Supernature is jam packed with electroclash decadence. “Ooh La La” starts the banquet with nary a bit of restraint in confessing her lust for a lover. The edges from Black Cherry era were smoothed out, but the tune still sound strangely angular and ruthlessly efficient with its Germanic electro slaps and claps. Club anthems “Number One” and “Ride On A White Horse” see a continuation of Goldfrapp’s animalistic imageries, the former voracious but endearing while the latter sounds like a drug haze. 

The ever-present icy disdain in Alison’s voice gives way for a bit of warmth in the dreamy “Let It Take You” and their most luscious offering to date - “Time Out From The World”. This is a just one of the many testaments to the genius of Will and Alison’s boundless versatility.

[thetwilitetone]

Thanks Again!! #Repost @rushhourstore with @make_repost ・・・ ::: RECORD OF THE WEEK ::: THE TWILITE TONE - THE CLEARING (STONES THROW) Although he’s been in the game for more than three decades, ‘The Clearing’ is the debut solo album by Anthony Khan, the producer/musician who’s probably best known as Twilite Tone. Coming from a musical household - his uncle is the legendary Chicago bass player Hassan Khan, while he’s also related to bass giant Richard Davis - Twilite Tone has soaked up the sound of the Windy City since the early seventies, producing house tracks under a bunch of secretive aliases in the mid-to-late eighties, while simultaneously forming a group with and DJ-ing for Common. That collaboration resulted in the 1992 co-production of Common’s classic debut ‘Can I Borrow A Dollar’ (1997’s seminal Lowrell and Patrice Rushen-sampling ‘Reminding Me (Of Sef)’ is also a Tone production) - before moving on to work with big names like Gorillaz and Kanye West. Armed with only an MPC, a Korg Triton Workstation and what he calls a ‘secret Moog-like module’, Tone cooks up fourteen beatscapes on ‘The Clearing’, navigating between hiphop, funk and house - much like the city of Chicago itself. A sound he himself describes as ‘transgenre’. Zigzagging between headbopping machine funk (opener ‘Journey Into Sound’, ‘The Lite’,) and spaced-out instrumental hiphop jams (‘Ancestors and Angels’, ‘The Sound’), Tone veers towards a more housey sound as the album progresses, concluding his fourteen track journey with the buzzin’ ‘Taxi Cab Confessions’, a track that’s equal parts Dilla, Theo and early Dance Mania - a modern yet timeless sort of sound that refuses to be tied down to any one genre but is a perfect addition to Stones Throw’s illustrious beat tape tradition. (RO) ✨Bit.ly/STH2420 #rhrecordoftheweek #rhstoreROTW #thetwilitetone #rushhourstore https://www.instagram.com/p/CGYlkwEHFHn/?igshid=107l5o0fl4hnu

[fluidsf]

Fluid Label Focus on Genot Centre 15 Mor Air: Life Behind Glass (2019) Cover by Zdeněk Růžička Catalogue number: GEN036 Reviewed format: advance review copy of digital album on Genot Centre as kindly provided by Genot Centre Welcome to a new review in the Fluid Label Focus series on the Genot Centre label, today I have for you a brand new release, which is the album Life Behind Glass by Canadian artist and DJ Mor Air, who previously released music and mixes on a variety of underground electronic (dance) labels, online radio and various mixes as Spurz. This review is based off the advance pre-announcement review copy press kit I received from Genot Centre, which features: the album cover in 1624x1553p resolution, a press text docx document, the album in 10 16-bit/44.1kHz WAV files with cover too, as well as a folder with artist press photos and a folder with the front and back cover of the release, both again in 1624x1553p. Genot Centre regular graphic designer Zdeněk Růžička has designed some lovely artwork for this release again, combining colourful warm blurry imagery on the front and back cover with mirrored type stating the album artist in elegant calligraphic type, with the album title and other text on the album’s packaging in neat sans serif type. On the inside artwork of the packaging the text is placed in normal format, without mirroring and the artwork is not blurry, instead featuring a funky mixture of beach photography and various abstract shapes, creating an 80’s like colourful summery aesthetic but also with contemporary refinement within its style. The cassette tape itself comes in an oversized norelco case that house both the cassette horizontally and a poetry book by More Air, featuring “interpretations” poems that match the music on the tape. Life Behind Glass is definitely an album that fits the warm, pleasant and relaxed state of feelings in the summer with the 10 tracks over ~ 43 minutes feeling like old-school 80s tinged Ambient vibes as well as mixtures of warm layered ambiences and contemporary styled punchy grooves. While the album was actually created to escape from the hurtful feelings of a recently happened tragedy (as described by Colin Moir (aka Mor Air) in the press text, the album’s warmth, experimental playful sampling techniques that hark back to the 80’s sampler craze and fluidly mixed in field recordings together create an album that in many ways feels like wiping a slate clean, starting with a new better phase of life or simply relaxing in good vibes in the evening or early morning. So let’s get into the music on this album. Life Behind Glass begins with the track We Found A Few More Down Here which sounds a bit like the soundtrack to a journey on a submarine. Combined with the other tracks in the beginning of the first half of the album, Life Behind Glass does start with a bit of a varying set of tracks, in that the style jumps around a bit at first but fortunately stabilises quickly, giving the album a good coherency. In We Found A Few More Down Here you can hear eerie rumbles, delayed samples of a man saying commands taken from what could be a sci-fi film, various samples of water and synth effects as well as male breath samples. Filtered high pitched glassy drones seem to be matched with the water samples at various pitches too. It’s an eerie mysterious start of the album that mixes the submarine resonant drones with some lovely sonic details through mixed techniques that blend the inside and outside ambience of a submarine to create a sonic picture which is both describing the mystery of the dark ocean surround the submarine and the activities and work going on inside the submarine. Quite a bit different in ambience from the rest of the album, but the water sounds do connect this to the rest of the album in that they reference the ocean like sonic signature Mor Air uses a lot on this album. Then on Placate Mor Air balances 90s Braindance styled harmonies with atmospheric Deconstructed Club elements in the form of the rhythmic construction which features a mixture of auto-tuned vocal samples, thumping sub-bass kicks that appear regularly in “build”-like fast patterns, various drum samples and synth effects also add to the equally relaxed as kinetic vibe of the rhythmic layers in the piece. The melodies have a quite constant flow in this piece, not entirely idle, but still flowing forwards in a kind of state of infinite tranquility. The piano chords that appear often in the piece as accents add a nice acoustic element to the piece, though they also do seem to remind the start up sounds of old Macintosh computers, adding to the rhythmic layer as well. This piece definitely showcases the tropical island style of calmly flowing yet also intricately sound designed and inspired compositions Mor Air brings us a lot on Life Behind Glass. Never really abrasive, but also never sinking into just ambience for ambience’ sake. On Face To Face Mor Air blends a melancholic warm synth melody with an organ like drone, glimmering nature field recordings and pitched voice samples as well as flute like resonance effects. In the second half of the track, the music moves into a nicely slowed down UK garage style groove, with bouncy low pitched drums. It’s a great combination of atmospheric elements and some club vibes in this piece and again there are some cool sound design details in the piece, like the stretched textures within the drone, and subtle extra melodic elements. A very nice track again. Then on In Solidarity With Ghosts the lushness continues with another pleasantly flowing combination of synth melodies, melodic synth variations, as well as choppy kick rhythms, similar to Placate but with a more EDM styled click to the kick sound and the staccato melodies match the rhythm of the drums. The poppy flowing warm synth melodies do actually remind me a bit of The Chemical Brothers in their fluctuations and playful warm mellow ambience and the percussion sounds (drum sticks, flanged delayed claps) add a nice trippy vibe to the whole piece. Like I mentioned before, the music on this album really has a kind of relaxed island vibe to it, with the melodies being quite easy going but the tracks also being filled with nice details and wide spaced ambience textures, great music. Two Years then is a much more minimalist hypnotically repetitive piece with glimmering ambiences, sweet trumpet melody samples and tumbling looped piano samples that form the base of the piece. Very rich in textures and warmth and this piece definitely has a very nice uplifting feeling about it. Head Blown Out afterwards moves back to the more consistent mixture of ambiences and often quite bassy grooves, with a piece that has got some awesome samples, deep bass, and a strong old-school Dubstep influence with its deep wobbling bassline, delayed sample stabs manipulated vocal samples and filtered synth effects. The track also reminds me a bit of Wagon Christ’s (Luke Vibert) early albums on Ninja Tune. An intriguing mixture of obscure mysterious melodic elements, nature field recordings and a choppy beat, very nicely driving and deep piece. One of my favourite tracks on this album for sure. Build Me As A Birdhouse is an ecstatic piece filled with warm bright synths, nature recordings, including some seagulls and more high pitched details which builds towards a pretty intense and distorted climax. Nicely pulsating synths in this one, if you listen closely you’ll also notice that yes, there’s also some cool vocal samples in this piece, just like in Head Blown Out. Please Let Me Sing The Good Notes then, is a soundtrack like contemplative piece of music, featuring effected piano, deep spacious sparse panned percussion, bright synth and a train like rumbling percussion rhythm as well. This piece has got quite an 80s vibe to it, with the anvil like resonant percussion sound recalling 80’s Industrial styled textures and the synths having quite clean production to them, albeit it with some funky filter effects to them as well, nice piece again. Ruined Night does continue the 80s sound in a way with an oriental melody, Ethereal female vocals and an intense drum machine rhythm, which also includes drum break samples and nicely a punchy 32nd note kick pattern. The vocals are however also effected in a great way with a panning effect increasing the rate of stereo stutters and decreasing it in waves. The firework sounds are also a great addition to this track which adds some extra cinematic depth to the piece, very nice again, excellent deep atmospheric groove. Final piece First Blush is like the first track a short piece, in this case a Progressive Electronic styled synth ambience backed by a bouncy PWM synth arpeggio and effected dialogue spoken by a woman. Both atmospheric and spacey, this fluid ambience stream is a great ending of this lush album by Mor Air. All in all on Life Behind Glass Mor Air very successfully blends elements from various exciting styles of electronic music into his own personal warm beatscapes and ambiences which are not only rich in soundlplay and layering but are in the end also very hopeful emotive pieces of music that together form a sweet soundtrack like collection of music on this album and of which certain melodic and sonic details might recall some particularly pleasant memories of your own life as well. An excellent album for not only fans of the aforementioned genres but also for people looking for a warm melodic album of electronic music that not only relaxes but inspiring your subconscious in a peaceful state in this late summer. Go check it out. At time of writing this album is still available as limited edition cassette tape including "Interpretations" poetry book by Colin Moir at the Genot Centre Bandcamp: https://genot.bandcamp.com/album/life-behind-glass

[dudja]

Boson Spin - Hypnosis [part 6] by Boson Spin 28Aug19 :D

[thesunlounge]

Reviews 324: Proper Sunburn - Forgotten Sunscreen Applied by Basso

Given that February is almost over, I’m slowly starting to accept that there’s going to be many great albums from 2019 that I’ll never get a chance to write about. There’s one though that I can’t imagine leaving behind, and that is Proper Sunburn - Forgotten Sunscreen Applied by Basso, which comprises the third volume of Music for Dreams’ “The Serious Collector Series.” Whereas other volumes in the series such as Jan Schulte’s Tropical Drums of Deutschland or soFa’s Elsewhere Junior: A Collection of Cosmic Children’s Songs have explored conceptual curation and highly specific soundworlds, Basso’s Proper Sunburn seeks to do nothing more than present an excellent and well-sequenced collection of tracks and thus aligns closely with Moonboots’ balearic masterpiece Moments in Time. The selections here range from bargain bin beauties to highly obscure rarities, and every single note perfectly encapsulates that elusive yet somehow well understood “Growing Bin vibe.” Across four sides of perfectly pressed wax, Basso treats the listener to wonderful expanses of sunshine positivity, wherein ambient prog shufflers and new age fusion burners intermingle with forest folk psych meditations and joyous synthesizer starscapes. Elsewhere, sugar plum pop vocals surround soulful breakbeat bangers, Italo serenades are married to interstellar AOR, future jazz beatscapes lead Afro-savanna spirituals, and spectral harp runs rain down over acidic lounge zone outs. And though the vibe is primarily of ebullience and celebration, there are also moments of shadowy intensity and dark drama, as the compilation occasionally detours towards dirgey break-up anthems, psychoactive riff rockers, tribal-tinged NDW lullabies, and cruises down the autobahn with shades drawn to the night sky.

Proper Suburn - Forgotten Sunscreen Applied by Basso (Music for Dreams, 2019) The journey begins with Hans Hass and a question: “Welche farbe hat der wind”? Delay-soaked seagull cries introduce a shuffling drum and acoustic guitar groove, with broken beat snare and cymbal patterns giving everything a folksy funk touch. Spindly six string leads weave in and out of the mix and basslines thump through up/down octave motions while Hass’ closed mic’d vocals wrap sensual threads around the heart. During the chorus, harmonious sirens back the male croon and later, during a subdued guitar solo, masculine and feminine vocal accents accompany the psych folk adventures…the whole thing taking my mind to Pentangle…as if McShee and Jantsch are scatting together while Renbourn tears up the fretboard. Pianos add a touch of western saloon magic, ambient organs hover in the distance, and at some point, seagulls, waves, and jet engine drones threaten to wash the mix away. Later, when the vocal scats return, they are more mysterious…haunted even…as they track the dazzling piano and acoustic guitar fireworks. And as the track ends, it all devolves into musique concrete, with voices speaking amidst crazed sound fx and jangling riff panoramas. In the liner notes, Basso discusses being inspired to revisit Volume 5 of DJ Food’s Jazz Breaks series due to a Moonboots set in Croatia, and so we have “The Dawn” appearing here. Seashells, rainsticks, and seed shakers introduce a jazz-kissed tabla rhythm, with tambourines ringing and trap kit touches intercutting in the form of bopping fills and tribal tom flourishes. Afro-idiophonics rain down from a sunshine sky, with balafon gourds buzzing amidst harmonious bass currents that seem to rise up from the soil. Whispers move through blinding feedback swells, synthesizers bathe paradise savannas in golden light, and virtual trumpets intertwine with ancestral choirs emanating from sticks and stones…the whole thing coming together like some dubbed out future jazz approximation of Phil Collins’ globalist world pop.

RVDS’s “Minuet de Vampire” is the most recent cut here and sees rhythm boxes leading a heroin-soaked lounge sway, with hissing hats decaying, square wave synth pulses bopping like a contrabass, and wavering chords hovering like morning fog. Decaying note trails seems to stretch towards infinity, subtle filter manipulations transform into ghostly howls, and guitar volume swells generate billowing hazes that are both angelic and sickly at once. There’s a touch of fever dream delirium as resonating vapors overlap and just as you’ve resigned yourself to the almost oppressive atmospherics of midnight exotica, flashes of light enter via spellbinding harp runs…these immersively gorgeous string melodies that intermingle with the downer atmospheres of firedance future jazz in a way recalling Alice, though as if backed by band of cyborgs. Brass-generated dub chords flutter into the stereo field and the plucked strings continue to shimmer like starlight…increasingly sounding not like a harp, but some crystalline structure that produces melodic waterfalls of every possible color. Then in “Light of Darkness” by Horizont, acoustic guitar rhythms shimmer like underwater gemstones…with dueling six strings generating golden fireworks and refracting lightwaves. Hand drums pop all around the spectrum and shakers keep the body afloat on a soft ambient pulse, with everything doused in reverb and rimshots pinging like sonar blips. There’s a growing sense of anticipation that is eventually rewarded by the presence of smooth basslines, which execute enigmatic conversation with the drum and six string panoramics while sometimes sliding up high and disappearing amongst layers of arpeggiated magic. Almost nothing is allowed to break free from the polyrhythmic folk ritual, so that as the song progresses, it starts to evoke Methany and Hiett, only as if surrendering in total to ceremonial new age minimalism…like a spiritual dance through seascape universes and realms of balearic fantasy.

Xiame’s “Nosso Destino,” from the group’s 1990 LP Xiame, begins with slap bass soloing and guitar chords flowing through reverberating gas clouds. Rainforest percussions underly a narcotizing duet between voice and guitar, wherein sensual pop serenades are back by ringing dreampop chord jangles, and all through the background, Michael Shrieve-style fusions fills splatter and clatter amidst liquid tabla accents. The fragile Italo vocalisms and soft focus touches of mediterranean balladry sweep the heart away towards some seaside paradise...the whole thing scoring a romantic beachside dance bathed in moonlight. There’s a moment where the mix gives over to indulgent fusion fantasy as basslines alight on crazed prog adventures while elsewhere, we push ever further towards a world of transcendent romanticism, with guitar riffs growing urgent and cooing vocalisms suffusing the stereo field…these radiant babbles and child-like croons that eventually climax in a beatific angel chorus. And during an epic passage of closed eye dreampop perfection, a brief yet jaw-dropping laser light guitar solo sets the very air aflame. As Basso tells it, Miko’s “Im Garten” made its way into the balearic consciousness when he live edited two 7”s together at the Garden in Zadar, Croatia. The track sees drum fills communicating with rhythmic birdsong before giving over to a smashing tribal stomp, with bending funk synths and fourth world electro-flutes creating visages of otherworldly jungle environments. Miko enters the scene like some priestess of the night, her operatic vocal mysteries moving in lock step with the militant percussive exotica. Further layers of future funk synthesis arc across the sky and overdubbed voices join in with the sunbeam spells and tribal jazz diva breaths. Industrial winds blow across the mix, hissing voices are obscured by bell tree sparkles, and at some point, the track gives over to rhythmic rainforest psychedelia, with idiophones splashing alongside a mystical drum processional.

Massimo Stella’s “C’e Una Donna Sola” sees touches of mediterranean fusion intermingling with romantic disco and galactic AOR. Sometimes planetarium synthscapes, orgasmic diva moans, and polyrhythmic guitar and piano patterns dance over prog basslines and bongo-led lizard funk drum jams as keyboard star-trails ascend towards the sky. Elsewhere, pleading vocals pull at the heart, heatwave pads wiggle and squiggle, and Rhodes chords skip on sunbeams while octave basslines anchor energetic disco rhythmics. And after some evil vocal chanting and enigmatic angel cooing, we flash into a section of anthemic phaser brass riffing and kaleidoscopic piano soloing before working towards a climax of prog fusion pyrotechnics. Trimolo follows with “Tempe 100” and its congas executing a fantasy jazz bop amidst sparkling guitar harmonics. Pads blow like a cool sea breeze, vocalized bass pulses float the soul, and a flute alights on flights of forest folk fancy while occasionally being joined by pan-pipe virtualisms. During a dramatic instrumental chorus, piano chords bang and sprightly woodwinds flutter above hand drums before the track gives over to a strange midsection wherein digitized clavinet basslines wobble through alien funk motions while western twang acoustics snap overhead. And moving back towards the balearic sway, synthesizers suffuse the mix with sunset colorations as flute leads and Bibiloni-style guitar solos score a beachside forest paradise. Diedel’s “Wo Seid Ihr” is built on rigid machine drums, ethereal pad hazes, and throbbing bass pulsations…the vibe like cruising down a mysterious highway under the dark of night. Claps crack and hi-hats tick anxiously behind Diedel’s sensual singing…his voice whispered and hitting like hot breath on the back of the neck. During the chorus, the track title is repeated in desperation and as darkwave arpeggiations filter over swelling pad cloudforms, we find ourselves in a world of horror-tinged synth-pop that brilliantly presages many aspects of the Italians Do It Better aesthetic. Best of all, the track climaxes with not one but two guitar solos: a Flamenco-kissed acoustic adventure and a molten fuzz guitar eruption.

Mikey D.’s “I Need You (Dub)” sees fat bottomed breaks boom bap’n beneath tropical synth accents, syrupy sampler vocals, orgasmic breaths, electro-tom fills, and bouncing synth basslines. Ethereal hazes and glowing symphonies surround bubblegum vocalisms…these magical boy band fairy hooks that combine with the equatorial dance grooves in a way reminding me of The Knife’s Deep Cuts. At some point, the mix devolves into pure b-boy breakdance mesmerism, with rhythms slapping beneath a panorama of trance electronics and that familiar sample of “you make me feel so good” from Mikey Dread’s “Comic Strip.” Elsewhere, a moment of silence sees ambient percussions, soulful claps, and synthesized orchestrations rushing in alongside a heavenly choral cascades, with repetitions of “Baby! / I Love You! / I Want You! / I Need Your Love!” resulting a pitch perfect moment of electronic gospel pop. And as the song ends, we found ourselves in a surgery sweet paradise of a capella wonderment. As Basso discusses in the liner notes, Wolfsmond’s “Fühl Dich Frei” was an all too short floor filler, one that was begging for an extended dancefloor edit. And so we have “Basso’s Maxi Edit,” which sees evil bass descents leading to a shaker-led rock groove…a pot smoke boogie pulse with tapped hats riding behind squiggling blues guitars while e-pianos sparkle like crystal. Gothic bells ring out as a smokey voice enters the scene, working through stoner lullabies while backing vocals hover mysteriously. The choruses have an almost country western feel, with the track title sung hopefully amidst saloon piano accents and soulful diva whispers, and during an instrumental bridge, woodblocks tick strangely as psychosonic blues solos ride into the night. There’s a moment where it all breaks down into repetitive hand drumming and looping feedback, and as we build back up through scatting guitar riffs and funked out basslines, the track eventually erupts into a jaw dropping 60s psych organ solo.

Apparently, Ghia’s “You Won’t Sleep on My Pillow” was at one point intended to be the closing track, and would have ended this compilation quite dramatically with some shadowy synth pop narcotica touching on Violet Eves and Portishead. Basslines echo and downer drum machine rhythms crack into the void while sci-fi electronics transmute into a heatwave mirage. Lisa Ohm croons over it all with defiant break-up poetry and declarations of independence and as we move into the chorus, the anthemic vocals are backgrounded by golden guitar arpeggios and howling fuzz leads, which create a mesmerizing contrast wherein epic fantasy melodics pull the mind towards cloudland castles even as the lyrics grow ever more angered and intense. There’s a breathtaking moment where the mix explodes open, seeing layer after layer of romantic angel harmonizations pushing the heart towards a climactic synth-pop dreamworld. And later, the group leaves behind the pop paraisos by giving over to tripped out bass fx, boom bap drum expanses, soloing fuzz guitars, and skittering electro accents. A find inspired by a CDr acquired from Tako Reyenga of Music from Memory, Jean Phillipe Rykiel’s “Fair Light” ends the journey on a note of radiant ebullience. Spectral click rhythms underly pads that hit like seafoam, resulting in a polysynth panorama of ambient fusion mastery. Aquamarine hazes are chained to bubbling bass currents, yearning leads modulate through layers of ocean mist, and majestic chordscapes hover like clouds while whale song tracers set the air ablaze. Sometimes we venture off into noodly prog wankery, though it’s always seen through a soft-focus new age blur, and at some point, jangling fuzz guitars enter the scene and give the mix an enhanced fantasy sparkle. The pads lock together to score some impossible sunrise while the leads push ever further towards psychedelic abstraction and nearing the end, kosmische arps billow in from underwater depths and intermingle with the light of refracting starbeams.

(images from my personal copy)

[tarikuta]

(Boson Spin)