quête:ambient

DANDANA is a musical collective with musicians from the Netherlands, Senegal and The Gambia with members Bas Ackermann, Ebou Gaye Mada, Filly Dioma, Jackson Loman, Joop de Graaf and Modou Joof. Their sound pays tribute to traditional West African rhythm and grooves, and the love for ambient and synthesizers. On this album, they combine spiritual griot music, traditional instruments from Senegal and The Gambia such as the sabar, xalam and balafon, percussion, electronic drum pads and a range of vintage synthesizers. Inspiration is drawn from West African psychedelic mandingue pioneers Guelewar, Ifang Bondi & Touré Kunda and the synth-driven vibes of bands like Air & Tame Impala.

Most of the album was recorded in The Gambia and Senegal in 2019. In these urgent times of COVID-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement it becomes clear that we have to free ourselves from the current system. 'Free The System!' is about the gap between the older and the younger generation. The old system can’t easily deal with young or new ideas. The system needs to be changed, we have to free ourselves from it.

Kumail is a musician, producer, performing artist Mumbai, India. Over the last four years, he has ascended to the very top of India's burgeoning culture of electronic music on two parallel paths - as a gifted musician and bandleader drawing expansive canvases of rhythm, texture and emotion, and as a roughneck DJ notorious for breaking ankles. Having started off plunging deep into lo-fi ambient electronica, Those paths have led him to a DJ set at Dimensions Festival 2018 in Croatia, a string of several live festival dates across India, and extensive touring across the country. In the past, he has shared the stage with the likes of Shigeto, Four Tet, DJ Koze, Teebs, Ratatat, Mount Kimbie and Kutmah, and been featured on Boiler Room, Sofar Sounds and COLORS

The new album "Yasmin" was always meant to be the birth of a new sound for Kumail. After spending his formative years delving into textural lo-fi electronica and textural ambient music, he went searching for a new sound more in-tune with his older, more mature, and more thoughtful self. What began as a study of modern soul music – drawing heavily from R&B, jazz and hip-hop – eventually sprawled to include flavours from across the world and time. 80's Japanese funk, crackling gospel, shiny disco, cutting-edge LA beat music and the omnipresence of Dilla, all leave their faint but indelible mark.

But deep within, Yasmin is a gritty world in which not much is going right. That world borders on real-life struggles with sleeplessness and anxiety, and being cooped up in a room in Bombay, India, which is where (and how) most of this album came to life. Countless nights spent making music to distract from a lack of inner calm and rest.

Despite deliberately steering clear from sampling for his career thus far, a day spent digging in Istanbul ended up inspiring much of the album – not only did that day yield a discovery of Pierre Akendengue's 'Olatano, w'intye so du s' Afrika' (a sample of which appears on 'Obota') but also a range of 80's soul records that transformed Kumail into a student for the next two years. With a renewed focus on musicality, practising playing the piano, learning new songs and improving production skills, Yasmin evolved into a 30 minute mood-board of lush voicings and explorations beyond just beat-making. The ensuing recording sessions featured a line-up of both all-star local session musicians as well as invited collaborators - Sid Vashi and Pink Siifu both deliver memorable features. Despite vocal performances eventually making their way onto nearly all songs on the record, Yasmin was never meant to feature Kumail's singing. With or without vocals, Yasmin's triumph is that it is nevertheless unmistakably the sound of Kumail finding his voice.

Third number in the DDS split series after a pair of releases courtesy of Betonkust/Uj Bala and DJ Overdose/Sematic4, "DDS03" sees Budapest duo SILF (alias Farbwechsel chief-operators Alpar & S Olbricht) and Den Haag-based pair Intergalactic Gary and Pasiphae join forces on a quartet of elusive, unpigeonholeable power moves.

Four years after the drop of their debut joint EP on Biorhythm, "Made of Glass", I-G and Pasiphae are back at it with two left-of-centre hybrids of futuristic techno on a whirring electro-industrial tip. An off-kilter jam percolating fine hints of spiritual elation and post-apocalyptic anxiety, "Microwaves" gets the ball rolling on a dichotomous note. To slo-scudding flocks of loud, bouncy kicks supersede skeins of brittle chimes and rattling drums, all woven together by subtle tectonic shifts of moody pads.

A further hi-intensity affair, "Indistinct Chatter" drives that essential heavenly/nightmarish duplicity to higher spheres of consciousness. Fusing lighthearted, daydreaming tonalities with brooding, cavernous onslaughts from the depths, the track has us navigating in a zone of its own, deftly oscillating betwixt moments of mystique-imbued euphoria and darkling introspection. A choice exponent of the Hague-based dyad's capacity at busting antiquated patterns and limitations.

Having slept in the label's vaults for a few seasons, the two tracks composing the B-side emerge from their slumber in all their time-proof bravura. An in-your-face trampler, the ten-minute long "Mono Miner" takes no byway to get its point across, all set to smash basements and warehouses by the dozen with its electrifying compound of 909-emulated gut churn and spinning synth arpeggios circling like birds of prey over your sore, rhythm-enslaved carcass.

Closing the journey on a much softer, hazier vibe, "Aces" steers us towards a realm of ambient wonder, where slo-drip cascades of tapping percussions and elegiac synth waters flow into warm, glimmering summer beds. A most contrasting, tranquillising finale to an EP defined by its propensity to change colours and intensity throughout.

Much like a bird of prey, Oliver Moir (FKA Flora Tucker, AKA
Sandman) has hovered over CV’s operations for quite some
time, diligently picking at releases, parties here and abroad,
and mixes; waiting to strike. Now, and after what seems like
an aeon, Connection Veri¦ed is proud to present: I Rocked Till
the Midnight Hour at Melissa’s Bat Mizvah. The 8-track
ambient LP is a glowing excursion through Moir’s perception
of the world, as the album hums across vast plateaus, gently
weaving in and out of endlessly complex pads, and into the
pliant ears of listeners. Emotions gush as a mood of warm
introspection sets in, with Moir taking us onboard as he sails
across the glimmering sonic waves. The LP comes off the
back of a long but bountiful path through electronic music,
and CV is proud to exhibit it in full, with our ¦rst dedicated
ambient release.

To accompany the 18 track, 2 x CD Planisphere – Atmospheres release, we’re delighted to present another duo of vinyl for the purists. Atmospheres 2 x 12” Vinyl Album Sampler will feature 5 remastered originals alongside the brand-new Atmospheres. George and Laurent continue to click in the studio, and as the excitement built over the last few months, we just knew they were going to create greatness once again.

Vinyl 1 will house the main track Atmospheres. Taking up Side A, this hybrid groove encapsulates that Planisphere sound beautifully. Theatrical, cinematic, melodic and intriguing. Ambient sequences join a tight breaks pattern before a more driving bassline takes over along with 4x4 beats, leaving us thoroughly gratified and wanting more. On the flip, we have two gems. B1 has So Many Ways, a track that found its way into sets from the bedroom to the mega-party and beyond. A real epic, progressive trance groove filled with swirling, captivating pads and a melody that juts melts into your soul. B2 hosts Lektrophony, a solid breaks track that locks you in with its hypnotic charm and 303 lines. A relentless groover, the breakbeats are so addictive and the acid lines give it a real nice touch. Another epic smasher that never disappoints.

Vinyl 2 features the mighty Deep Blue Dream on the A side. With its relentlessly powerful bassline and dreamy melodies, this one remains a go to track to keep the groove solid. Besides the epic flavour of the track, the break on this is huge. Descending into slow moving pads, the arps never really fades before it all builds and builds into a wonderful climax, revealing powerful, sweeping strings and pads. Over on the B1 slot we have Cyborganic which intros with a Pete Namlook-esque arpeggio sequence alongside a deep droning bass before punchy kicks and huge synths take over. A proper peak time slice full of energy and drive. Rounding up this must have vinyl set in the B2 position, we have the impressive The Lost Planet, which was originally found in a superb two-part release, Sounds From Outer Space back in 2000. This one has everything, a Balearic groove with a spacey vibe. Undertones of 303 lurk as sweet, dreamy pad melodies allow us to drift.

This 2-part sampler is a must have for all vinyl enthusiasts, with limited quantities, keep an eye out for pre-order on our website and socials.

Long sought after by collectors, DJs and lovers of hard salsa and boogaloo alike, 'Yo Traigo Boogaloo' is now lovingly reissued in replica form with the original cover art, remastered from the studio tapes, reproducing that magical MAG studio sound for today's aficionados to enjoy like it was 1969 all over again. Alfredo Linares is a globetrotting pianist, composer, bandleader and producer from Peru with a long, prolific career in latin music. His long sought after by DJs and collectors of hard salsa and boogaloo alike, 'Yo Traigo Boogaloo' is now lovingly reissued in replica form with the original cover art, remastered from the studio tapes, reproducing that magical MAG studio sound for today's aficionados to enjoy like it was 1969 all over again. Details: Alfredito "Sabor" Linares is a globetrotting pianist, composer, bandleader and producer from Lima, Peru with a long, prolific career in hot Latin music spanning more than half a century. Though Linares has come to recent international fame through his work with William "Quantic" Holland, he was already quite popular and famous in his adopted countries of Colombia and Venezuela in the 1970s and 80s during the salsa boom. However, his career began in Lima, backing timbalero Ñico Estrada at age 17 in 1961, and Alfredito's first notable recording as a sideman was a few years later on the now legendary 'El Combo de Pepe' album for IEMPSA/Odeon. Subsequently Linares would advance his career by recording two fabulous records under his own capable leadership as Alfredo Linares Y Su Sonora at the end of the decade for the MAG label. These releases capitalized on recent developments in New York Latin music, namely Latin jazz, boogaloo, descarga (jam session) and what would later be marketed as "salsa" with roots in the Cuban guaguancó and guaracha genres. One can hear direct inspiration coming from Joe Cuba, Ricardo Ray, and Eddie Palmieri, especially on the first album, 'El Pito', and yet by the second record, there are plenty of original tunes as well. More importantly there is a 'swing' and assertiveness to the playing (and arrangements) that prove every bit as authentic, tough and danceable as their New York inspirations. As Linares himself recounts, "In that era, we fought against a generation that was half-blind, because the people who understood what we were doing were few. We had to fight hard for our space in Perú, that's where the swing comes from." That special 'swing' also emanated from Linares' ace backing band, which happened to be a talented stable of MAG studio musicians who all understood Cuban and jazz music: percussionists Mario Allison and Coco Lagos, bassist Joey di Roma, Kiko Fuentes and Carlos Muñoz on lead vocals and Melcochita on coro (vocal chorus). According to Linares, the studio band was "open-ended, some musicians came some days, others on other days_Nilo Espinoza on saxophone, Betico Salas and Tito Chicoma on trumpets. Otto de Rojas played piano, and so did Charlie Palomares, who played vibraphone. Another good musician was guitarist Carlos Hayre." Though the recordings were cut "live in the studio" and many were basically composed on the spot, the intrinsic strength and maturity of the performances on 'Yo Traigo Boogaloo' stand the test of time as one of Peru's most important contributions to tropical music across the decades, establishing Alfredito Linares as a master of the idiom and serving as a harbinger for great things to come for him in Colombia and Venezuela. Long sought after by collectors, DJs and lovers of hard salsa and boogaloo alike, 'Yo Traigo Boogaloo' is now lovingly reissued in replica form with the original cover art, remastered from the studio tapes, reproducing that magical MAG studio sound for today's aficionados to enjoy like it was 1969 all over again. Pablo E Yglesias DJ Bongohead of Peace & Rhythm

SUMMER OF SEVENTEEN are MONIKA KHOT (NORDRA, ZEN MOTHER), WILLIAM FOWLER COLLINS, DANIEL MENCHE, FAITH COLOCCIA (MAMIFFER), and AARON TURNER. (SUMAC, SPLIT CRANIUM).

Wildfires plagued Washington state during the summer of 2017, their smoke drifting westward toward the Seattle area and toxifying the air. Shortly before that trauma, MONIKA KHOT, WILLIAM FOWLER COLLINS, DANIEL MENCHE, FAITH COLOCCIA, and AARON TURNER had gathered at the latter two musicians' House Of Low Culture studio on idyllic Vashon Island with revered producer RANDALL DUNN. There they cut eight songs that capture the makeshift band's feelings of what COLOCCIA calls "a kind of doomsday lurking in the background." It's as if these highly attuned players had a premonition.

"Summer Of Seventeen" -which was edited and arranged by MONIKA KHOT, who records apocalyptic music solo as NORDRA and plays in the avant-rock band ZEN MOTHER—is a nuanced admixture of these musicians' sounds and a culmination of all of their previous collaborations. COLOCCIA and TURNER have created eldritch folk and chamber rock for over a decade in MAMIFFER while engaging in various solo and group projects that explore their profound spirituality in sound. MENCHE has been a fixture on the abstract composition scene for 31 years and COLLINS is a savvy explorer of drone and ambient forms. Their ephemeral summit meeting has yielded a masterwork for the ages.

A heaven/hell and beauty/beastliness dichotomy pervades the album—as if a titanic struggle was transpiring in that small studio. The fearsome trumpet fanfare that starts "Chorus Of The Innocents" heralds a baleful fate. With a subliminal industrial rhythm bristling beneath the eerie exhalations, the song submerges us in a slow-motion maelstrom, a horror-film facsimile of MILES DAVIS' "Bitches Brew". "Perceived Slight" threads death-metal screams through a stark, suspenseful atmosphere, with austere glints of guitar and beats like fists on a casket lid intensifying the dread.

Angelic chants and celestial drones perfume the air in several of the songs on "Summer Of Seventeen", countered with muted blast beats, serrated hums, jagged glitches, simulacra of grinding gears and lightning. It's as if no good deed goes unpunished. "Spirits Of Redeemer" could be an elegy for the human race while "Cultural Orphan" sounds like a symphony for a malfunctioning factory. The album ends with "Theatre Needs An Audience," a harrowing ballad somewhere between EINSTÜRZENDE NEUBAUTEN and MERZBOW; it's a savage rent in the space-time continuum.

"Thinking about this record now," COLOCCIA recalls, "it seems like we were all sort of anticipating something like this current pandemic happening, although we were thinking about it as fire in the hands of man (literal fire, and also gunfire) that would overturn the normal running of things and reveal the current false beliefs systems holding up most of America."

That grave aura infiltrates "Summer Of Seventeen", However, a hopefulness bubbles beneath the foreboding architecture of sound and noise summoned here. The bunker is the new penthouse.

-Dave Segal, April 2020

Automatic Tasty (Jonny Dillon) has been away from Central Processing Unit for five years now, releasing on labels such as AC Records and Furthur Electronix in the intervening time. However, new EP The Future Is Not What It Used To Be shows that the chemistry between label and artist is still in good nick by offering up four tracks of contemplative electro-boogie.

While the preceding CPU/Automatic Tasty drop may be 2015's The Life Parochial, The Future Is Not What It Used To Be actually has more in common with Sentimentalist's Choice, Automatic Tasty's CPU debut which came out back in 2013. This is not due to a huge stylistic shift - all three records bring together classic electro, techno and boogie sounds to create charming and melodious tracks - but more to do with the tone of the record. You see, while The Life Parochial was a squelchy machine-funk delight, The Future Is Not What It Used To Be is a more pensive affair befitting its title.

This isn't to say that The Future Is Not What It Used To Be is a muted EP. Far from it - this record contains some of the most gorgeous electro joints you'll hear all year. The vibe is established on its eponymous opening jam, a vocoder-laced production pitched somewhere between the more ruminative tunes on Posthuman's 2018 LP Mutant City Acid and contemporary boogie acts such as Funkineven/Steven Julien and Galaxians. The track is made by the beautiful, bittersweet timbre of its synths, and these are maintained on following number 'Romance In The Old Country'. Given the offbeat skip in its groove and sunset-glow ruefulness of the keys, 'Romance In The Old Country' is a cut which invokes the instrumentals of Jessy Lanza LPs - and even (whisper it) a little Sade.

The Future Is Not What It Used To Be is an EP of evocative track titles, but there may be none more accurate than first B-side 'Rising Sun'. Here, Automatic Tasty tweaks the wistfulness of the A-side cuts into something more uplifting. While a thoughtful quality remains in 'Rising Sun's soft synths and skittering 808s, the track is driven by the exuberant energy of the 'Woo! Yeah!' drum break to become the sort of tune you drop as dawn begins to break over the rave. 'Rising Sun's afterglow falls over the closing track 'Adventures In The World Of Becoming', a steady IDM-electro pulse that channels the spirit of Aphex Twin's seminal Selected Ambient Works 85-92.

'The future is not what it used to be - no past, no memory'. With this robo-voiced intonation, Automatic Tasty returns to Sheffield's Central Processing Unit with four moving, poignant machine-funk tracks.

Ocean Moon is a solo project from Jon Tye of Seahawks. A long time explorer of the sounds of spaciousness, having released the ambient classic LP iO in 1994 as MLO, Crystal Harmonics is a document of Jon’s latest discoveries. An ambient/new age/modern classical library suite for KPM, this is inter-dimensional music for mind, body and spirit.

Island Visions, the recent collection of music from Seahawks for KPM, touched on the deeper, more spatial side of music and led to Jon exploring this territory in greater depth, again for KPM, under his Ocean Moon alter ego. This time he brought along some of today’s most visionary musicians: Jon Brooks (The Advisory Circle / Ghostbox) for his intuitive melodic mastery, Seaming To (Graham Massey’s Toolshed) for her extraordinary vocal talents, Steve Moore (Zombi) for his sophisticated and inventive rhythmic sensibility and Richard Norris (The Grid) for his sensitive and deeply resonant ambience. The initial recordings were made at The Centre Of Sound in Cornwall, with the collaborators various contributions coming from London, Derbyshire and the US.

The supremely serene electronic flute and bells of “Crystal Drift” ease us into our journey and we take our next steps with “Rainbow Ripples” as it gently folds space with arpeggiated synth swells and delicate machine beats. Light vocal tones, bells and breath FX on “And Breathe” keep us going, accompanied by synth drones and billows of electric piano.

We travel through the synth-space-surf haze of “Lost Oceans”, with soft bass and warm ambience, to reach the “New Infinity” of revolving melody, spacious pads and light electronic beats. The celestial tone floats of “White Mirror” close out the first side.

Temple bells ring out to running water flowing together with deep resonant vocal tones as the second side opens with “Peace Bells”. “Revolving and Evolving” follows, a tranquil electronic meadow of lush pastoral synth tones where we rest for a while for “Mountain Dreaming”, a light rhythmic dance of zither and birdsong.

The undulating “Forest Motion” ripples with synth arpeggios, dreamy Solina strings and percussive modular electronics before allowing the crackling ambience and Cantonese whispers of “Sleep Golden” to wash over us. Finally we find ourselves on “The Long Path”, its warm temple ambience of drones and chants guiding us home.

Crystal Harmonics is inspired by four particular albums from KPM’s catalogue. There’s The Electronic Light Orchestra by Adrian Wagner from 1975 and then Temple Of The Stars, Breath Of Life and finally Keith Mansfield’s Circles, these last three coming from KPM’s mid-1980s run of modern classical/New Age gems. For Jon, “making library music can be very liberating. I really enjoyed the additional focus it brought to the music working on different facets of composition with each collaborator”.

But Crystal Harmonics is no mere exercise in vulger pastiche. As the past, present and future sound of paradise, this fresh exploration of mid-90s ambient and original New Age sounds exists outside of our linear experience of time.

The cover started as a collage Jon made a couple of years ago, a different expression of the same impulses that guided the music. As a nod to the records that provided seeds of inspiration, the collage was framed by KPM’s house style of the 1980s for the finished sleeve by Richard Robinson.

Mastered for vinyl by Be With’s sonic shaman Simon Francis, cut by the legendary Pete Norman and pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry, Ocean Moon’s Crystal Harmonics is the tranquil balm for these turbulent times.

180g clear marbled vinyl + stamped sleeve + inside out printed cover

Mood of departure presents the 50th release of ORNAMENTS. "Roadmap" LP is crossing borders,
forests, mountains and deep atmospheres on a trip of finest electronics from the past and today
combined with recordings of destructions.

Some Previous here

Resident Advisor

German label Ornaments Music is putting out its 50th release, Mood Of Departure's Roadmap.

The album comprises twelve tracks of melodic ambient and trip-hop, and is due out next month. The LP will be pressed up on marbled vinyl on November 6th, while the digital album is slated for November 23rd release.

This summer, Ornaments Music put out Assemblage, a dub techno collaborative project from Paul St. Hilaire and Rhauder.

Groove MAG

„Man soll die Feste feiern wie sie fallen.” Hachja – 2020 ist wirklich vieles anders. Sogar manche Lebensweisheiten treffen in diesem Jahr nicht mehr zu, wie sie das noch letztes taten. Zum Glück dürfen wir uns aber über eines umso mehr freuen, über tonnenweise neue Musik. So feiert unter anderem Ornaments Music Release-Jubiläum. Das Berliner Label bereichert seit 2008 mit Künstlern wie Marko Fürstenberg, The Analog Roland Orchestra und Rhauder die Dubtechno-Sparte mit maßgeblichen musikalischen Beiträgen. Mit dem 50. Release Roadmap beschreitet Ornaments nun neue Wege und veröffentlicht ein emotionales Album, dass sich irgendwo zwischen Ambient und Electronica wiederfindet.

Mood Of Departure heißt die Person, die dieses Werk vollbracht hat. Wer dahinter steckt bleibt vorerst geheim. Nur soviel sei gesagt. Es ist nicht ihr erstes. Oder seines? Weil es nur spärliche Informationen über den/die Künstler*in gibt, stehen die einzelnen Stücke ohne Personenkult oder seitenlange Lobeshymnen an erster Stelle. Und wenn man mal ehrlich ist, gibt es schon genug Ablenkung in der heutigen Zeit. Durch das Intro des Albums, durch „Scan”, wird sofort deutlich, dass es sich hier nicht wie gewohnt um ein klassisches Dancefloor-Album handelt. Die Stimme der Sängerin, die auch in einigen weiteren der insgesamt zwölf Stücke vorkommt, verleiht dem Track eher Band- statt Producer-Charakter. Ein sanfter Ambient-Teppich aus luftigen Flächen und wiederhalendem Gesang wird durch simple aber präzise Hip Hop-Beats fortgetragen, und man ist nach dieser Einführung gespannt, was noch folgt.

Faze MAG

Mit dem Debütalbum „Roadmap“ von Mood Of Departure veröffentlicht das Label Ornaments sein 50. Release!

2008 startete das Label, das bekannt ist für sein marmoriertes Vinyl, mit einer EP von Marko Fürstenberg, Acts wie youANDme, Sascha Dive, The Analog Roland Orchestra, Steve Bug oder zuletzt Rhauder & Paul St. Hilaire haben hier auch ihre Spuren hinterlassen.

Peaceful, percussive and idyllic new age from Japanese composer and student of gamelan music, Yas-Kaz. This seminal album is a cornerstone to understand the Japanese ambient and environmental movement. He rose to musical prominence composing for the dance troupe led by one of the founders of Butoh, Tatsumi Hijikata. The album features a wide range of entirely acoustic instruments and field recordings and was made for stage performance by Sankai Juku Butoh Group at Theatre de la Ville, Paris.

Yas-Kaz has influenced quite a few important artist (Ryuichi Sakamoto, Midori Takada, Geino Yamashiro-Gumi) over 4 decades. However, he remains somewhat "unsung": Glossy Mistakes unveils his art throughout this special edition. His composition/music is not focused on any specific genre/style of music either. Especially in his work for dance theatre he often delivers bare abstract sound/resonance which might not be recognized as "musical" from the Western perspective. He lived in Bali, Indonesia in the 70s introducing the gamelan Balinese sounds and culture to Ryuichi Sakamoto (collaborated in the album "Esperanto), Midori Takada, Shoji Yamashiro (leader of Geino Yamashiro-gumi who later created the soundtrack for "Akira”) among others.

A unique and unseen masterpiece unveiled again throughout a remastered edition.

When Yiğit Bülbül knocked on our door and put his debut album on the table, Fever took our hearts in a storm. The Turkish born, London based musician and producer knows how to craft his own contemporary avant-garde pop projections with a rich musical heritage shining through from the 1980s and 90s. His style erupts into silly, absurd moments of synth blurps, percussive extravaganza and psyched horns, It’s always colourful and trippy, but in a light way. It’s exactly what we want to release in a year of distress. The album is framed by two contemplative tracks, which are reminiscent of Holger Czukay’s oeuvre. The saxophone in the opening track "The Heath" undulates like an introvert leading voice in a meditation. The long and meticulously crafted ambient outro "Txalaparta" features a spoken word sample by the Basque folk musician Txomin Artola from 1978. The four tracks at the heart of the album are beat driven, percussion-heavy, loaded with synths and random horn samples. "Alo?" sounds like Snakefinger tries to get on a Skype call with Serge Gainsbourg. "Cacti All Over My Head" could well be a Ween instrumental with long arching synth lines over a slowed down bossa nova beat. Fever is a frivolous album which bursts with exalted charm and guest musicians. This is not another greetings-from-the-lockdown album, but with the obvious reference in the title it’s almost a tongue-in-cheek name about creative obsessions of our times. It's the debut album by the multi-instrumentalist Y Bülbül who has learned his trade working with various interesting artists and bands in London in the past 10 years. He is also a passionate crate digger and DJ. His own radio show is unerringly titled "Bülbül's Gemüsement Park", which airs on Netil Radio, a community broadcasting station in Hackney. Bonus fact, Bülbül is the Turkish name for a brown-eared passerine bird, one that's into singing.

The Fall is a deconstruction of November by Dennis Johnson.

Written for solo piano in 1959, November is the first example of minimalist music composition and was the inspiration for La Monte Young's The Well-Tuned Piano (1964). The 66 minute piece is a collaboration between legendary artist Lustmord and renowned classical pianist Nicolas Horvath, in which they reduces Johnson's original November to its core element and place it in a landscape of complimentary sound. The Fall echo's November but with further resonance.

Recorded in May-June 2019 in Los Angeles, and Misy-sur-Yonne, France.

Lustmord
Active since 1980, born of the original 'industrial' scene of the period. With its own distinctive approach, blurring the line between music and sound design Lustmord's work has featured in 45 motion pictures including The Crow and Underworld and also in video games, television and commercials. Recently Lustmord scored the music for Paul Schrader's movie First Reformed. While Lustmord is often credited for creating the 'dark ambient' genre there is much more nuance to its work than what that label implies. The music is not dark, but is a light that shines into and upon the darkness. Notable collaborations amongst many include Tool, Melvins, Jarboe, John Balance of Coil, Clock DVA, Chris & Cosey, Paul Haslinger, Karin Park and Robert Rich.

Nicolas Horvath
An unusual artist with an unconventional résumé, pianist and electroacoustic composer Nicolas Horvath is known for his boundariesless musical explorations. Horvath is both an enthusiastic promoter of contemporary music - he has commissioned numerous works (including no fewer than 120 as part of his Homages to Philip Glass project in 2014) and collaborated with leading contemporary composers from around the world, including Alvin Lucier, Mamoru Fujieda, Jaan Rääts, Alvin Curran and Valentyn Silvestrov - and a rediscoverer of forgotten or neglected composers such as Moondog, Nobuo Uematsu, Germaine Tailleferre, François-Adrien Boieldieu, Hélène de Montgeroult, Jean Catoire, Karl August Hermann.

There is definitely something "afro" inspired about this latest EP from Puma & The Dolphin, certainly in comparison to pretty much everything else I've ever heard from him, which includes a great EP on Canadian imprint Chambre Noir and some stellar inclusions on every one of Dj soFa's highly respected "Elsewhere" compilations.

I'm told that while immersed in domestic life during lockdown in Sofia, Bulgaria, the music evolved to take in what was happening at home and saw the inclusion of toy instruments, his own drum playing, the voices of his children playing and even the family parrots whistling and squawking in the background. These random ambient insertions when seen in the context of the hypnotic and percussive rhythms and timbres throughout are oddly reminiscent of the late, great Francis Bebey who, although culturally and physically a million miles removed, was also known for recording much of his work at home and who also featured the voices of his children playing.

In fact, it is as much the music's playfulness and simplicity that give the pieces their distinctive character, at times echoing the repetition and mesmerism of Raymond Scott's "Soothing Sounds For Baby" series. Yet, childrens' music this is not. There is a mysticism and depth on one hand and a willingness to experiment on the other that reminds me of pioneering experimentalist K. Leimer's early Eno-inspired tape outings as well (see "Supermarket" for example).

I asked Puma & The Dolphin's Nikko Names if he could share the story behind how these six tracks came together. He had this to say:

"This collection of pieces were created during a monotone period of my life which I have overlaid with colour: a time in which I surrender to the beauty of home life - watching my kids play, feeding the birds - entwining these sounds of my surroundings amongst the rhythmic layers of these pieces. Playing the drums to remind us of the next circle dance for four. There is something mystic to travel only in your head; a shamanic trip inside the body with no concepts and answers."


"Good stuff ... digging Am Am Am and Supermarket in particular" JD Twitch Optimo Music / Blackest Ever Black / Strut / On-U Sound

"Cool stuff" DJ SoFa Pingipung / Emotional Response / Kalahari Oyster Cult

“Twee” is Tsepo’s debut mini-album. The beautiful 6-tracker strikes a balance between breaks, percussive house, and glitchy ambient. Tsepo has been around as a DJ for over 8 years. He played Trouw, Heidegluhen, Lowlands, Shelter, DGTL, Wildeburg, and more. On “Twee”, he combines emotive melodies with expertly produced beats. The diversity of the music is perhaps best expressed in how easily the glitchy ambient works "Dough" and "Max" go together with the resonating techno track "La Vaca Vega" and the uplifting title track "Twee". "Extebarri" (where a hard snare is the basis of a driving melody) and the downtempo "Tribeca" round off the release effortlessly. Tsepo knows what he's doing and his years of experience in the DJ booth echo on this wonderful, well-crafted debut.

Tape / Cassette

Ferdinand Domes is an all-round electronic music producer with a current focus on sound design and ambient tracks. Horror Childs Orient is a collection of live drum machine and syntheziser jams that were created live in Ferdinand’s studio. All tracks are a result of a flow in the moment, creating a sonic scene rather than an arranged track. The result is a collection of atmospheric rhythms, grooves and ambience. The focus is on the individual sounds and the characters of the different machines in Ferdinand’s collection; such as drum sounds from the MFB522 and TR626, synth lines from the Kawai 1M, Yamaha PSS380 and Mikrokorg. All run through tape decks and tweeked with Portastudio and guitar pedals creating a raw and warm analog sound.

As so many great schemes do, it started with a conversation in a pub. After several sporadic releases on Diffrent Music, including his renowned 2013 debut "Tongues", label boss Dexta wanted more music from Fearful. One thing led to another, and suddenly an album was in the works.

The result is "Interference"; a body of work that is reflective not only of the personal idiosyncrasies and aspirations of its London-based producer, but of an artist who has truly been set free of expectations.

Harnessing his own inbuilt need to defy convention, and looking to influences such as classical game soundtracks, experimental mastermind Amon Tobin, and the brooding tones of Akkord and Lorn, Fearful has crafted an album that's unpredictable yet cohesive, and definitive of his aim as an artist.

From the menacing ambient opener "Rocinante", through the glitchy techno of "The Traveler", skewed drum & bass of "Pulse 0" and "Through The Mist", to the roaring drone and pounding metal-inspired drumwork of closer "Gold To Dust", it's an album that demands full attention and repeat listening.

Nowhere is this free-roaming but pull-no-punches attitude summed up better than the title track. Building through eerie, twisted atmospherics - samples of electromagnetic interference, which can be found throughout the album - it clatters into a domineering breakbeat, before collapsing into a guttural, tribalist techno roller.

Where much of dance music draws on repetition, the concept of "Interference" is simple: progression. Whether that be changing motifs within tracks, switching genres within the album, or developing upon Fearful's own artistic strengths, it's an idea never more at home than on Diffrent Music, and we are very proud to present it.

Black Truffle is proud to announce the first vinyl reissue of Rafael Toral’s Aeriola Frequency, originally released by Perdition Plastics in 1998. Toral made his name in the world of mid-90’s experimental electronics with two releases, Sound Mind Sound Body (1994) and Wave Field (1995), both now recognised as classics and reissued on vinyl by Drag City, which saw him exploring the potential of electric guitar and pedals to immerse the listener in seemingly endless waves of sustained tones. On Wave Field, inspired by the striking resonance effects he experienced during a Buzzcocks gig with bad acoustics, he achieved a synthesis—often imitated but never bettered—of rock guitar, Ambient, and the acoustic exploration of Alvin Lucier, a kind of "liquid, abstract flux of rock sound".

On Aeriola Frequency, Toral continued the explorations of Wave Field but dropped the guitar, creating a series of extended pieces using only a simple feedback loop designed to work with pure electronic resonance. The result is far more delicate than Wave Field, a steady but unstable flow of filtered tones that continually reorder themselves into new forms. On both the LP’s sides, the tones, like growing plants, imperceptibly shift from drifting freely in ambient space to weaving strangely natural melodic patterns, as the loops unfold and the resonance gently outlines recurring rhythmic shapes.

The overall effect is strikingly organic, as David Toop noted in the liner notes included in the original release (and reprinted in this reissue): “A crystal garden, the sound grows in reeds and streams, blown like spider web strands, glittering and invisible, pulsing with translucent colour, bubbling and imploding, fraying and powdering.”
A classic of the non-academic approach to electronics that flourished in the 1990s— and a big influence at the time on Black Truffle head honcho Oren Ambarchi—Aeriola Frequency ushers listeners into an endlessly fascinating world of gliding tones and shifting details that they might never want to leave.

- Recorded at Noise Precision, Portugal, December 1997 and April 1998. Remastered by Rafael Toral in 2020.
- Liner notes by David Toop and Rafael Toral.

Birds are singing, a soft female voice embraces the stars, then the funk hits the fan: the second album of mysterious Japanese singer Nadja haunts immediately and marks one of the most exquisite reissues in the ever-growing catalogue of Studio Mule. Originally released in 1989 as promo only CD on the Japanese label Polystar, the album features some of the finest eighties pop funk fusion arrangements of the era. A deeply enchanting lost gem, that gets listeners instantly into heavy repeat addiction.

All ten songs are arranged by a group of grandmasters of their art. Japanese saxophonist, composer and music producer Yasuaki Shimizu, man behind the electronic ambient fusion classic “Kakashi”, was in charge for tunes like “Wac-Wack”, a neon light funk pop song, full of soft big city eroticism, ultra-slick synth lines and real funkateer explosions. It’s followed by “夢のとりこ”, the most stirring pop tune on the album, that originally was written by French composer, multi-instrumentalist, actor and singer Areski Belkacem, known for his and long-time collaborations with French avantgarde singer Brigitte Fontaine. Shimizu transformed the song into a low hanging funk jewel, with a cool rolling bassline, dub depth and synths that cry for cosmic help. Above all Nadja signs with a sexy chill, that somehow could only emerge in the 1980ees, when the cold war even made pop music real cool. The follow up is named “真珠のように”, features again music by Belkacem, this time transformed by Shimizu into electronic erotic pop - dreamy, witchy and precisely musical composed.

The B-Side opens with “Velvet Rain”, a funky urban boogie composition by Japanese keyboard player, composer and producer Akira Inoue, enlarged with glimmer camp kitsch, that immediately puts a smile on the listeners faces. It gets followed by “Paradise Catcher”, a soft pop tune with longing string and horn sections, arranged by legendary Jamaican rhythm and production duo Sly & Robbie. It somehow marks one of the strangest songs in their longstanding career, as it is largely minimal orchestral but yet super tight when it comes down to the rhythmic magnitudes. The next tune, “Private Tripper”, also stays soulful, funky and horn driven. Always pleasing the super tight, yet feathery voice of Nadja, that is dancing about boogie grooves and illuminating melodies with a seducing tragical coolness. Finally the album ends with a stylistic break in the overall musical atmosphere. It comes from Japanese musician Hiroaki Goto, it’s called “地図をずっと南へ”and features Afro-Brasilian voodoo rhythms, pan flutes, cosmic piano notes and Nadja, singing like a rain forest sorceress from outer space.

Ten arrangements by a bunch of high-grade arrangers, that all left Nadja’s voice enough space to widespread her talent as a supremely seducing singer, who wrote all lyrics, vocals and chorus by herself in order to present her touching vocal class in a vivid, bewitching timeless style. Come in and get ensnared!

Following up on their debut LP Kick Drunk Love for Marcel Vogel’s Intimate Friends imprint a few years back, we are proud to present the next installment in the sporadic KAMM legacy: Cookie Policies.

Far more sonically rich and musically adventurous than its predecessor, Cookie Policies sees the band make bold strides into new territories where classically hardwired categories such as jazz, indie rock, and electronica melt into one another with immaculate, timeless ease.

The band members’ positions are more clear cut as well this round, with Marc David Barrite (aka Dave Aju, who also did one of his coveted mix engineering jobs on the LP) on prominent lead vocals in many of the pieces, Alland Byallo on trumpet, Kenneth Scott on synth bass, and Marc Smith adding guitar sections while the others shared the arranging and programming duties. This makes for a deeper continuation of the otherworldly combination of their known individual production styles, as well as a musical whole truly greater than the sum of its parts.

The set starts off with “Bird Call”, whose opening ode to Morricone ok corral-meets-samurai showdown riffs flow into a loose and drifting psychedelic boom bap blip, building until a glorious change-up of key and energy brings the track to its peak and deconstructed back down. “Rachel, the Largest Bullfrog” then takes things in a sweeter, slightly more traditionally-structured direction where dusty indie-folk ballad vibes intersect with an array of twisted cosmic tones, bits of computer keyboard percussion, and deep rolling sub bass. “Buckle Down” then moves things back away from acoustic restraints into a beautiful synth-laden musing on potential regret, with an ultra-potent horn section from Byallo vs a nasty stacked Roland SH-101 finish.

“CCBPGC” cools things off for a few minutes with an ambient field recording slice-and-dice motif, which slowly but surely evolves into a slinking jazz noir groove from another dimension. The more traditional song structures return on the lovely “La Luna”, where Barrite’s pen and soulful voice take to nautical longing themes over apropos waves of sonic textures. The ebb and flow of the verse/chorus sections eventually rise and give way to an absolutely gorgeous denouement. “Shleem” then takes us into pure unadulterated soaring sci-fi soundtrack ambient blast-off bliss, while the epic closing track “The Soft Glow of Electric Sex” gives a hearty nod to early masters of sprawling psychedelic jam sessions, from Pink Floyd and Can to In A Silent Way-era Miles and Liquid Liquid, while bringing it clearly into futurist millennia. The gradual evolution of the piece into its grand finale is the stuff we true music-lovers live and die for. We hope you enjoy the ride as much as we do.